The H.O.P.E. Project
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The Founders Bio: Louis Ray Guiden Jr.
I was born in Shreveport, LA. "Cedar Grove" was the place that I called home, a neighborhood which portrayed racism, negativity, poverty, distress, bitterness, and hardships. Cedar Grove has a recent reputation as a dangerous, inner-city neighborhood, especially during the crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980s. According to 2005 FBI statistics, Shreveport ranks 18th in overall crime rate among cities of 100,000-250,000 persons, with a murder rate of 19.6 per 100,000 population, homicides reported YTD is 29. The additional weight of a scarce job market produced division between husband and wives, father and sons, and mother and daughters. Our home was by no means exempt of this perpetual breakdown and demise in the core family structure. Everyday life became a game of survival; we all had to make ends meet by any means necessary. So for me, the streets became my mentor and support.
Growing up the internal battle of low self esteem, depression and anger fueled the bitterness I had towards my parents. Wanting love, acceptance, and a true support system to help me deal with my life, the hurt inside begin to evolve into a volcano of negative emotion. By the late 80’s, gangs and crack was becoming more predominate so I saw this as a way to have power and authority in the streets of my neighborhood. I became apart of the Five Deuce Hoover Crips which later became the "19" Gang which was a gang with its own meaning. We were not liked by the other rival gangs that was from Los Angeles like the "59" Bloods, Lime Street, Rollin 60’s, Rollin 30’s, Watts Bloods, Grape Street, Harp Street, The Bottom Boys, Allendale, Queens Borough, Forest Oaks, most of these gangs were either affiliated with Los Angeles or started by its own neighborhoods.
Louisiana became baby Los Angeles in a sense. The population was not as large as Los Angeles but we were angry and frustrated, youngsters with access to a corruptible, but emotionally empowering way of life. There were huge connections with Mexico which brought in a lot of cocaine, marijuana, and major fire arms into our territory. Little by little, the layers of innocence were peeled away as I begin to step into this new way of life. I witnessed murders, police conspiracy, and the downfall of our neighborhood and communities as a result of the gang activity and violence.
In June 1993, I moved to Seattle, WA trying to escape the memories, scares, wounds, and most of all the life in the "19" Gang. Slowly but surely, it became evident that the seeds of violence had become rooted and grounded into the core of who I was, and wasn’t willing to let me go that easy. Soon after my arrival, the potential opportunities for a young country boy in a big city became too much to pass up. I ran the streets for 7 years straight, with no hope of slowing down, at least that is what I thought.
My life changed when I went to church with my cousin one morning, and I haven’t looked back since. I got married in July 2000, became a family man, and now I am the Founder of Good Shepherd Youth Outreach. I am blessed to be alive and I am excited about transforming the communities which I once tore down. My vision is to educate the youth, while encouraging and equipping them with the life tools to keep them from turning to the streets for love and support.
