Red shirt caused gang thug to assault child

Defiant gestures from young people at the Whakatane playground where the 4-year-old was assaulted. Photo / Alan Gibson

Residents of a Bay of Plenty suburb where a 4-year-old boy was assaulted for wearing a red shirt say they do not dress their children in the colour for fear of Black Power gang reprisals.

The assault on the preschooler in a Whakatane park has drawn widespread condemnation and a police hunt for a gang member or gang wannabe who was wearing a blue T-shirt and blue bandannas around his wrists and neck.

Whakatane is considered the territory of Black Power, which is associated with blue clothing.

The gang's fierce rival, the Mongrel Mob, wears red.

Police revealed yesterday that the boy was playing with his family in the Cutler Crescent reserve last week when a man approached him and berated him about the colour of his shirt.

While the child's father had his back turned, the man poked the boy and pulled the shirt off him.

Senior Sergeant Bruce Jenkins said: "I think this offender is despicable and the police are intent on finding out who is responsible."

Eastern Bay of Plenty acting area commander Greg Sparrow said the man, who was in his 20s, might not be a formal member of a gang, but part of a "wannabe" youth group.

Police initially said the attacker was a Black Power member.

"This was a terrible incident and no doubt it was frightening for the boy and his family and we are doing everything we can to locate this person and ensure he is held accountable," said Mr Sparrow.

He said members of the community should still feel safe.

Some people around the reserve said they refused to be intimidated by gangs and did not watch what they wore in public.

But others told the Herald they wouldn't dare send their children out in red colours in the suburb where the incident occurred.

One resident said she hated choosing her children's clothes with a concern for their safety.

"My kids are 4 and 5. I should be able to send them out there in any colour. But this whole street is black and blue. It's such a shame."

She did not want to be named because she had confronted Black Power members before and had the front windows of her house broken.

Another mother, who had children aged 3 and 5, said she stopped dressing them in red after she heard of an 80-year-old woman being abused for the colour of her jersey in downtown Whakatane.

"It's silly. But it has a real-life effect. When [cancer support group] CanTeen sells bandannas here, they take out the red and blue because they know they'll cause a fuss."

Whakatane Mayor Colin Holmes said the incident was not isolated, but the young age of the victim was a first.

"Gang colours are part of life in any town in New Zealand. But for someone to pick on someone so young is unbelievable. It's nonsensical."

He said the district council wanted to follow Wanganui's example and take action against gangs, especially their public presence and regalia.

"We would already have enforced this but we feel it is being dealt with by the government at a national level. We whole-heartedly support it."

Mr Holmes said banning gang regalia would not solve the gang problem, but it would reduce gang members' intimidation of the public.

Trident High principal Peter Tootell said the school did not normally have problems with gang colours.

"Our school uniform is blue - our kids wear blue all the time. Our house colours - one house is red. On sports days, it's not an issue.

"But we are totally opposed to anything that might be construed as gang regalia," Mr Tootell said.

Gang expert Dennis O'Reilly said the assault on the child was not something gangs endorsed.

"It wouldn't matter who you affiliated with, no one would endorse that sort of carry on - no one," he said.

Mr O'Reilly said it was likely that the attacker was a "wannabe gang member" going to the extremes.

"Attacking a child? What characteristics or warriorism are you trying to display there?"

Mr O'Reilly said the whole "colour thing" was a silly adaptation of American gang culture that young people tended to take seriously.

The attitudes of the infamous Los Angeles gangs the Crips and the Bloods had influenced many New Zealand youngsters through movies and music videos.

As a result, many prospective gang members - and even children who did not have a full understanding of what the colours meant - now openly affiliate themselves with the Crips versus Bloods rivalry of blue versus red.

- ADDITIONAL REPORTING: VAIMOANA TAPALEAO