Youth Gangs in America

Table of Contents

Background of Study1

Discussion2

Youth Gangs2

Youth Gangs in Rural Areas2

Example of a Gang3

Youth Gangs in Schools4

Reasons for Joining Youth Gangs5

Future Directions5

Conclusion6

Youth Gangs in America

Background of Study

Gangs today are a worldwide phenomenon and moreover not unique to contemporary societies. Youth gangs have existed in Western and Eastern societies for centuries, and in the United States, gangs in urban centers existed before the 19th century. In many instances, gangs use the symbols, style of dress, and behavior of American gangs because these features are transmitted through movies, books, videos, and magazines. Indeed, today's urbanized and globalized world is producing gangs faster than ever before in a variety of shapes and forms, and contemporary gangs play a significant role in many kinds of violence (Decker & Weerman, 2005).

Egley (2003) indicate that gangs in the United States developed during four distinct periods. The first stage occurred as a consequence of immigration and industrialization in the latter part of the 19th century, when groups of recent immigrants-primarily Irish and Italian-engaged in petty property crimes. In the 1920s, a second wave of gangs emerged in cities, again composed of recent immigrants, but they had symbols of membership and were more actively involved in crime than the gangs of the first period. In the 1960s, another generation of gangs developed that contained a significant number of racial minorities. The availability of automobiles and guns gave these gangs the ability to fight other gangs in neighborhoods across a city. As a consequence, more gang members served time in prison and the prison itself became a source for the perpetuation of gangs. Once released, these individuals brought gang ideology and practices with them and recruited young new members. This creation of intergenerational gangs in the 1990s is the fourth generation of gangs (Egley, 2007).

Discussion

Since the 1960s, an increasing diversity of criminal groups has augmented the more traditional forms of organized crime, such as those represented by the Mafia and similar groupings. Motorcycle and youth gangs and black, Asian and Hispanic crime groups have expanded in the USA and elsewhere. Youth gangs have often served as a recruiting ground for more organized crime syndicates, where juvenile delinquents grow up to be full-fledged mobsters, as well as providing muscle and other low-key work. Increasingly, especially in the United States and other western countries, street gangs are becoming much more organized in their own right with a hierarchical structure and are fulfilling the role previously taken by traditional organized crime (Fleisher, 1998).

Youth Gangs

Some youth gangs draw graffiti and engage in vandalism, while others are involved in drug trafficking, theft, extortion, prostitution, money laundering and vandalism. The trafficking of human and arms are an activity that is becoming more widespread in some areas.

Youth Gangs in Rural Areas

There is an exceptional increase in the figure and range of youth gangs in North America and South America. While this problem did not arise earlier than in large cities, youth gangs are now also active in smaller cities, suburbs and rural ...