Throwback Tuesdays: Gang War: Bangin' in Little Rock

Classic Gang Documentary made in 1994



The documentary painted a hopeless and pessimistic view of the violence in the city. At the time Little Rock was one of the most dangerous cities in the country. Sitting at the intersection of two major interstates from Los Angeles and New York, it had become a haven for drug trafficking. There were prominent gang presences of Bloods, Crips and Hoover's Folk Nation.

The documentary brought much attention to the problems in the city; the Little Rock Police force was quadrupled. As a result, the street gang problem was nearly eradicated.

While gang presence did decrease in the middle 90s, there is current evidence that local youth are once again beginning to identify with street gangs and drug dealers. Many intervention and prevention programs were not funded causing an increase once again in violence among youth.

Steve Nawojczyk GangWar who was the county coroner during the Gang War years, and was featured in the documentary, continues to work in the intervention and prevention of youth gangs. While Gang War: Bangin' in Little Rock followed Nawojczyk while he did his grim work as the county's chief coroner, it also showed his attempts at reducing the record-high homicide rate in Arkansas' capital city.

There was a follow up documentary released in 2004 called Gang War 2- Back in the Hood.