Youth Gangs Research Paper

In today’s cities, citizens must deal with the violent reality of gangs. One growing problem in the United States are youth gangs. Youth gangs are known to occupy lower class areas, also known as the ghetto. Gangs do not discriminate in victims or it’s members. Gangs are very diverse and are hard to universally define. They typically have a variety of different ethnicities, race, and social classes to make up a group (Spergel 1995). What has caused these uncontrollable groups to form? Why do youth feel that gang membership is a decent and prestigious way to make a living? There are a variety of theories that answer these questions. Starting around the age of thirteen, teens often struggle to find their identity, such as their place in this …show more content…
The young members in the gangs are causing harm not only to themselves, but their families, friends, and the community they live in. Gangs effect kids in various ways such as: physically, emotionally, and mentally. Before understanding how the groups effect citizens and communities around them one must first define what gangs actually are. There are countless children joining everyday one of society’s biggest growing problems, gangs. Children in their early teens have been recruited, persuaded, or are compelled to getting involved with criminal street gangs. But, what exactly is a “youth gang?” The word “gang” does not have a universally constituted definition. According to the National Institute of Justice, a gang is known to be a group of people that have similar interests and characteristics. They can be identified by their clothing, colors, and group name. Gangs are made up of leaders that call the shots and followers that perform the actions. They tend to have gang symbols as a way to communicate or identify themselves amongst people, rivals, and members, such as hand gestures or handshakes. The youth gang member ages range from twelve to twenty-four years of age, and also contains three or more members. The gangs are also known to get involved with criminal activity (NIJ …show more content…
There are various reasons as to why this happens, such as: family substitution, friends, money, power, protection, affection, and for the thrill of it. This also happens because the teen is an adolescent and starting to go through puberty or they believe becoming a member is a way to prove themselves. Joining a gang, from a communal matured stand point, is also a way to show their ability to protect and contribute. Sharing similar views and hobbies can also determine which certain group the teen wants to associate with. Living in neighborhoods where gun shots during the day and theft is normal can cause a child to be fearful and believe that joining will be the only way to survive their hostile surroundings.. Children also search for friendship, understanding and emotional support in other people. A child that lives in the slum and has a dysfunction family is commonly known to not be able to find these basic needs with their family, and are more inclined to becoming members of a gang. There are various reasons why teens become members of vicious gangs, but similar to most kid hobbies, either criminal or not, some kids become members of the group for companionship. Some kids join these groups to fulfill their need to feel like they are welcomed and belong somewhere. In their minds, gangs are looked to for safety, loyalty, and consider themselves part of a stable family. (LAPD

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