Post 8: Gang Activity in Lincoln Schools

Gangs are just something you see in movies, right? Wrong. Surprisingly, even in Lincoln, NE, there are gangs. This may not be a huge shock to some, but for me, coming from small-town Nebraska, it is. After reading the article, “Officials see signs of gang activity in schools” in the Lincoln Journal Star, I realized just how soon gang activity can begin and how troubling it can be. It not only affects the person involved in the gang, but also those who care about them.

The article talks about a girl, who had a lot of potential, was a student at Lincoln North Star High School, and at age fourteen she was recruited into a gang. I think this is very sad and something should definitely be done to deal with this pressing issue so it doesn’t become worse and more widespread. According to this article, gangs begin recruiting kids as early as middle school and about 400 or more people in Lincoln have connections to gangs. At this age, some kids don’t know any better and tend to be very vulnerable, meaning they are perfect targets for gangs. This is especially true for kids who come from spilt families, like the girl in the article.

For me, it’s hard to imagine how somebody with so much potential to go far in this world, could get sucked in so easily to the evil of gangs and throw all of that potential away. It just shows that it can happen to anybody and that teachers, parents, etc. really need to begin paying a lot more attention on their students and look out for signs of any possible gang involvement.

Middle school is a tough time for everybody, when the need to fit in is very prevalent; therefore, it’s a fragile time in a child’s life. If they make wrong decisions, such as joining a gang and getting involved with drugs, sex, and/or alcohol; it can have a huge impact on the rest of their lives. All we can do is look out for the signs and try to prevent gang activity in schools and the community.

Post 7: A Passion for Swing Dancing

What’s your passion? College students all across America probably heard this question asked thousands of times while trying to decide on the ‘perfect’ college. I know I did. Hearing this inquiry over and over again, I finally gave it some consideration. What are my passions? After much thought and analysis, I came to the conclusion that I don’t really have one main passion. I’m passionate about a wide variety of things; one of these being country swing dancing .


Have you ever watched a couple swing dance? To me it is one of the most fascinating things. It’s amazing how the pair’s arms can appear so twisted up and get there with such speed and rhythm, yet they don’t actually get tangled or mess the dancers up. The lifts and stunts pulled by swing dancers are also spectacular. Over the head, around the waist, under the legs, to the left or to the right, there are an endless amount of tricks that the couple can do and still manage to stay on beat.

I can still remember the first time I learned how to swing dance. It was during my sophomore year of high school. Starting to catch the hang of it about the middle of the song “Fishin’ in the Dark”, I was suddenly shocked when my partner grabbed me around the waist and, before I knew what was happening, he flipped me upside down and back up again. Startled, I let out a little yelp, just as he set me back down safely on my feet. It was an exhilarating and liberating feeling, almost defying gravity. From that day forward, I never passed up a chance to go swing dancing.

Coming from a little town to the big city, I’ve found that not as many people listen to country music, which is rather disappointing, but I was ecstatic when I discovered the Pla Mor Ballroom , which holds country swing dancing nights every Sunday. Whenever I get the chance I try to go and improve upon my four years experience of swing dancing. I love learning new moves and tricks. Dancing with a wide range of partners, from very experienced to no experience and me having to teach the moves, I can truly say that swing dancing has become a part of who I am and is, and probably always will be, one of my passions.