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novabird's review
3.0
What I was struck by in All God’s Children, was the revelatory documentation by Denfeld on a new trend in alienated youth about the degree with which they deliberately dissociate and choose homelessness.
I can somewhat relate to this from my own early teen homelessness experiences and I can certainly understand what could cause such a type of alienation. But back then when I was a homeless youth in the '70s, there were not nearly as many resources available as there were in the 1990s. With even less of a safety net, I keenly remember the sharp feelings of desperation and alienation in my need to find a place where I could safely belong.
Denfeld offers readers fascinating insight into this relatively unheard, under-reported phenomenon; a self-chosen homeless youth lifestyle on the streets that integrates into social units called, ‘families.’ These are not mobster lead, ‘families,’ and not street gangs, rather these ‘families’ function as advice giving centers that help the young homeless better gain access to street outreach services, where they can find daily amenities, and they learn how to earn money through panhandling and crime, that is in Denfeld’s words, that “are not crimes of passion. These social units are, for the most part, organized, elaborate, and brutally sadistic.” - All God's Children. These Families also have “Laws,” which are both arbitrary and ungrounded, where once one is adopted into a family, there are harsh punishments meted out on the supposed guilty.
One thing that stood out for me was the fact that many of the members of the one family focused on by Denfeld, the ‘Thantos Family,’ had levels of previous criminality, mental damage, dysfunction and or learning disability.
Not that one should ever totally excuse anyone’s aberrant and aggressive behaviour, but it seems to me now after having also read, The Anatomy of Violence, that there are biological markers for a predisposition towards violence and that these measures need to be taken into more consideration than simply relying on a popular theory of a forensic psychiatrist. This psychiatrist, "Dr. Keith Ablow, who Denfeld relies on throughout her book writes in the New York Times, that an increasing number of teenagers are displaying “a profound detachment from self.” With scripted speech, hollow behavior, and a lack of ethics, these teenagers act “like actors playing themselves.” Dr. Ablow believes such teenagers are suffering from an identity disorder with roots in a “society that has drifted free from reality,” and who are influenced most recently by reality television and online gaming." - All God's Children
I disagree with Ablow. There has always been a segment of the most vulnerable population who have been homeless. Vulnerability is more from early interactions with ‘real,’ people and real consequences such as brain dysfunction and things like attachment disorder rather than late-onset teen symptoms of contemporary alienated detachment. It seems that Ablow looks to name a new condition rather than look at causes.
Stats found in the most recent study of 2002 estimated that there were an approximated 1.5 million American street kids. That's a huge number!
These youth are not unlike Fagin’s children from Oliver Twist. Fagin was a kidsman; an adult who recruited children and trained them as pickpockets, exchanging food and shelter for goods the children stole. They survived in an underground economy, whereas modern homeless youth survive on an above-board and underground economy.
Although Denfeld presented questionable theory, her reliable numbers and biographical casebook re-accounting in a descriptive journalistic format were well-delivered. It was just not her choice to examine and compare theories of 'Youth homelessness and criminality." Although she did touch on the future of prospective homeless youth emerging into adulthood. Yet, longitudinal studies are hard to conduct on the transient and particularly on those who transition from youth to adulthood. But some have been done:
AND ONE MORE STUDY:
Even though I was prepared for the content by Denfeld’s disclaimers in her prelude, warning of graphic content and explaining her attempt at avoidance of sensationalizing crime, I still had to cocoon myself by skipping horrific accounts of violence. I think she may have duplicated her descriptions of violence in order to emphasize their gravity, but I was like 'gosh didn't I already have to detour around this once?' Still, this is very much a worthwhile and important read, in order to get a sense of contemporary phenomena that may have an ongoing, upward trend and one that is not brought to our attention nearly enough. If you are sensitive like me, you may also need to somehow buffer the effects of the graphic content. 4
I can somewhat relate to this from my own early teen homelessness experiences and I can certainly understand what could cause such a type of alienation. But back then when I was a homeless youth in the '70s, there were not nearly as many resources available as there were in the 1990s. With even less of a safety net, I keenly remember the sharp feelings of desperation and alienation in my need to find a place where I could safely belong.
Denfeld offers readers fascinating insight into this relatively unheard, under-reported phenomenon; a self-chosen homeless youth lifestyle on the streets that integrates into social units called, ‘families.’ These are not mobster lead, ‘families,’ and not street gangs, rather these ‘families’ function as advice giving centers that help the young homeless better gain access to street outreach services, where they can find daily amenities, and they learn how to earn money through panhandling and crime, that is in Denfeld’s words, that “are not crimes of passion. These social units are, for the most part, organized, elaborate, and brutally sadistic.” - All God's Children. These Families also have “Laws,” which are both arbitrary and ungrounded, where once one is adopted into a family, there are harsh punishments meted out on the supposed guilty.
One thing that stood out for me was the fact that many of the members of the one family focused on by Denfeld, the ‘Thantos Family,’ had levels of previous criminality, mental damage, dysfunction and or learning disability.
Not that one should ever totally excuse anyone’s aberrant and aggressive behaviour, but it seems to me now after having also read, The Anatomy of Violence, that there are biological markers for a predisposition towards violence and that these measures need to be taken into more consideration than simply relying on a popular theory of a forensic psychiatrist. This psychiatrist, "Dr. Keith Ablow, who Denfeld relies on throughout her book writes in the New York Times, that an increasing number of teenagers are displaying “a profound detachment from self.” With scripted speech, hollow behavior, and a lack of ethics, these teenagers act “like actors playing themselves.” Dr. Ablow believes such teenagers are suffering from an identity disorder with roots in a “society that has drifted free from reality,” and who are influenced most recently by reality television and online gaming." - All God's Children
I disagree with Ablow. There has always been a segment of the most vulnerable population who have been homeless. Vulnerability is more from early interactions with ‘real,’ people and real consequences such as brain dysfunction and things like attachment disorder rather than late-onset teen symptoms of contemporary alienated detachment. It seems that Ablow looks to name a new condition rather than look at causes.
Stats found in the most recent study of 2002 estimated that there were an approximated 1.5 million American street kids. That's a huge number!
These youth are not unlike Fagin’s children from Oliver Twist. Fagin was a kidsman; an adult who recruited children and trained them as pickpockets, exchanging food and shelter for goods the children stole. They survived in an underground economy, whereas modern homeless youth survive on an above-board and underground economy.
Although Denfeld presented questionable theory, her reliable numbers and biographical casebook re-accounting in a descriptive journalistic format were well-delivered. It was just not her choice to examine and compare theories of 'Youth homelessness and criminality." Although she did touch on the future of prospective homeless youth emerging into adulthood. Yet, longitudinal studies are hard to conduct on the transient and particularly on those who transition from youth to adulthood. But some have been done:
One area not covered in this report* was the links between these outcomes, homelessness and crime. While a thorough discussion of this literature base is beyond the scope of this report, research shows the presence of between various links. * Mental Health, Delinquency and Incarceration
For example:
• In British Columbia, 68% of youth in custody reported that they had run away from or were forced to leave their homes in the year prior to custody; 46% reported being homeless in the past year.
• A literature review noted that more than half of people charged with misdemeanors were homeless or living in unstable housing before their arrest. Consistent with this, research shows that Canada’s federal inmates reported higher rates of unstable housing than the general population.
• In the U.S., a study of inmates in San Francisco found that 16% of all episodes of incarceration involved someone who was homeless; inmates had a mental disorder diagnosis in 18% of these episodes. Homeless inmates were more likely than non-homeless inmates to be diagnosed with a mental disorder and a co-occurring/co-morbid mental disorder and substance-related disorder; the latter were also more likely to have multiple episodes of incarceration than those without a co-occurring disorder.
In terms of discharge planning, a recent report noted “. . . there is a bi-directional relationship between homelessness and incarceration.” (p. 87) Homeless men are more vulnerable to involvement in the justice system due to poverty, substance use, economic survival strategies and greater surveillance by law enforcement; in turn, “. . . the prison experience itself may place releasees at risk of becoming homeless.”
www.cmha.ca/download.php?docid=44
AND ONE MORE STUDY:
- It is beyond the scope of this research to map precise paths between adverse childhood events and chronic adult homelessness. The strong connection between the two confirmed in this study, however, suggests that when we separate the outcomes of adverse childhood events from those events themselves, we fail both youth who experienced homelessness as a result of these events and the chronically homeless adults they may become.
- The importance of adverse childhood events in chronic adult homelessness provides a cautionary tale for our response to youth who experience homelessness.
- Our response to trauma needs to be embedded in a perspective that contextualizes homelessness with deeper meanings of home, and with the life story and the social processes that tie together teen homelessness and chronic adult homelessness.
http://www1.uwindsor.ca/criticalsocialwork/system/files/Baker_Collins.pdf
Even though I was prepared for the content by Denfeld’s disclaimers in her prelude, warning of graphic content and explaining her attempt at avoidance of sensationalizing crime, I still had to cocoon myself by skipping horrific accounts of violence. I think she may have duplicated her descriptions of violence in order to emphasize their gravity, but I was like 'gosh didn't I already have to detour around this once?' Still, this is very much a worthwhile and important read, in order to get a sense of contemporary phenomena that may have an ongoing, upward trend and one that is not brought to our attention nearly enough. If you are sensitive like me, you may also need to somehow buffer the effects of the graphic content. 4
erincharp's review
5.0
I love Rene Denfeld and wanted to read this one before the newest Butterfly Girl book. I did not know much about homeless street culture, if anything at all. Having spent time in Denver a few summers ago, I did notice the groups of homeless children together often with older adults but had no idea this had to do with families that form. This was a gritty and often uncomfortable read about the Thantos family, a particularly violent and criminal-led family. It was not easy, but I definitely feel that it's a read no one should miss.
crowyhead's review
2.0
The more I think about this book, the more irritated I am by it. I do believe that Denfeld has brought attention to a legitimate problem, that of "street families" -- that is, small ganglike groups of young street people, often lead by charismatic individuals -- that contribute to crime and commit acts of violence. Denfeld focuses strongly on several vicious murders perpetrated by a man named James Daniel Nelson with the assistance of other street "kids" (most of the "kids" mentioned were in their late teens or twenties). But despite her protestations to the contrary in the introduction, Denfeld's book is a sensationalistic "true crime" book, not a work that promotes thoughtful discussion.
Denfeld blames just about everything you can think of for the existence of these street families and the crimes they commit: Dungeons & Dragons, Wicca (and neo-paganism in general), Food Not Bombs, anarchists, public spaces like parks and squares, and shelters that offer health care, housing and food to teenagers without asking too many questions, to name just a few. I was particularly bothered by Denfeld's repeated bashing of the shelters and the people who run them; I know several people who work with street youth, and it's pretty much the hardest job imaginable. Denfeld mocks specific shelters for offering massage therapy and acupuncture free of charge -- neglecting to mention that these services are offered specifically because a) they are supplied by volunteers, and b) they don't carry the costs or dangers of distributing prescription medications, some of which have street value. She actually seems to miss the days when being a homeless adolescent almost certainly meant resorting to prostitution to survive. I should also note that her descriptions of Pioneer Courthouse Square really had me scratching my head, since she makes it sound like it's some kind of lawless danger zone, rather than a public square where you're just as likely to see a businessman eating his lunch as you are some crusties cadging for change. Finally, while Denfeld repeatedly insists that most of the youth on the street come from normal middle-class families and would be leading normal productive lives if they hadn't been drawn into this enticing street culture, nearly all of the main players described had problems at home, struck me as having serious mental health issues, or both. Just because a kid has had financial advantages does not mean he or she has no reason to be on the street.
To conclude, I have no doubt that the crimes described in the book deserve attention. Neither do I doubt that anyone would seriously argue that there are faults in the support systems for homeless youth in Portland and other cities in the U.S. But Denfeld is doing little to contribute to the solution, and in the process is gravely misinforming many readers, not to mention potentially harming individuals she purports to want to help.
Denfeld blames just about everything you can think of for the existence of these street families and the crimes they commit: Dungeons & Dragons, Wicca (and neo-paganism in general), Food Not Bombs, anarchists, public spaces like parks and squares, and shelters that offer health care, housing and food to teenagers without asking too many questions, to name just a few. I was particularly bothered by Denfeld's repeated bashing of the shelters and the people who run them; I know several people who work with street youth, and it's pretty much the hardest job imaginable. Denfeld mocks specific shelters for offering massage therapy and acupuncture free of charge -- neglecting to mention that these services are offered specifically because a) they are supplied by volunteers, and b) they don't carry the costs or dangers of distributing prescription medications, some of which have street value. She actually seems to miss the days when being a homeless adolescent almost certainly meant resorting to prostitution to survive. I should also note that her descriptions of Pioneer Courthouse Square really had me scratching my head, since she makes it sound like it's some kind of lawless danger zone, rather than a public square where you're just as likely to see a businessman eating his lunch as you are some crusties cadging for change. Finally, while Denfeld repeatedly insists that most of the youth on the street come from normal middle-class families and would be leading normal productive lives if they hadn't been drawn into this enticing street culture, nearly all of the main players described had problems at home, struck me as having serious mental health issues, or both. Just because a kid has had financial advantages does not mean he or she has no reason to be on the street.
To conclude, I have no doubt that the crimes described in the book deserve attention. Neither do I doubt that anyone would seriously argue that there are faults in the support systems for homeless youth in Portland and other cities in the U.S. But Denfeld is doing little to contribute to the solution, and in the process is gravely misinforming many readers, not to mention potentially harming individuals she purports to want to help.
jcm's review
1.0
While reading I tried Googling the murdered as well as the murderers, I only found a few stories, so the one good thing I have to say is that the dead get some measure of justice by having their horrific, sadistic deaths given some attention.
This is a DNF for me. I do not get queasy easily, I am into real-life crime stories, but this just felt disgustingly voyeuristic just so the author could make a buck. I kept waiting for some insight into actual reasons, not speculations that seemed hackneyed and redundant.
It felt like the author had contempt for everyone who even attempted to help street kids. People that give of their time and money with no real help from the state. People who work with limited resources, who are neither police or personally responsible for the kids who pass through their doors.
Very disappointing book, in another's hands it could have been much more than sensationalism for sensationalism's sake.
This is a DNF for me. I do not get queasy easily, I am into real-life crime stories, but this just felt disgustingly voyeuristic just so the author could make a buck. I kept waiting for some insight into actual reasons, not speculations that seemed hackneyed and redundant.
It felt like the author had contempt for everyone who even attempted to help street kids. People that give of their time and money with no real help from the state. People who work with limited resources, who are neither police or personally responsible for the kids who pass through their doors.
Very disappointing book, in another's hands it could have been much more than sensationalism for sensationalism's sake.
kathleenitpdx's review
4.0
This is a frightening book about a "family" of street kids in Portland, OR and their involvement in several murders. It shows how important belonging is to kids and how easily they can be led. I guess it is a demonstration of what research is now telling us that the human brain does not completely mature until the late 20's or even the early 30's. And that some people are truly evil.
realbooks4ever's review
4.0
In 2003, Jessica Kate Williams was murdered in one of the most horrific ways imaginable. James Daniel Nelson was ultimately responsible for this and another murder in 1992. But he didn’t hold the weapons that killed Jessica; he had his “family” do it for him. How did he have such control over a dozen other street kids? ALL GOD’S CHILDREN: Inside the Dark and Violent World of Street Families, written by Rene Denfeld, explains how. James, or “Thantos” as he liked to be called, was the “father” of a street family in Portland, Oregon. In the 1990s Portland was very tolerant of street kids. They flocked to Pioneer Square, panhandled, fought among themselves, and sometimes mugged strangers. A lot of their crimes went unreported by the media. By 2003 there were several established street families that usually included a father or mother figure who made the “kids” panhandle all day and turn the money over to them. A street family might give a teenager the feeling of belonging, but if they dared break a street rule they could end up dead.
ALL GOD’S CHILDREN is about how teenagers end up in these gangs, blindly following the sometimes deadly instructions of someone who is absolutely no relation to them. James Nelson’s mission was to live on the streets permanently. As long as he had people to panhandle and run errands for him he could do this.
Denfeld shows us that these kids are duped into thinking they are safe in a street family, when the truth is that even a made-up transgression can get them killed. The descriptions of torture and murder in this book, as given by witnesses, are matter-of-fact but VERY disturbing. I chose to skip reading most of the killing of Jessica Williams because it bothered me so much to know that there are such cruel and disturbed people out there on the streets. I live in Portland and walk through the groups of kids around Pioneer Square. I’ve always had the feeling of “there’s room enough for all of us”. I think Denfeld’s intention was to wake us up to the reality of what’s going on in these families.
I was very interested in the subject as I had a relative that was among the street people at one time. Denfeld spent 10 years observing these people and her descriptions of them are multi-dimensional. I really came to care about Jessica Williams and am heartbroken to read how she died. I would recommend this book to anyone who has ever wondered, “Why are those kids just hanging out there?”
ALL GOD’S CHILDREN is about how teenagers end up in these gangs, blindly following the sometimes deadly instructions of someone who is absolutely no relation to them. James Nelson’s mission was to live on the streets permanently. As long as he had people to panhandle and run errands for him he could do this.
Denfeld shows us that these kids are duped into thinking they are safe in a street family, when the truth is that even a made-up transgression can get them killed. The descriptions of torture and murder in this book, as given by witnesses, are matter-of-fact but VERY disturbing. I chose to skip reading most of the killing of Jessica Williams because it bothered me so much to know that there are such cruel and disturbed people out there on the streets. I live in Portland and walk through the groups of kids around Pioneer Square. I’ve always had the feeling of “there’s room enough for all of us”. I think Denfeld’s intention was to wake us up to the reality of what’s going on in these families.
I was very interested in the subject as I had a relative that was among the street people at one time. Denfeld spent 10 years observing these people and her descriptions of them are multi-dimensional. I really came to care about Jessica Williams and am heartbroken to read how she died. I would recommend this book to anyone who has ever wondered, “Why are those kids just hanging out there?”
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