Advertisement

Inside and Out: the long road to leaving a gang

Click to play video: 'Inside and Out: Getting Out'
Inside and Out: Getting Out
WATCH: Programs like Regina Street Culture Project play a significant role in helping gang members leave a dangerous life behind – Sep 13, 2019

There’s always a moment, and it’s usually a bad one, that finally leads someone to decide they need to leave gang life behind.

For Dakota Toto, a former Native Syndicate member, it happened the day he last got out of prison.

“It took me almost dying from getting shot at,” he said.

“That really scared me and put my family in danger, so it was time for me to leave that life.”

Leaving a gang involves much more than just submitting your two weeks’ notice. There is no goodbye luncheon or farewell cake.

“Oh, that was a nightmare,” echoed a fellow former NS member, Cody Francis.

Story continues below advertisement

As part of his original initiation into the gang, Francis says he was beaten by other members — something called “taking a minute.” When it came time for him to leave, he says he took eight separate “minutes.”

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

But that was only the beginning of his battle.

“After I dropped my rag, and I was done with that lifestyle, the hardest thing I had to deal with was drug addiction,” he said. “Everybody is fighting it.”

Successfully leaving a gang is rarely done without support, and Regina’s Street Culture Project has helped many turn their lives around.

“When that window opens, we ram that crowbar in there as quickly as we can,” said the organization’s operations director, Mike Gerrand.

Street Culture provides employment opportunities, health and fitness education, and even housing in some cases. It caters the programming to meet the needs of the individuals it supports.

“If we try to make someone walk to the beat of our drum, it usually doesn’t have much success,” says Gerrand.

Regina police also acknowledge the value of community organizations in the fight against crime and poverty.

Story continues below advertisement
“If the gang member that’s coming out of a correctional centre doesn’t trust the Regina Police Service,” said Chief Evan Bray, “maybe they do trust [groups like] Street Culture, or Circle Project.”

People like Francis and Toto are the success stories. They both work for Street Culture, hoping others can follow in their footsteps.

“It’s a good life out here,” Toto said.

Francis is hoping his story comes full circle, by becoming an addiction counsellor to those who may be battling the same struggle he once was.

Sponsored content

AdChoices