Londons Falling

Unheard Cries Of Desperation

Rating: 5/5
Comments:
All God's Children by Rene Denfeld tells the harrowing story of a phenomenon that has become widespread throughout the United States- the phenomenon of street families. In her book, Denfeld reveals a world so alien to what we have come to expect from a fully functional society, a world filled with rules and laws that are not defined by the state but by youths who have abandoned their homes to eek out an existence on the streets.

According to Denfeld, there are over 1.5 million street kids in the United States alone. While many of these kids succumb to their own desire for rebellion, the street culture they have chosen as an alternative is a far cry from the anarchy we might envision. Rather, it is a culture that exists under the control of 'fathers' and 'mothers' who exert their authority and demand a strict loyalty from their children. As part of their daily activities the children go out onto the streets and 'pan-handle'- scrounge for money- bringing back the proceeds for their street parents to use as they please. Often the money goes towards purchasing drugs, primarily methamphetamines. This is a world of violence and blood shed in which barbaric beatings and sometimes killings occur whenever there is a feeling that family loyalties have been breached.

Street families live out their own Dungeons & Dragons-style dramas constantly creating and inventing stories that give them reason to beat, torture and kill. Hostels and accommodation agencies do what little they can to provide shelters and food for these children to live on. Yet unwilling and powerless as they are to intervene, those running these shelters can only hope that the part they play may one day encourage these children to enter back into civilized society.

Portland, Oregon was the location of a street-family-related murder in 2003. The victim was a girl by the name of Jessica Williams, massacred by a group of children who just happened at that moment to be playing out a drama. Pounded, bruised, punched, beaten and set on fire, Jessica's corpse was all but recognizable to those who knew her. The 'father' of this street family was James Daniel Nelson- a man who as a child had experienced abuse at the hands of his alcoholic parents and had suffered from the effects of alcohol poisoning during development. Nelson dabbled in witchcraft and satanism turning to violence even as a teenager.

Tragedy and instability all had a part to play in the fate that befell many of the children who lived under Nelson's influence. Names such as Grant Charboneau, Carl Alsup and Jimmy Stewart stand as testimony of what a loveless upbringing can do to a child. Growing up in broken families, unstable homes and facing abuse from their parents, these children had nowhere to turn to except the streets. The dramas and fantasies of street violence were just what they needed to forever bury their past.

James Nelson took advantage of their desperation. In his street family as in many throughout the country, the children took on the names of mythical heroes and gods- people who they could identify with as part of their own fantasizing. Nelson became 'Thantos'- the Greek god of death- and exerted that image to the full in almost everything he did. Having spent over 10 years in prison for the murder of one of his own, Nelson became a cult figure who attracted the 'newbies' through his boastful talk of murder and revenge.

Nelson's cultivated his violent tendencies through his own 'death knight warriors'- members of the family especially trained for armed combat. A girl called Danielle Cox was one of them. Still carrying the deep scars left by the tragic death of her father- killed in a plane crash when she was only thirteen- Danielle abandoned a university education and the prospects of a bright future to join the street culture. She was by her own admission attracted by the 'father figure' that Nelson provided and which she had never had growing up as a teenager. She quickly became one of his most violent family members, frequently threatening other kids with her aggressive and violent demeanor.

After just a few weeks on the streets, Danielle became embroiled in another 'drama' this time against Jessica Williams. Angered by Jessica's behavior, some of the other kids had accusing her of being an informant against the family. She had to be eliminated: "smashed on sight". In a carefully executed mission, Jessica was 'taxed'- beaten up with baseball bats- over several hours until she could barely walk. Danielle Cox was one of three street warriors chosen to then murder Jessica. As Danielle knifed her in the throat, seemingly deaf to her cries of disbelief as she choked, others danced in the excitement almost entranced by what was about to happen. Jessica was set on fire and later died at the hands of a merciless group of teenage kids who had lost all sense of reality. Many of these including Nelson eventually ended up serving life jail sentences for their part in the murder.

Denfeld's account sends a clear warning to us about the dangers that exist for our own children. Her attention to the comings and goings of street life- in all its macabre detail- makes her writing both so vivid and at the same time so disturbing. As Denfeld indicates, much of the information that allows children to get access to the street-family mentality is directly available over the Internet. Our responsibility as parents lies in ensuring that this information stays out of reach of today's youth. All God's Children has all the hallmarks of a horror story perhaps not unlike that of William Golding's Lord Of The Flies. The difference here is that the story is real and it exists right in our own towns and cities. We would do well to take note. After all, the future of our own children is at stake.

Hard to follow

Rating: 2/5
Comments:
I am an avid reader or nonfiction, but found this book hard to read since it jumps all over the place. There are a lot of people to try to keep track of, things seem not to flow right, and it jumps from person to person with no transition or reason for the scatterings of it. Its hard to keep track of what is going on till the end where it is more of a straight timeline. I enjoyed the information it provided about a subject I knew nothing about, and since I live in Madison WI I have seen these kids on State Street, and now know more about the dynamics of the "family" but I gave it 2 stars because of the fact it was so hard to follow with all the bouncing around. I felt it would have been a better read if there was more of a full timeline, less jumping from person to person, and if it seemed more of a complete thought rather then learning a bit about someone, then moving on to someone else, and then later back to more of this persons background or personality. It was just to hard to grasp who someone was since you never get the full information till many pages later, and by then you are focused on someone else the way the author takes you, and you have to time out to try to remember now who they are talking about. If you want to read this, I would get it from a library rather then buy it. Also I read the other reviews about it, and wonder if they are real or placed since I do not agree with the people saying it was well written. Its full of a lot of great information, but not well written at all, but you can make your own conclusion.

Don't miss this book

Rating: 5/5
Comments:
I was hesitant to get this book because I don't typically get into non-fiction. I bought it out of curiosity because I was told it was one I wouldn't be able to put down. I was taken in by the end of chapter one. It is a true and disturbing look at the real life of a group of street kids. Definitely worth your time and money.