James Lathlin’s story is enough to frighten just about anyone.

He moved from the Opaskwayak Cree Nation reserve in The Pas to Winnipeg when he was a young child. While his mother pursued an education as a nurse’s aid, Lathlin had to take on the parenting role for his younger sister.

“I had to be like a father to [her],” he said.

This parental role directed Lathlin’s focus away from school. Lathlin began dealing marijuana small-time until the demand became larger.

“You get money hungry when you’re pushing a pound a week,” Lathlin said. “I had all the right things, I had all the right hook ups.”

That’s when the gangs began to take interest.

“It was basically like ‘OK, you’re gonna work for this guy now.’”

Lathlin was caught up in the gang culture all the way from the drug sales to the armed robberies, until a rival gang shot him, landing him in the Stony Mountain Penitentiary hospital. Lathlin spent two years in jail for his gang activity.

“I began writing a journal and that journal became my life,” he said.

After his stint in jail, Lathlin realized how his gang life had affected his home life.

“My family didn’t like me. No one liked me. I was too dangerous.”

Lathlin took courses at Red River Community College and began taking his message to the community.

“I beat it with education,” Lathlin said.

Scared Straight is the name of Lathlin’s program. He presents it in schools, using his life story to scare kids away from gangs. He does so through his stories and his scars from being shot and stabbed.

“If I could beat it with education, they can beat it with education,” he said. “I went from being cracked out on the streets to speaking to these kids.”

Dakota House is an aboriginal actor and founder of Going Miles, a non-profit organization that uses the arts to inspire aboriginal youth.

“He’s a brother from another mother,” House said of Lathlin. “The work that James does is outstanding and stand up.”

Lathlin and House’s programs serve two purposes when they collaborate. Scared Straight shows the consequences of gang activity and Going Miles gives the kids a creative outlet and a reason to avoid gangs.

“It’s so important that James is doing what he’s doing,” said House. “He shows you his scars and tells you straight-up how it is.”

James Lathlin can be contacted for a Scared Straight workshop via Facebook or MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/jameslathlin.

Published in Volume 64, Number 12 of The Uniter (November 19, 2009)