Personal Narrative: Chicago Gang Violence

Prior to being assigned the reading of the memoir “Always Running”, by Luis Rodriguez, I had never given much thought on juveniles involved in gang life. Rodriguez achieved success as an award-winning poet; sure the streets would no longer haunt him - until his own son joined a gang. Rodriguez fought for his child by telling his own story in the vivid memoir, “Always Running.” “Always Running” is the compilation of events Luis experienced during his youth in San Gabriel. The theme of the book is to always strive for the best things in life and to always take a stand for what you believe. Lured by the seemingly invincible gang culture of East L.A., he witnessed countless shootings and beatings, as well as senseless acts of street crime against his friends and family members. As a Latino in a poor neighborhood, Luis struggled through criticism, stereotypes, and mistreatment. With the help of his mentor, Chente, Luis saw a way out through education and the power of word to successfully break free from years of violence and desperation.

There are hundreds of gangs all over Chicago. These gangs are reckless and try to show their superiority by shooting rival gang members. When committing such acts, these gang members fail to realize that they aren’t the only ones who live in this city. There are

What ever happened to kids wanting saying they wanted to be a police officer, fireman, doctor or teacher when they grow up? Does anyone ever say, when I grow up I want to be in a gang? According to the National Gang Threat Assessment there are over one million gang members in California and over forty percent are under the age of eighteen. Just in Fresno alone there are over twelve thousand gang members and over 500 gangs (Overend). Gang violence is a growing problem and if we don’t try to control it now it will be a bigger problem in the future.

a slight smirk on my lips. The boys didn't seem to like that very much. Their faces seemed to scrunch up in

There had been a few events throughout my lifetime when I was little and had me feeling mentally most of the time since I was young. One of those that occurred when I was living in Stockton, Gang members would come up to me and try to convince me to join their gang and stuff I didn't really know that much of gang activity back then I mean i seen some gang getting in fights or doing drive by shooting down my street I didn't really like the violence. One time I got moved to this one School I didn't really like it to be honest I kept it real with some people that was cool with me all the rest I didn't like, there was a group of kids that was in a gang that me and my boys didn't like one time I went to the bathroom and all of them came in together and jumped me… That's when I started hanging out with my boys that gang bang because I knew they were going to be the only ones to get my back for me plus they were like family to me and one time we found them hanging out so me and my boys were ready to fight them so we did, It felt good getting them back for jumping me till my boys started coming up and started bring out weapons that's when I was like thinking I should stop hanging out with them because I can see myself later on going to jail for weapons charges, Drug possession, assault and battery.

Chicago, a city well known for its bold architecture, amazing food and fascinating museums. A paradise for people to expand upon their brilliant ideas such as Oprah Winfrey and the President of the United States. With a population of 2,722,389 (according to the United States Census Bureau) Chicago takes home the third largest city in the nation . A better place than this would sound unrealistic but to every beautiful story there's an ugly secret. The city has been infected with a large outbreak killing thousands of its citizens. However it is not a disease nor sickness we identify with such as cancer but a large increase in the amount killings due to gun violence. This negative contribution to the city primarily occurs in the South and West

Gang violence is one of the most pressing issues in our communities nowaday. When anyone of us hear the phrase “ gang violence”, we just assume that it is a bad thing, it is the reason of social disorder. However, do we really understand about gang violence? In other words, do we truly know how big is its severity? By reading “ Brothers in Arms”, one of the Bluford series books of the authors Paul Langan and Ben Alirez that talks about gang violence, we can somehow dig more deeper about gang violence issues. “Brothers in Arms” shows how gang violence can affect dramatically to individual’s behavior, and as the results gang violence might destroy the person that involves with it. The authors Paul Langan and Ben Alirez use characterization and

“Aspen,” I said as I finished packing to go back to the palace. “How do you feel about me?”

keeps growing by the day. Chicago, known as the murder capital of our country, was reported to have more deaths than Iraq in 2012 giving it the nickname ‘Chiraq’. Other cities such as Baltimore and Milwaukee also have escalated in crime rates. Young males with no father figures roam the streets and form or join gangs. These gangs fight over turfs with violence which leads to the deaths of innocent bystanders and toddlers as well. Not just gangs, but citizens in general that live in low-income neighborhoods use weapons to solve ordinary conflicts which can be fixed with a few exchange of words. It’s really insane that those at the age of 12 and 13 are losing their lives because the availability of guns has become more accessible for them to get a hold of. The environment doesn’t get any better considering that the crime rate keeps on expanding and nothing is being done to decrease it. There’s no hope in this significant abstract, which is why we can’t change the world. It starts with people turning around their lives

Alex held his hand up and sighed softly. “I can’t do this again. I can’t watch,” he paused, and I felt my pulse jump, “someone that I love, get hurt. I just can't do it again. I'm done." Alex stood up, leaving me sitting there watching him walk away.

The first and most important step is to become aware of gangs, gang members, and their activities. Individuals armed with this basic knowledge are better able to avoid becoming victims of a gang attack. To prevent young teens to stay off the streets and to show them that you will die being in a gang it's dangerous.

My mother was not financially able to keep us in one stable home. We moved from house to house; from the inner city of Chicago to the south suburbs of Chicago, then back to the city. I wasn’t able to settle down, and grow up with neighborhood friends. Moving from town to town, I was exposed to different lifestyles and perspectives. Living in Englewood, I saw the effects gangs had on the community and I witnessed the fast lifestyle stir people, including my uncles and father, down the wrong path. My mother’s two brothers have both served prison time longer than my life span for drug extortion, assault, and gang affiliation. As a young child, I did not live in Englewood long, I did not leave in any of my neighborhoods for too long. When my family moved out of Englewood, we moved to 47th & Michigan. I do not have many memories of living there, all I can recall is the building was huge and made of bricks: built like project homes. After living there for some time, we moved to 120th & LaSalle - the neighborhood of Roseland. Just a short time after moving in, our house was shot into and broken into and the woman and child who lived under our apartment was murdered by the woman’s boyfriend. The only thing positive that came of us living here was that my little brother was born. Finally, my mother moved us to the south suburbs, so that we could live better lives. We did a lot of moving in the suburbs; we lived in Burnham, Sauk

“Where are you headed?” You looked at him questioningly. He shrugged, and you answered with a sigh.

“So, uh, where are we going?” the man asked with flickers of excitement and unease.

Ebony waved behind her as their taxis went in different directions. Tears stung her eyes, but she never bothered to wipe them. She had fun that night. She didn’t regret a thing. “Can you turn on the radio?” She asked the driver. When he did, one of Kori Brightwell’s songs went off. She wondered who she was and how she got there. How did Kori please everyone enough to get her own fashion line? The street lights came in waves over her face. Ebony closed her eyes and was about to sleep her way to Dallas, but she popped back up when she heard a familiar sound. Once she connected what it was, she yelped.