Gangs and Violence in the United States Essay

behind their classmates in school and do not try. A study shows that less than

Gangs have been a growing issue across the United States for many decades now. Youth gang violence may have started around the ‘50s, but did not become a serious issue until the ‘80s and from there went through a downward spiral in some cities like downtown Los Angeles, which was where the notorious Bloods and Crips gangs both started. First, let’s simply define a gang as a group of people, mostly men ranging for ages 14-30, who claim territory and use it to make money for themselves and their neighborhood through illegal activities such as trafficking drugs and weapons. There are many reasons and components that are factored in when conducting research to hypothesize “why do people join gangs?” That is why it is necessary to compare and contrast all the social, biological, psychological, developmental, and substance abuse aspects and relate it to joining a gang. It is also important to touch base on the differences between males and females that join gangs, such as power differentials, social learning differences and social stratification differences.

In society today, there is a major problem We live in a society where gangs are taking over our neighborhoods in numbers. It is the responsibility of the individuals to part take in getting their neighborhoods back under control. Gangs are becoming a growing problem in American society. More young people are turning to gangs to solve problems in their lives or for acceptance. When youths join gangs, they drop all their social activities with school, family, and friends. However, individuals ruin their lives, and the chances of them having a decent education, and a successful life by getting involved in gang activity.

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

A two-pronged prevention approach has proven effective, with primary prevention strategies aimed at the community 's general population and secondary prevention strategies targeting youth between the ages of 7 and 14 who are at high risk of joining gangs. Prevention efforts undertaken by law enforcement departments around the country include: “Participating in community awareness campaigns (e.g. developing public service announcements and poster campaigns). Contacting the parents of peripheral gang members (through the mail or during personal visits) to alert them that their children are involved with a gang. Sponsoring gang hotlines to gather information and facilitate a quick response to gang-related issues. Organizing athletic events with teams of law enforcement officers and gang members. Establishing working relationships with local social service agencies. Making presentations about gangs to schools and community groups as a combined effort at prevention and information gathering. Sponsoring school-based gang and drug prevention programs (e.g. DARE and GREAT)” (Hess, 2013 p.230).

“Gangs have morphed from social organizations into full-fledged criminal enterprises” (Thomas, 2009, para 5). Gangs are highly sophisticated and more dangerous then ever. The number one reason to join a gang is money; and 95 percent of gangs profit comes from drug dealing

‘’Teen shot dead in gang wars’’, ‘’ two bystanders killed in gang shootout ‘’, these are familiar headlines at the front page of the local newspapers, aren’t they? Every day thousands of people are affected by gangs across the world. Women are left widowed, children are orphaned and parents are left childless. Let me put what most people are thinking ‘’ gangs are a threat to all of us no matter what sex, age or background we are from. They ruin the safety of a society as a whole, is a never-ending cycle which needs to be stopped and finally being a gang member most probably wrecks an individual’s life.

Did you know that gang violence affects our world today? In this century we’re experiencing more gang related crimes ever than before. Current research shows that there is an estimate of 250,000 gang members in America (Almonte and Desmond 4). The more gangs the more killings. Adolescents are getting more involved in gangs, because of this dropout rates are increasing. The more dropouts the more drug dealers. Once they begin to sell drugs they end up in jail. This is where we come in as taxpayers. Gang violence affects the public with the crimes they commit. Murders, robbery, and vandalism are some of the main crimes that are committed. These things can be prevented if we pay more attention to our teens. Rehab centers and

There are several positive and successful programs that are put in place in which involves the help and deterrence of youth from engaging into gangs. Such task of helping out the youth and future generations takes time and commitment. Possible solutions of getting involved in helping the youth that are in the gangs to get them off the streets are implementing the same gang model that they already know in which involves the commitment of one to another as members of a close-knitted family but without the drugs and violence. With the ideas and belief that they have already known would be easier to implement and develop programs that they are familiar to. Such programs should instill the same love, respect, and belonging as one would receive when joined a gang; therefore, it gives them another option of committing themselves in a positive way as a model citizen. It gives them

These men and women are then released back onto the streets, back into our communities. Prison has not changed who they are, their violent behaviors, or their part in a street gang. They go back to the life they knew before prison, and the life they kept up while in prison. The most dangerous aspect of this cycle of crime is that these men and women return to prison again and again each time thinking they are a little tougher and their position in the gang a lot stronger. Their return trips to prison may ease the fears of the community for a few months or a few years, and each time the job of a correction officer becomes more difficult and more dangerous.

This paper reviews gangs and how they are vastly becoming a rising problem in American society. Young people are turning to gangs because they believe that it will solve problems in their lives. At the point when the young people join gangs they drop social exercises with family, companions and school. Individuals fall behind their schoolmates in school and don't attempt. Youth group issues are multiplying over the United States, even in little urban areas and towns. In the meantime, the arrangement of youth gangs is evolving; littler, less organized gangs are rising, and in spite of the fact that drug trafficking is for the most part not a sorted out movement oversaw by groups, drug groups are more dominating now than in earlier decades. The

Gangs frequently socialize and even recruit youth that live in the gangs neighborhood and who attend the local public schools. Gangs target the youths that are eager to belong or easily talked into doing tasks for the gang. These gangs take advantage of the hardships these youths experience while growing up. Unfortunately this type of life is chosen at a critical time in the individuals life when they are at the point where their peers have a big influence on their personal decisions. In recent years gangs have began to recruit younger members mainly due to the fact that they are easily influenced and usually receive lesser punishments.

Gangs have gotten worst over the years. An article by Sandy Banks in the Los Angeles Times stated that “residents fear gangs more than they trust the police”. In 2012, the National Gang Center posted information concerning gangs and they found that those groups were responsible for over 2300 deaths in that year. In July of 2015 a former classmate of mine was shot and killed as a result of gang violence. He was only 15 years old. According to communications specialist, Beth Kuhles, currently, there are 1.5 million gangs members here in the United States and majority of them are minors. A lot of the children are involved in gangs because they lack friendship or a true family at home. My classmate who recently passed away did not have strong,

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.