During his time studying these boys, he found that most cases of conflict were resolved without the use of weapon(s), but rather with “harsh conversation”. This observation highly contradicts the typical view of gang members who are commonly stereotyped by their local community and justice system in Oakland. Rios describes how the boys “Conversations often involved references to guns as analogies for resolving conflict and demonstrating manhood”. The fact that most conflicts are dealt with in non-violent ways, highlights the negative role
“When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw.” Doc Holliday was a gambler, gunfighter, and a outlaw. He was born on August 14, 1851 in Griffin,Georgia and died on November 8, 1887 in Glenwood Springs,Co from Tuberculosis. At age 21, Holliday earned a degree in dentistry from the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery. He set his practice in Atlanta, Georgia, but he was soon diagnosed with tuberculosis, the same disease that had killed his mother when he was 15.
Victor M. Rios was born in Mexico. When he was two years old he immigrated with his mother to Oakland, California. He went through a tough childhood and he and his mother moved several times throughout poor neighborhoods such as West Oakland, The Fruitvale District, and Elmhurst. As a result of growing up in this kind of environments he was forced to be part of Latino East Oakland gangs. Stealing cars, selling drugs, getting into street fights and having problems with police was all he would do until he was 15 years old.
How well Wes Moore describes the culture of the streets, and particularly disenfranchised adolescents that resort to violence, is extraordinary considering the unbiased perspective Moore gives. Amid Moore’s book one primary theme is street culture. Particularly Moore describes the street culture in two cities, which are Baltimore and the Bronx. In Baltimore city the climate and atmosphere, of high dropout rates, high unemployment and poor public infrastructure creates a perfect trifecta for gang violence to occur. Due to what was stated above, lower income adolescent residents in Baltimore are forced to resort to crime and drugs as a scapegoat of their missed opportunities.
The El Salvadoran government’s recent “Mano Duro” policies created a massive overcrowding of prisons where established MS-13 members recruit the few adolescents not yet involved in gang activity. To become a full-fledged member of MS-13, recruits must show their allegiance to the gang by getting tattoos all over their bodies. Additionally, male members are beaten for thirteen seconds and female members must engage in sexual intercourse with every male member of that particular
Alex Sanchez’s interview with Steven Osuna entitled They’re Not Solving the Problem, They’re Displacing It, expresses the struggles, misconceptions, and everyday life of a Latino immigrant in the United States’ transition to a MS13 gang members in El Salvador. Alex Sanchez, former MS13 member, is a peacemakers and co-founder/ executive director of Homies Unidos in Los Angelos. This organization’s mission is to bring peace to the youth of Central America who are immigrants, involved in gangs, and criminalized. Sanchez reveals how his personal experiences as an immigrant and MS13 gang member has contributed to his present line of work. Further, Sanchez discusses issues such as being targeted by the INS and LAPD, death squads, and anti-gang initiatives
The police were very often seen as violent, brutal, and corrupted. The author takes it a step further to not only say that this relationship is only caused because the men are gangsters, but that they are also Mexican. There are many occasions when Rodriguez relays an account where the police call the men very racist names and act upon their beliefs in a very brutal manner. He continues this theme of social inequality as he talks about his experiences in school and his parents ' experiences in their jobs. By depicting these situations Rodriguez makes the large assumption that the main reason that gangs are so prominent is because the Mexican culture was experiencing a lack of resources and support and therefore, their youth turned to something they felt could help.
From this principle, The Gangster Disciple Nation is not a gang but instead they are a family and an organization that is passionate about transforming the community into a positive place for the youth to grow up safely into adulthood. They strived to provide an educational opportunity for them explore, more social development discussions about self-improvement and to always be informed about current events. The Gangster Disciple Nation is one of the largest organizations in the United States of America. This organization was established to the advancement of its members because loyalty is the basis of the organization. They represented themselves as a whole and this was conveyed in a greeting “All for One, One for All” when they came across a member of the group (Street gangs, n.d, p. 1)
‘Crips and Bloods: Made in America’, directed by Stacy Peralta, is a documentary that delves into the development and longevity of two of the most prominent gangs in the United States, the Crips and the Bloods. The documentary is a visual representation of the oppression and racism Black communities, particularly in the Los Angeles area, faced. It examines several external institutions in our society and how those institutions helped create the long-lasting internal hatred that exists in these communities. Several sociological concepts and terms can help us to further analyze and understand why these gangs had such impact in these communities.
Gangs had also become a big part of the 1920’s, they had a lot of say in went on round the towns they lived in. Gangs had a lot of control of how liquor got in and out of their towns “It was smuggled in from the seas off both the east and west coasts and brought overland from both Canada and Mexico.” (McNeill). Everyday people would smuggle liquor in from all over if it was hard to find by them. They would sell it to family and friends all over and speaks did the same thing.
Even seemingly barbaric gangs search for order in society and provide security and comfort for the impoverished. People are naturally inclined to help others and act socially, especially
N.W.A.- Fuck tha Police was made because police officers forced the group to lay face down in the street with guns to their heads. In the 80’s police brutality was at high, and young African American teens were there target.
Gangs represent themselves by symbolizing different colored bandanas for each gang, wearing baggy clothes, and mainly jeans and t-shirts. Rap music is typically associated with gangs also. Lingo of gangs can be things such as heavy use of slang, derogatory terms which are usually used to describe other gangs, and secret codes. A secret code of the largest American gang, the Bloods, is “suwoop” which is supposed to imitate the sound of a police siren. Tattoos can represent a gang too, as many will get tattoos all over their bodies that symbolize which gang they are associated with.
Introduction Juvenile delinquency due to gang relation has increased drastically. Many people fail to realize that gangs have a considerable influence on the decisions juveniles are making. Adolescents are easily influenced by the members of the gangs and manipulated to commit certain crimes. As juveniles they are not mentally and emotionally mature to make such critical decisions, which in turn allow gang members to manipulate and control the youth they recruit. Juveniles become a part of gangs for several reasons, including, gaining protection, governmental, and social issues.
Violence is an issue in all schools. School fights have decreased by 51 percent and drug use has decreased by 69 percent (“School Uniforms”). Gangs are one of the leading causes of violence in schools. Gangs can be formed by clothing, like students wearing a certain color or symbol on their shirts. If all students wore school uniforms, there would not be a way for gangs to be formed.
