8 - The Road Ahead
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 October 2022
Summary
2Pac ft Danny Boy (1996)
‘I Ain't Mad At Cha’
This track is by American hip-hop star 2Pac. In this track he refers to his youth before he became famous and the friends who left him after he became successful. It relays his journey from the ‘ghetto’ to becoming famous and the process of change. Music track selected by Jordan.
For the men that I spoke to, life on-road did not last forever. All of those who participated in the study talked retrospectively about their lives. In that sense they were survivors – they had managed to live through and beyond their childhood lives, and their on-road and gang-involved time. In terms of a process of moving on from this stage in their lives, the participants were all at different points. This is not least because they were from a broad range of ages, from some in their early twenties, with others in their early fifties. However, they all talked about their process of desistance from criminality and how they disentwined themselves from their gang involvement. For some (Dylan, Lester, Shaun), this separation from a gang and on-roadfocused life was prompted by long prison sentences, which served as a motivating feature of desistance. For others (Sam, Dave), enduring mental health problems initiated a search for help. Jordan and Eric completed a university education and sought to remove themselves from on-road life by seeking new employment opportunities. They spoke about getting tired of living on the run, on high alert. In reality, it was probably a combination of a range of factors that made them feel, I’ve had enough. This is typified in Sam's words:
‘My life had just been a crazy riot and I just wanted change, I couldn’t, I couldn't do it no more, and I’d gone too far. Too much on my brain, too much on my heart, just enough is enough kind of thing. I was in denial and there was a few points that said to me, no this isn't right, you need to listen to this, but I was always in denial, no need, don't care.’ (Sam)
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- Boys, Childhood Domestic Abuse and Gang InvolvementViolence at Home, Violence On-Road, pp. 113 - 132Publisher: Bristol University PressPrint publication year: 2022