Juvenile Gangs in America - Term Paper Example

? Juvenile Gangs in America This paper asserts presence of delinquent youth gangs in the United s and explores into their activities, what influences those activities and their effects on societies. Gang members commit acts of crime in their areas and wreak havoc on innocent communities. They pose a threat to the society and a challenge to government and law enforcement agencies. Youngsters are attracted to gangs by the sense of security, adventure and promise of quick riches. Gangs are prevalent in poor neighborhoods as youths coming from families that cannot provide their basic needs look for means to provide for themselves and their families. Gangs are found in both urban and rural areas. Adult criminal offenders emanate from gangs at an early age and recruit their members from the gangs. Gangs should be diverted into constructive activities where they can positively utilize their energy and honestly make money instead of using criminal means. Juvenile Gangs in America The case of the young gang member is a sad one as instead of having a fruitful youth they waste themselves in burglary, muggings, robbery, gang wars, drug abuse and drug sale according to Franzese, Covey and Menard (2006). Both males and females engage in gang activities and may find themselves in juvenile jails at an early age owing to criminal activities in which they engage. This paper aims to study Juvenile gangs in America; types of Juvenile gangs, what causes them and the effect they have on society and the crimes they engage in, in the United States. The youth are constantly striving to seek for answers as to who they really are. They are looking to define their character, their objectives and pathways in life. This is probably the reason why gangs are constituted mainly of the youth; people lost looking to find their footing in life and in society. Law enforcers define gangs in a simple way as organized groups that join together for the common objective of committing criminal offences (Barrows and Huff, 2009). Barrows and Huff also state that gangs are strongly glued together, very organized, secretive and violent; a group that is a fast growing great threat to society. They also look to find where they feel safe and secure and a place where they feel dignified. Gangs offer this forum and make the young person feel comfortable and protected. The disadvantage with gangs, even as they offer this homely feel for the youth, is that they offer the wrong advice; a tool of menace instead of positive development. United States has experienced a rebirth of gangs and crimes perpetuated by gangs over the last twenty years (Katz and Webb, 2006). Johnson (2004) submits that there are various types of youth gangs in the streets of United States. Scavengers at times referred to as wanna-be gangs are mainly consisted of whites from the suburbs whose main purpose is to bully and threaten other youngsters. Hispanic gangs, on the other hand, named as territorial gangs gather respect. African American gangs and a few Hispanic gangs called hardcore gangs endeavor to generate money by all means and kick out rival groups through violent. Members of a particular gang share various things such as ambition, devoutness and even backgrounds. The juvenile gang menace is mistaken to be uniquely American but it is a characteristic of many other nations and continents too as state by Siegel and Welsh (2011). The UK is a good example of a state disturbed by juvenile gangs and specifically the capital, London. Though there are many kinds of Juvenile gangs in the US, they tend to share similar characteristics. Such characteristics are; they are made up of youths, they protect particular territories mainly in the streets and they are immersed in criminal activities of all sorts. Gangs in the United States exist in all cities and members of gangs tend to evolve into leaders of organized crime settings (Finley, 2007). Young juvenile gang members are often trained by adults and are taught many things among them particular ways of communicating. Gangs are not only involved in crime, but violent crime; juvenile gangs commit 6% of all violent crimes accounted for in the United States (Holmes, Tewksbury and Higgins, 2011). The youth are majorly attracted to joining gangs because they are promised quick riches and protection. Gangs set a forum where the youth are taught skills which come in handy when committing acts of thievery and extortion. The gangs provide protection whether or not they are engaged in crime. These youth groupings instead of rebuking and chastising criminal activities they reward their members for committing criminal acts. Many of the criminal acts partaken by gangs often land their members in jail or death. Adults that command young female and male juveniles into uncouth behaviors, at times, have been respected members of the society and corrupt government officials (Finley, 2007). These leaders use the gang members for their dirty work which they themselves would not do. There are juvenile gangs of different cultures as may be noted from their various types; there are Hispanic gangs, Caucasian gangs, Chinese gangs and African American gangs, although unique instances may demand a mixture. The desperation to survive in a harsh world with a young person coming from a poor background is another encouraging factor for the juvenile to join a gang. Children from well-off families do not often join gangs as they have basic necessities well facilitated to them like food, clothing, shelter and a good education as compared to the child coming from a poor family that struggles to obtain these necessities. Youth from wealthy families who join gangs do it for the fun of it or out of lack of attention from their parents who usually spare little time for them. The youth who join gangs also come from poor neighborhoods marred by many gangs and thus, joining a gang becomes an easier than harder option for them. Many a times, communities do not report gangs that hail from their surroundings to the police for fear of the gangs turning against them. Economics is central to understanding operations of gangs. Gangs blossom in regions where immigrations and displacements facilitate a class of destitution which find it difficult to be part and parcel of the larger community. Youth males and females through gang relations make easy money from gang crimes such as drug dealing, and this way they gain confidence with themselves and in the gang. The state of believing in themselves and the group is brought about because they can now pay for their families’ needs which the family could not probably afford before joining the gang. The youngster can now also afford adolescent pleasures which they value a great deal. The fact that they can now afford a life they could not afford before will make them remain more grounded in the gang and even gain more ambition and, therefore, footing in crime. Beyond offering fulfillment for money, security and survival, gangs also offer fun and adventure. Within gangs, there is status: The more a person accomplishes their criminal tasks, the more they gain higher status other than wealth. Youth belonging in gangs represent fear for other people in their neighborhoods. The more a person is active in their gang and is seen to be witty and cunning, the more they climb the status ladder and even end up becoming leaders of the gang. The status may also be reflected in their communities. A youth affiliated with a gang, especially a young recruit is expected to respect high status members and be knowledgeable about gang laws when carrying out instructions from the gang leader(s). Where one is seen to rebel or betray the group they mostly receive quite heavy punishments. They may also be killed by other gang members as chastisement for their indifference. When one joins a gang, they are expected to stick with it failure to which their exit is almost always followed by their murder. This is so often done owing to the fact that every gang member is privy to some confidential information that may be used in the capture of gang members. They may also act as lead witnesses and may have admissible evidence against the gang members. Juvenile gangs in the United States may dress in a particular manner, for example, wearing similar caps or shirts representative of their gang group. They may also bear particular tattoos to show that they have a specific group affiliation. When a new member is recruited, they may have to undergo certain rituals. The person will probably be put to test to demonstrate that they have chosen to become part of the group and they will be loyal to that group regardless of situation. Members of a gang are not allowed to demonstrate fear of carrying out tasks that benefit the gang. For gang members, death is a usual occurrence and enemies are mainly taken out by murder. Gang members are clear on the notion that, they leave by the sword and so they shall die by the same. The person being recruited has to be triumphant and to prove that they are worth the risk as recruiting new members is in itself risky. Juvenile gangs greatly affect the community and their families. The community is immersed in crime due to the criminal acts engaged in by these gangs. The police constantly knock on the doors of those purported to engage in gang crimes. Many a times, the police may harass family members to giver the whereabouts of the juvenile gang member. Adding to this, families of youth gang members are stigmatized and embarrassed especially the parents. The families live in fear of their lives and that of their loved one. Family members fear for the death of their child or sibling, and in case of their arrest parents may be credible witnesses who may bring down the entire gang. Many juvenile gangs assign names to their gangs. They want to be deemed prestigious and to assert fear and their place in society as being above all others. Gangs have gained a great deal of attention recently in the media due to the crimes in which they engage. The collaboration of gang membership and being part of a racial minority such as African American or Hispanic raises a high risk of arrest for a young juvenile (Tapia, 2011). Juvenile gangs are seen as an enemy of the state by the law enforcement system and the legal system. The law enforcement system, especially the police, engages in patrols with the objectives of ensuring safety and getting rid of gang members in the streets. Research demonstrates that many gangs are made up of males as compared to females (Schram and Gaines, 2008). The youngster who joins a gang visualizes the gang as their family; their own family having broken down or failed them in providence either emotionally or materially. The strength of a family holding up together may usually prevent a juvenile from joining a gang. The relationship between adult mobsters and gangs is a strong one as many adult criminals emanated from juvenile gangs. Juvenile gangs that are most terrorizing are those in poor sections of main cities such as New York and Chicago. However, this is not to state that gangs are only found in major cities as they are also found in rural areas. Gangs tear up communities and interfere with schooling as they absorb more youngsters. Students are usually disrupted by gang activities on their way to and from schools. These students anticipate acts of violence from gang members enrolled in their schools. They fear both threats from the juvenile gang members and pressure to join the gangs of the delinquents. In the schools that have juvenile gang members in the students’ fraternity, there is the perception of an increased presence of firearms and other weapons related to gang activities. The emergence of gangs in the United States is seen as not only disrupting public order but also threatening the dignity of the government as reported by Jutersonke, Muggah and Rodgers (2009). Youth gangs should not be allowed to become a serious threat to the American society. This is because the gang effort they put in criminal activities can be channeled into constructive use. Instead of spending their energy in committing crimes, that energy is diverted into productive activities such as education into various positive skills. Many youth delinquents have changed and become successful people in life. Irrespective of the huge attention given to the problem associated with gangs, researchers, legislators and police officers are yet to come to terms or fully understand the challenges posed by juvenile delinquent gangs (Barrows and Huff, 2009). The public is of the opinion that gangs pose a major threat in schools and campuses and the gangs are a factor of violence in schools and in the outside community. Gang activities often replace schooling and responsible behavior. The youths join as a result of perceiving certain shortcomings in their lives and as a way of making up for what they think they do not have. Key people in gangs such as their leaders maintain authority by using forceful tact. They instill fear in their members into respecting them and not questioning their authority or directives. One of the ways of diverting a gang into constructive activities is by influencing its leader into positive education and programs of which the leader could influence other members. To bring down a hive of bees, one has to destroy the queen bee thus creating a rift in the main source of power that pulls the rest together. This is the same strategy that needs to be used in dealing with gangs menace. Also, youths should be encouraged to deal with issues bothering them through the channels provided for in the society, for example, community counselors. Counseling is a fundamental tool to discouraging juveniles from joining gangs and discouraging those who have already joined. It may be hard to weed out juveniles already entrenched into the gang system, but it is possible. The youth gangs are a menace reigning on communities in both rural and urban neighborhoods in the United States. It is a challenge that needs to be solved and is possible to solve. Government agencies and various organizations dealing with the gangs should understand what causes youths to join or form gangs and device efficient and effective means of doing away with gangs. The gang members should be diverted into constructive activities and educated on how to make honest living instead of making money through crime. Much as a gang member seems to be rebellious, they are capable of changing as many have changed and now live productive lives. References Barrows, J., & Huff, C. R. (2009). Criminology and public policy. American Society of Criminology, 8(4). Finley, L. L. (2007). Encyclopedia of juvenile violence. Greenwood Publishing Group. Franzese, R. J., Covey, H. C., & Menard, S. W. (2006). Youth gangs. Charles C Thomas Publisher. Holmes, R. M., Tewksbury, R., & Higgins, G. (2011). Introduction to gangs in America. CRC Press. Johnson, C. D. (2004). Youth gangs in literature. Exploring social issues through literature. Greenwood Publishing Group. Jutersonke, O., Muggah, R., & Rodgers, D., (2009). Gangs, urban violence and security interventions in Central America. Security dialogue. Katz, M. C., & Webb, V. J. (2006). Policing gangs in America. Cambridge Studies in Criminology, Cambridge University Press. Schram, P. J., & Gaines, L. K. (2008). Comparing the effects of treatment on female juvenile gang and non-gang members. Taylor and Francis. Siegel, L. J., & Welsh, B. C. (2011). Juvenile delinquency: Theory, practice and law. Cengage Learning. Tapia, M. (2011). Gang membership and race as risk factors for juvenile arrest. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, Department of Criminal Justice, University of Texas at San Antonio, TX, USA. Read More