The environment has a great amount of influence on these kids, but it's up to the parents and the kids themselves to make better decisions.
I was born and raised in a part of Pittsburgh (Beltzhoover) that aint the ideal place to live, and I went through some of the same obstacles that these lil dudes are going through, but my parents always tried to steer me in the right direction and it was up to me whether I wanted to chill with the crips or the other savages, or the normal nikkas that did a lil dirt but nothing too crazy. I stuck with normal crowd and had fun, but wasn't out there selling drugs and killing nikkas. Got a job when I was 14 (student-learners permit) and been working/going to school since.
My point is that you always have options, so I'm not hearing that "These kids live and poverty and don't have a choice but to do this and that" and "Barrack aint doing nothing", shyt. Since when has it been up to the president to pull specific groups out of poverty? And even if it is up to the president, which one has ever done it?