Mostly harmless

[S. Alexander Reed]

Remember the Blus Springs thing two years back, where a task force 
was given hundreds of thousands of dollars to combat the "Goth 
problem"?  Yeah.  Turns out there wasn't much of a problem.  Go 
figure:


BLUE SPRINGS, Mo. (AP) -- Almost half of a $273,000 grant awarded in 
2002 to fight the Goth culture in Blue Springs has been returned 
because of a lack of interest -- and the absence of a real problem.

Blue Springs received the grant two years ago from the Youth Outreach 
Unit, money the city and U.S. Rep. Sam Graves trumpeted proudly as a 
way to fight a perceived Goth problem.

But $132,000 of the grant was returned because officials never found 
much of a problem with the Goth culture, which some students called a 
fad that most people eventually outgrow.

Slightly more than $118,000 of the money was earmarked for therapy, 
assessment and case management, and the plans also included a series 
of town meetings to discuss the issue.

"It never happened because referring someone for looking, acting Goth 
is not a concept that ever got imbedded in people's heads," project 
manager Allyce Ford said of the therapy proposal.

The town hall meetings didn't happen, either, she said, because there 
wasn't enough interest in the community to conduct them.

About halfway through the project, the focus shifted from Goths to 
counter cultures and negative influences facing children, Ford said.

"You have to admit if you saw one, two, three, four or more people 
dressed in traditional Goth, it would be discerning," she said. 
"Those kids have every right to be there. I hope the lessons you're 
teaching are tolerance and understanding."

Assistant City Administrator Eric Johnson said despite the change in 
focus, the project helped dispel myths and stereotypes associated 
with the Goth culture.

"That was part of the goal," Johnson said. "If we were able to 
accomplish that, we are able to accomplish something effective."

Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.