Being that the closest that I have ever come to gangs or gangs violence is in television of movies, this topic intrigued me. What makes a person want to become part of something that is so violent and dangerous? Why would someone risk everything to put their lives on the line for people that are not even their blood relatives? As I read the material that I found in the library about gangs, I found out a lot about how this children's' though process works. They believe that the gang members are their family; to them it is not seen as the sinister organization of careless violence as it is to us "normal" Americans. To them the gang is their family.
Children are joining gangs at younger ages; our
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In some cases they are traveling out of state to spread their violence and crime.
Gang members' range in age from 8 to 22 years old, but there are exceptions. Some gangs have members as old as 40. Trying to explain why children become part of a gang is something that has been a question for sometime. The reason given most often is that gangs to these children are like a family. So many of the gang members come from broken homes, or are victims of child abuse. The gang to these kids believe it or not is like a safe haven from the violence that they see at home.
Also the industry can be partially blamed for the increase in children joining gangs. Not to say that just because a child likes "gangster" rap and watches violent T.V. shows and movies, that they are going to join a gang. But if you add the violence in the home, abuse, neglect and the media then you have a recipe for a child that will be more likely to join a gang. The main word that I feel can be attributed to children joining gangs or become delinquent is supervision. The lack of supervision by a parent or responsible adult can lead the child to wander and become influenced strongly by the wrong people. The media also glorifies gang violence, with the language, colors, and symbols. In videos we see
Initially gang activity could only be found in large metropolitan cities, but now gangs have invaded neighborhoods of all sizes across the country. Gangs introduce violence and fear to the communities they occupy, raise the level of drug activities, and destroy businesses and property which brings down the overall value of the whole area. Instead of going to school, many young people find themselves drawn in to the gang life which in most cases either leads to being locked up or death. There are various reasons why people would want to join a gang, but no matter what that reason might be one can only expect a life of violence and troubles.
behind their classmates in school and do not try. A study shows that less than
When individuals decided to get involve in those type of activities many of them do it for specific reasons. For example, people join gang for acceptance, protection, and some are forced into it, because of their family are gang affiliated. Gangs partake endlessly in finding different method for individuals to more effectively get the things they want, particularly power. Therefore, people that are easily influenced tends to gravitate toward gang activities for recognition in the community. According to Goldman, Giles, & Hogg (2014), “Gang members’ actions impact other gang members as well as the wider community; everyone is at risk of being a victim of gang violence” (p. 825). Gang violence goes further than racial issue, but it more intensely touches African American and Latino communities.
The history of gangs goes back to biblical times. Gangs have always caused social issue and unlawfulness. The history of gangs in America leads back to the colonization of this country. Immigrants came over here from Europe with little or no money. The money that they didhave ran out quickly. Poverty caused and fueled illnessand
Gang involvement and its associated violent crime have become a rapidly growing problem for the United States. Generally, gangs consist of young people of the same ethnic, racial, and economic background. Usually of a low socio-economic status, these gangs engage in illegal money making activities and intimidate their neighborhoods and rival gangs with violent crimes and victimization. Gang members exemplify a high value for group loyalty and sacrifice.
Gangs originated naturally during the adolescent years of a child. They started from small play groups that eventually found themselves in conflict with other small groups of youth. Due to the conflict between the two small groups of youth it became a part of a child’s mind set to come together as a gang and protect their rights and satisfy the needs that their environment and families couldn’t provide. There are about 24,500 gangs in the U.S and out of those gangs 40% of them are juveniles (Hess, Orthmann, Wright, 2013). There are numerous reason why a child would join a gang, and the
Furthermore, the book, Youth Gangs in American Society by Randall Shelden, Sharon Tracy, and William Brown (2013) discusses several theories about why people join gangs. One theory that I think especially fits the explanation as to why people join gangs, with regards to this book, is the control/social bond theory. Shelden et al define control/social bong theory as “when a youth’s, bonds or ties, to society are weak or broken, especially with family, school and other institutions, when this occurs, a youth is apt to seek bonds with other groups, including gangs, in order to get his or her needs met”(p 193). I think so many groups in society let this boy down in My Bloody Life, including his family, the school system and even the police. Consequently with his ties to society so weak, he reached out to a gang that gave him a sense of comfort and belonging.
Gang violence has been around for a long time all the way back to the 1800 and have greatly increased all around the globe ever since. Gangs are a group of people that fight and kill other gangs over turf,money,pride, and drugs. People usually join gangs from around the age of 8 to the age 20. Most gang members join because they have been abused by their parents or because they don 't have a family. Gangs treat each other like a family, that is the most common reason why people join, they want to be accepted, they want to feel like if they belong something.
Teenagers and young adults join youth gangs for many reasons. Reasons a teenager would join a gang include family
Most gangs have a rite of passage before a person can be considered part of the gang family. So why do people want to affiliate themselves with a gang? Monotony, poverty, lack of schooling, these are some of the issues that children and adults face daily in the city of Chicago. A child that comes from a shattered home (parents are divorced, one parent maybe in jail) faces certain socioeconomic struggles early on in life. Gangs offer a family structure, and lead them to believe that if affiliated, they will always have a family they can be contingent on.
Gang manipulation There are many ways that gangs can manipulate people to join them. Teens can be manipulated into gangs by different ways. Some of the ways are the family will initiate into a certain gang. The person could go to the gang for their own survival, out of desperation or loneliness, A person could be brought in by a friend. Since there are many ways a teen can be drawn into a gang it is good to be aware of why.
“Violent crimes committed by juveniles are not diminishing, as other crimes, as reported by the Justice Department statistics, are (Siegel and Welsh, 2011).” We see that juveniles have more access, and more use of the weapons of violence, including gang affiliation. So why do young people join gangs? First of all, the gang
Juveniles often join gangs to be accepted into a society of their peers. These juveniles are looking for acceptance and a sense of belonging. They join these gangs for special status amongst their friends, protection from other gangs, financial help, peer pressure, excitement and for some juveniles, they are born into a gang society and it is a family tradition. Gangs can also act like a family. They will praise, chastise and show them a form of love and respect that they are looking for but cannot get at home.
When was the last time you were able to turn on the news and not hear about some sort of violent act? Crime is a growing concern amongst most cities, and street gangs are behind a lot of the trouble. Street gangs have plagued the streets for centuries and there is no stopping the urge to commit such hideous crimes. Gangs grow from recruiting young kids but what makes a kid decide to join a crime filled lifestyle.
Gangs have direct effects on a society, such as increased levels of crime, violence and murder. Gangs also have long-term or late suggestions in that gang members are more likely to drop out of high school, struggle with unemployment, abuse drugs and alcohol or in end up in jail. These factors not only contribute to the gang members, but they also force taxpayers to pay for welfare and community-assistance programs. Common reasons for the younger generation to join gangs, include trying to find a place where they belong and sharing in mutual desires for safety from family problems or life challenges. Together, the feelings and attitudes among gang members haze them to act violently, often self-contradictory with rival gangs. This violence leads to injury and death of not only members but also of bystanders in the community. High gang activity also causes fear among community members, discourages business activity and obstructs home-value appreciation. Communities, also must pay for higher levels of law enforcement when gangs are prominent.