Teen Gang Violence - Essay Example

Guppies are discussed in Jonathan Weiner's work "The Beak of the Finch". Weiner's book documents the work of Peter and Rosemary Grant who study finches in the Galapagos. Weiner starts in this way,"It is the twenty-fifth of January, 1991. There are four hundred finches on this island at this moment, and the Grants know every one of the birds on sight, the way the shepherd knows his flocks." (1) Weiner writes, "The island where the guppies are found is contained and isolated; hence, the work of the Grants provides an opportunity to look for evidence of natural selection in the wild. To keep track of changes among the various finch populations, the Grants tag birds, measure beaks, take blood samples, even count seeds and calculate the force required to crack them. After months of this daily grind in a hot, inhospitable place, the Grants head back to Princeton to interpret the data." (12-14). Weiner describes Endler's work: "What the Grants are to Darwin's finches, Endler is to guppies. His guppies live in northeastern South America, in the small streams that zigzag down the mountains of Venezuela, Margarita Island, Trinidad, and Tobago, flashing through steep, undisturbed green forests and then the broad spreads of the old cacao and coffee plantations, on their way to the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic".(12) Weiner discusses the guppies: "When Endler analyzed his guppy surveys, he discovered a pattern. The spots on each guppy look chaotic, but the spots of all the populations of guppies in a stream, taken together, from the headwaters down to the base, have a kind of order. The spots on each population of guppies bear a simple relationship to the number of guppy eaters in their part of the stream. The more numerous the guppies' enemies were, the smaller and fainter the guppies' spots. The fewer their enemies, the larger and brighter their spots were" (13). As Endler shows, environments influences characteristics, the same can be seen in human environments. The guppies are basically shaped by their environment. The environment has a strong impact on the youth and guppies. The prevalence of youth gangs in a place will most likely increase the number of youth who are involved in gang activities. Similarly, the presence of guppies in a place gives way to a community of guppies that are present there. In the United States alone, almost 5,000 communities report having juvenile gangs (Moore and Terrett, 6). These communities have a total of 31,000 juvenile gangs with a membership of around 850,000 young people. These numbers shows that juvenile gangs are present on local communities throughout the United States (Moore and Terrett, 6). Similarly, guppies tend to stay together in a particular stream. Endler studied the streams which are natural laboratories for the study of natural selection of guppies. Weiner writes further "Endler developed standardized methods of identifying the guppies and measuring guppy spots. His method of study is as careful Grants' methods with Darwin's finches. He learned to anesthetize and photograph each guppy he caught. Then from the photographs he recorded the color and position of each spot of every male guppy, dividing each guppy into dozens of sectors to make a standardized guppy map that is easy to read, to tally, and to enter into a computer." (14-15). There are factors that affect the presence of gangs and guppies. In the case of guppies, Weiner cites that "Endler found guppies and at least a few of their enemies in almost every section of almost every stream, from the headwaters near the summit of each mountain to the plains and plantations below. Neither the guppies nor the guppy eaters can swim up a waterfall, nor the population of each section of stream tend to stay put" (16). There are predisposing factors for youth gangs. "Poverty and marginalization" are major factors that signal the presence of youth gangs in a community (Duffy and Gilig, 25). Duffy and Gilig explain that marginalization is a term that refers to the state of being on the edges or the fringes of society, being left out and not fully included. Alienated or marginalized youth are more likely to join gangs than are young people who fully participate in school and work. The inclusion in society refers to the sense of personal ownership of the dominant values of one's culture and community (26). In addition, Duffy and Gilig also explain that at the personal level, the included members of society feel that they belong, that they are a part of what is going on, and that what they think about things is important and will make a difference (27). In a sense, the included members of society feel respected and that they have a voice. Being socially included means having ties to one's community that connect one to other people in meaningful ways. Inclusion means access. (Duffy and Gilig, 27). An example is the participation of the African-American youth in gangs was greater than their actual number in proportion in the overall population of young people. The main reason for this is because these youths were banned from most factory jobs, office positions, and even unskilled part-time jobs (Adamson, 5). For example, Reibolt writes that the Latino gangs focused on "turf-related violence", while African-American gangs concentrated on drug offenses. Gang violence is largely "related to emotional protection of one's character as a gang member, defense of the gang itself, defense and veneration of the standing of the gang, gang member recruitment, and territorial growth"(22). Duffy and Gilig also indicate that the general public is affected by youth gangs either through fear of them or by victimization from their crimes (3). In addition, the crime victims and their respective areas of residentce also bear the financial costs of social, legal, and criminal justice services made them (3). To a greater or lesser extent, young people in gangs in all countries throughout the world are having a similar negative impact on their local communities. Youth gangs raise important questions about the relationship between gang membership and crime. Youth gangs highlight the poor situation of youth who perceive themselves to be excluded from access to societal opportunities and benefits such as jobs and status. (Duffy and Gilig, 5) There are many ways to spot gang members. Likewise, there are many ways to spot guppies in a stream. Hazlehurst and Hazlehurst (1998) identify "adolescent male membership" (5) as the key defining element of a juvenile gang. "Illegal activity" is another important identifier of gang activity (Ball and Curry, 8). These researchers also focused on the sense of solidarity and geographic space of gang members more than on the criminal activities which they undertake. Klein (1971) also tackles "territoriality", along with symbols and self-identification of the young people as belonging to a gang (1). For example, gang members wear clothing that displays gang colors to school can give rise to conflicts among competing gangs. (1) The United States Bureau of Justice Association report states that "When gang members make threatening statements to the public, the people avoid going out in their own communities. Leaders realize they need to find solutions to gang related issues and determine patterns of harmful behaviors." (Bureau of Justice Assistance, 1). Duffy and Gilig explains that ethnic roots affect gender expectations about autonomy and male dominance in gang members (54). In general, African American and Caucasian female gang members tend be more autonomous while the Latinas take a lower position to the males (Duffy and Gilig, 54). When youth gangs demonstrate more group-based criminal activity, this means that they are formally organized (Duffy and Gilig, 22). The individual psychological and family factors can be predisposing factors for gangs. The presence of role models in the family, order within the family and absence of family violence and addiction are protective factors which prevent young people from entering gang membership. In contrast, family breakdown, substance abuse, and negative parental attitudes toward authority and community increases the possibility that a young person will become a gang member in the future (Duffy and Gilig, 22-23). Guppies resort to camouflage to fight off potential predators. Weiner explains:" Endler looked at his data from stream after stream. In every one of them, the size and number of spots ran steeply downhill. Endler thought he could see the hand of natural selection at work among the guppies. The greater the pressure from their predators, the more camouflage they wear; the less the pressure, the slighter the camouflage Endler studied that a school of guppies against the parti-colored sands and pebbles of the streambed that the spots present an excellent example of perfect camouflage for them. As an added adaptation, guppies tend to swim close to the gravel while the sun is out. The fish need this camouflage because they have seven enemies which are found in the stream: six species of fish and one freshwater prawn. All seven of these enemies hunt guppies from dawn till dusk. The most dangerous is Crenicichla alta, a cichlid fish, which eats about three guppies an hour; the least dangerous is Rivulus hartii, which eats one guppy in about five hours" (13). Furthermore, Weiner writes that "Endler found out those guppies and at least a few of their enemies in almost every section of almost every stream, from the headwaters near the summit of each mountain to the plains and plantations below. High up near the headwaters of each stream, the only enemy the guppies have is the comparatively mild-mannered Rivulus hartii. But moving downstream, section by section, the population of guppies lives and dies in the company of more and more of its enemies, until down near the base of each mountain, the stream is loaded with all seven of the guppy eaters. So a graph of risk and danger runs with the current. For the guppies, the higher the stream, the lower the risk. In stream after stream the intensity of natural selection is graduated in the same way: gentle pressure among the guppies at the top, violent pressure among the guppies at the bottom" (15). Gaustad writes that schools have difficulty in fighting gang activity since the gang members abide by a certain code of silence for the good of the group (2). However, the school can limit the presence of gangs specifically by banning certain items of clothing, weapons, violence, illegal activities and other things related to gang membership (Gaustad, 2). The school officials should ensure a discipline among the young people. The school can organize activities to repair the damage done by gang members such as painting over graffiti and transferring disruptive students who are gang members (Gaustad, 2). Prevention and awareness are important to avoiding and curtailing gang activities in the schools. Schools can work together with the community including the local enforcement officials in order to reduce and eliminate school related gang activity (Gaustad, 3). The environment has a strong and persistent impact to youth gang members and the guppies. Gaustad (1990) revealed that gang members indicate their "gang membership by idiosyncratic dress and behaviors, including bandanas and shoelaces of certain colors, jewelry, tattoos, idiosyncratic language styles, and special hand signals (1).Gaustad continues: "They mark their terrain and deter other gangs with spray painted graffiti or gang signs. Gangs tend to form in both poor and affluent communities, as alienated youth try to gain self-esteem, financial gain, and power" (Gaustad, 1). Hixon (1999) reports on the telltale signs of gang membership such as the "presence of tattoos or clothing with gang symbols, keeping of late hours, wearing specific colors and style of clothes, truancy and poor academic achievement, a new group of friends, and a diminished interest in family activities"(2). For example, the Chicano youth gang members tend to focus on defending their neighborhoods and acting aggressively as a means to resolve inner conflicts they had experienced in their families (Hixon, 1). The Vietnamese youth gang members are "materialistic" and seek to own new clothes and cars and spend their evenings in nightclubs and restaurants. They want easy money and they want to steal and rob to get their needs (Duffy and Gilig, 26). Similarly, guppies are strongly impacted by their environment. Weiner writes, "The lucky guppies in the headwaters wear sporty coats of many colors, and each color is represented by big clownish splotches. Many of their spots are blue. The blue spots are iridescent, like the Day-Glo patches that cyclists wear; they flash as the fish swim, and they can be seen at a great distance through the clear water. The guppies downstream tend to wear conservative pin dots of black and red. Most wear only a tiny amount of blue"(11). Reiboldt (2001) indicates that potential gang members are typically recruited as they reach the teen years, when they are involved in identity development. Gang membership helps in fostering identity and a sense of belonging for teens, particularly males. From research it appears that Latino gang members are most interested in being "macho," while African American gang members are more interested in being "cool" (Hunt and Laidler, 1). Duffy and Gilig explains that the Salvadoran gang members from the street gangs of Los Angeles, laid the groundwork for the spread of youth gangs to neighboring Central American countries when they went back to El Salvador. (37) Borrow and Walker in the Duffy and Gilig book also cites that inside Honduras, the government has approved the extrajudicial murder of youth gang members as a form of social cleansing of a both a "troubled and troubling segment of society" (59). The Honduras government has a "zero tolerance policy" for youth gangs (59). Gang members spend most of their time "hanging around" or "doing nothing (3). While doing nothing, gang members can be incredibly occupied with activities such as talking about business, keeping one's respect, telling jokes, avoiding police, cruising in cars, defending turf, drinking, drugging, and partying (Hunt and Laidler, 4). Esbensen, Winfree Jr., He, and Taylor found out that in general, "gang members are more impetuous, engage in more risky behavior, have more criminal friends, have fewer pro-social friends, report less felt guilt, are more violent, are more committed to delinquent friends, and are less committed to positive friends" (1). Indeed, youth gang members and guppies share many common characteristics. First, they move around and act as a group and they define a certain geographic space for their group. In addition, they exhibit common tendencies and symbols. The guppies tend to stay together as groups along a stream. Similarly, the youth gang members meet and enjoy together in a similar place and they go to the same places. Second, they wear labels and identities as a form of protective security for themselves and for their fellow gang members. The guppies found in the same area of the stream have the same spots. The guppies in the upstream are different in terms of shades of color from the guppies located in the downstream area. Third, they try to protect each other as much as possible. For example, they are in a constant situation of having to fend off their enemies. The guppies have to fight off several predators along the stream. Similarly, youth gangs try to protect all their members. They also come to the aid of a fellow gang member who is attacked. They also have to fight off their enemies which encroach on their territory or challenge their supremacy in an area. Thus, teen gang members and guppies resemble many characteristics as they adapt to their respective environments and fight for their survival. Works Cited Adamson, C. "Defensive localism in white and black: A comparative history of European-American and African-American youth gangs." Ethnic and Racial Studies 23(2) (2000): 272-298. Ball, Richard and G. David Curry. "The Logic of Definition in Criminology: Purposes and. Methods for Defining 'Gangs'." Criminology 33: 225-245, 1995. Bureau of Justice Assistance. Addressing Community Gang Problems: A Model for Problem Solving. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, 1997. Duffy, Maureen and Scott Gilig. Teen Gangs: A Global View. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2004. Esbensen. F., L. Winfree Jr., N. He, and T. Taylor. "Youth gangs and definitional issues: When is a gang a gang, and why does it matter" Crime & Delinquency 47(1) (2001): 105-130. Gaustad, Joan. "Schools Attack the Roots of Violence". ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Management. Eric Digest No. 63, 1990. Hazlehurst, K., and C. Hazlehurst. Gangs and youth subcultures: International explorations New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 1998. Hixon, A. "Preventing street gang violence." American Family Physician 59(8) (1999): 2121-2132 Hunt, G., and K. Laidler. "Alcohol and violence in the lives of gang members." Alcohol, Research & Health 25(1) (2001): 66-71. Moore, J.P., and Terret, C.P. "Highlights of the 1996 National Youth Gang Survey". Fact Sheet #86. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, 1998. Reiboldt, W. "Adolescent interactions with gangs, family, and neighborhoods: An ethnographic investigation." Journal of Family Issues 22(2) (2001): 211-242. Weiner, Jonathan. The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in Our Time. New York: Vintage, 1995. Read More