Why Teens Join Ganags

Introduction

For many teens, media coverage in the 1990s helped to create an aura of glamour around gangs. When gang members discussed their activities on Geraldo and the Oprah Winfrey Show, youth across the nation were impressed by the defiant, street-smart attitudes that the gang members displayed. MTV ran specials that exposed viewers to the clothes and slang associated with gangs, and many teens—black, white, Latino, and Asian American—adopted the styles and speech. The music industry also glorified gangs. Rap music, a combination of words and rhythm popular with innercity youth, moved away from lighthearted themes, and rappers wrote lyrics that appeared to endorse violence in what became known as the “gangsta rap” style (Klein, 2006).

Discussion

Gangsta rappers defended their music by claiming that references to gangs were symbolic. However, such claims seemed to ring hollow when, on September 7, 1996, rapper Tupac Shakur was gunned down in Las Vegas. Some people believe his killer was a member of the Crips gang. Six months later, a rival rapper, the Notorious B.I.G., became the victim of another unsolved shooting that may have been orchestrated by Los Angeles gangs. These incidents raised concerns that celebrity rap culture and gang culture were merging in a way that would obscure the perils of gang violence for admiring youth (Huff, 2007).

School children form gangs and takes part in violent activities due to various reasons, pertaining to their individual need and the surroundings, and can also be the peer pressure. The gang culture attracts children needs, which might be met, like that of belonging and acceptance. Gangs may also be formed as a result of complexes of the ethnic minorities. William Gladen Foundation in 1992 identified four factors, which causes the formation of the gangs in the middle schools (Klein, 2006).

These are the sense of alienation and helplessness due to the lack of “traditional support structures”, leading to the feeling of frustration, anger, aggression and will to obtain the support. As the membership in the gang gives them the sense of belonging, which is not provided otherwise along with the sense of identification, they seek for the support and channel their anger through the violent activities common among them. The turf control and the expansion plan are the other two factors.

Other factors may include ineffective parental skills, history of family gang involvement and parental abuse or neglect. The malfunctioned family environment affects the youth's school behavior, impecunious academic feat and early anti-social behavior. The search for identity isolates him from others going through similar social and personal problems. Many middle school children join gangs for excitement, fun, money and protection (Huff, 2007).

Why Gangs Develop and Why Students Join Them

Violence is everywhere - in movies, music, television programs and sports. It is increasingly evident in many workplaces, as competition has become a dominant feature of people's working lives. Layoff practices in some companies epitomize the dehumanizing way people are treated. Violence and aggression are also evident in many community and political processes. It is present in ...