Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The effect of peer pressure
Theories about violence in gangs
The effect of peer pressure
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
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
The Unknown War Have you ever wondered why kids get into the gang lifestyle? Well, in the book Always Running La Vida Loca: Gang days in L.A. by Luis Rodriguez, he opens the eyes of readers about his life and what he experienced in the gang life. This book takes place during the 1960’s to 1970’s in Southeast Los Angeles. Rodriguez explains why kids get into this gang lifestyle, he states as a Mexican he was discriminated against at a young age.
In discussing these areas of gang feuds, Riis quoted from a man in Chinatown, “trust not him who trusts no one” (78). Trust diminished completely between the different gangs over the years that Riis wrote this book. The lack of trust increased violence around the
According to a study by Dr. Michael Carlie, fifty to eighty percent of gang members come either from a single-parent home, or one in which no parent resides. If the parent is not available to provide structure, supervision, support, and caring during this crucial time of adolescent development, teens may turn to gang participation to fulfill their needs. In Reymundo Sanchez’s memoir Once A King, Always A King, Sanchez takes the reader through his struggle to rebuild his life outside of the Latin Kings, and his motivation to move beyond his disgusting past of drugs and violence. He also talks about losing close ones and friends due to resisting old habits.
Gang violence and activity has arisen in the past decades, with exceeding concerns and amongst youth being the primary target. Law enforcement try to gain a better understanding to why people are falling into criminal activity. Throughout the following essay we will be summarizing the background of one of the most notorious gang known internationally, MS-13. In addition, we will also be explaining ways different criminology theorist and theories apply to these particular group of people.
In the chapter, Sante (1991) believed gangs emerged in rapidly growing cities out of the conditions created by multiple waves of immigration and urban overcrowding (1). The book suggest that street gangs emerged from conditions of social disorganization, overwhelming housing, and welfare capacities of the Northwest (2). Government corruptions such as that of the Civil war clause gave rise to gang riots resulting in the deaths of over 15 black men and the disappearance of over 50 more (4). Other explanations given were: marginalization, youth conflict, and defiance (6). Still the book offers more examples like that of racial unity and empowerment, as well as gangs provided lower income tenants protection and financial resources they otherwise
.for the days they missed recovering from violent attacks and used this as justification to expel them from school” (Rios, 6). The negative interactions from these adult figures in control further adds to the youths’ sense of defeat and hopelessness. The prejudice these teens face makes it difficult for them to lead a better lifestyle, forcing them to turn back towards criminal antics because they are not accepted anywhere
In Policing Gangs in America, Charles Katz and Vincent Webb discuss the issues that take place within American Gangs today. This book goes into great detail on how the gang officers work and the different kind of atmosphere they work in. Their job isn’t like other law enforcement jobs. It’s one of the more dangerous occupations in the Criminal Justice system. These gang officers focus on how they react to public gang issues.
Greg Boyle once said “You can’t reason with gang violence: you can’t talk to it, sit it at a table, and negotiate with it.” A big problem with the US educational system is that they don’t do anything to stop gangs in school. The gangs inside the school and outside the school are constantly influencing the students making them more violent and aggressive against each other and teachers. In the memoir, Holler If You Can Hear Me By Gregory Michie, Michie and his students face gang problems inside and outside the school.
In the United States, every year there are around 2,000 gang-related homicides and in the realistic fiction novel, The Outsiders, by S.E Hinton, it explores the issues of gang violence, and teenagers in gangs. Around 40% of all members in gangs are teenagers, who are getting involved in some dangerous things very early in life. In the novel The Outsiders, the “Greasers” which is a gang of all teenagers, fight other gangs and commit serious crimes such as murder. We as a society need to pinpoint why teenagers join gangs and stop them beforehand. We also need to help people get out of gangs if they are already in one.
The use of violence also primarily serves as a means of self-protection since they are unable to rely on law enforcement (Bourgois, 1995). Bourgois himself and one of the crack dealers, Gato, were demeaned by the others in the social circle for not being able to retaliate against a conflict. Gato was asked by a cousin on where he was going to work after his reputation is tainted, implying that nobody in the business would hire a weak, non-violent man like him (Bourgois, 1995). This is one of the many instances which further strengthens Bourgois’ claim on the pervasiveness of the systemic use of violence in this market as it shows the powerful influence of the “culture of terror” in determining one’s status in the drug trade and in the community. The shared understanding of the importance of possessing the ability to inflict terror and violence on others shows just how much it is valued as a form of survival and is inherently the unspoken rule within this population.
On November 5, 2015 we had the privilege of having Dr. Charles Katz come into our class to speak about his work with gangs, specifically Gang Truce as a Form of Violence Intervention. For this paper, I will be sharing what I learned about gang truce and its relation to public health by answering several questions involving violence and how it can be used to effect public health. These questions include why gang violence is considered a public health issue; how a gang truce and its mechanics address the public health issue of gang violence; and what are the problems surrounding the gang truce model as a means of addressing gang violence. Gang violence is a large issue that involves the wellbeing of many individuals, from the gang members to
In the 1990s, gang violence was on the rise, where it was dominantly founded in youths. Anderson, Dyson, and Lee (1996) argued that when a group of African American youths join together and commits delinquent acts and crime, they already categorized as gangs to the American public. This affect and many other affects is what creates an increase in gang violence. Those other factors are socioeconomic status, history, race, gendered, and geographic background. They play a huge role on the creation and formation of gangs.
We learn from the things we experience, the things we see, and the people with whom we associate. We learn from our surroundings , experiences, acquaintances, friends, and family. Contends that we learn aggression like any other behaviour-by watching others and imitating their behaviour” (2014). This theory explains that people act and do illegal things because that is all they have been taught. Those in gangs who may use violence to resolve conflict and/or establish a respectable name for themselves have been surrounded with those who do the same thing.
Throughout the 17th-century gangs have been causing havoc in people's life and destroying the society. The National Institute of Justice (2011) has defined a gang as "A group of collective members which create an atmosphere of intimidation among citizens. " Many of these gangs are well organized, using different forms of violence to control neighbourhoods and to conduct their illegal activities. The National Gang Threat Assessment (2011) reports that “Gangs are responsible for an average of 48 percent of violent crime in most jurisdictions.” Street Gangs have caused incidences of violence that is confined in the inner city of many countries.