Why Girls Join Gangs: Sense of Family, Acceptance, Power, Excitement, and Protection - Coursework Example

Why Girls Join Gangs: Sense of Family, Acceptance, Power, Excitement, and Protection March Girl membership in gangs has been documented since the 1920s (Walker-Barnes & Mason, 2001, p.303). They are called “girls” because they join gangs as early as 8 years old, although most are actually initiated from 11 to 14 years old (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.48). Scientific literature, however, predominantly ignored female gang members because earlier scholars focused on male gang participation and leadership (Shelden, Tracy, & Brown, 2012, p.140; Walker-Barnes & Mason, 2001, p.304). At the same time, the general public, the police, and criminologists believed in the male gang member stereotype, which resulted to them overlooking female gang membership and rendering them invisible (Shelden, Tracy, & Brown, 2012, p.140; Walker-Barnes & Mason, 2001, p.304). Shelden et al. (2012) mentioned studies that revealed how a number of law enforcement agencies were inclined to diminish female gang membership by not counting them as gang members, or not taking their functions in their gangs seriously (p.140). Moreover, the wide-scale belief before the 1990s perceived female gang members as performing minor roles, mostly serving sexual-partner functions and other auxiliary functions, and these stereotypes are some reasons that hindered research on female gang membership and leadership (Hunt, Joe-Laidler, & MacKenzie, 2000, p.332; Vigil, 2008, p.51). The 1990s showed a shift in research attitudes and concerns, after scholars began interviewing female gang members themselves to understand their goals for gang participation (Molidor, 1996, p.252). Some scholars also became concerned of the rising numbers of female gang members who committed serious crimes (Molidor, 1996, p.251), including robbery, where women’s involvement increased by 30.2% from 2000 to 2009, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2004, p.37). The “bad girl” discourse in popular media further helped increase interest in female gang members, while also promoting female gang stereotypes of girls’ sexual and physical recklessness and financial motives in joining gangs (Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2004, pp.35-36). Several studies have already explored the reasons why girls join gangs. The paper aims to combine the results of these studies, in order to understand female motives in gang participation. Girls join gangs for both individual and collective purposes, particularly, to have a sense of family, to attain self-worth and group approval, to access power, to ensure personal protection, and to feel excitement and entertainment. Statistics, Demographics, and Activities of Female Gang Membership After some decline in gang membership before 2001, gangs are again increasingly becoming a larger problem in America. Police estimates in the U.S. reported that around 27,000 gangs with roughly 788,000 members are operating in the country, which shows that gang membership has increased by 25% since 2001 (Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2004, p.42). The statistics of girls’ membership in gangs vary from less than 10%, based on police estimates, to self-report estimates that reach 20 to 46% (Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2004, p.42). Female gang membership has been reported to be increasing too, alongside general gang membership rates (Hunt & Joe-Laidler, 2001, p.366). Some of the risk factors identified for female gang members are familial, neighborhood, and psychosocial factors, where being part of the minority, poor, not having finished high school, experiencing physical/sexual abuse, and having one or no parents who have substance abuse problems are typical of many female gang members (Walker-Barnes & Mason, 2001, pp.306-308; Molidor, 1996, p.253). With these risk factors, young girls find diverse benefits in joining gangs, while the age levels of girl members affect the kind of gang activities they engage in. Girls join gangs typically at around 11 to 12 years old, although most undergo gang initiation rites when they are 13 and 14 years old (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.49). During this time, some of them participate in property crimes, namely larceny/theft, motor vehicle theft and burglary, while others already engage in weapons offenses and violent assaults (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.49). Some girls have become sexually active and get pregnant too because of unsafe sexual practices among gang members (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.49). Girls with ages 15 through 18 are in the “hardcore years of female gang activity” because of their involvement in robbery, drug trafficking, and aggravated assault, while some of them have already killed someone at the age of 18 (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.49). Some of the female gang members ages 19 and above may be pregnant or have children already, so they lie low in their violent crime activities, and prefer engaging in drug selling, prostitution, or other income-generating criminal behaviors to support their children (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.49). Others continue in conducting violent crimes despite having children (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.49). The statistics, demographics, and activities of girl gang members underscore the kind of violence that these girls perpetuate as members of their gangs. Why Girls Join Gangs: The Varied Motives of Female Gang Members After providing an overview of the characteristics and activities of female gang members, the paper proceeds to describing the motives of girls for being part of gangs. Girls join gangs because they are in a social and/or individual position where gangs respond to their immediate and long-term needs and wants (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.48). They may join gangs because their fathers or stepfathers physically/psychologically abuse or rape them, or because their parents are divorced and they have bad relationships with parents or caregivers (Walker-Barnes & Mason, 2001, p.304). They may also be attracted to gangs because of the marginalization they feel as a member of a minority group (Vigil, 2008, p.48), or simply because they want the thrill and money that they can get from gang membership (Hunt et al., 2000, p.351). This section describes these various reasons and factors that motivate girls to join gangs. Sense of Family One of the reasons that girls want to be part of gangs is because they want to feel a sense of family that they do not experience with their own families (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.48). Many girls who join gangs have little to no quality family life (Nimmo, 2001, p.9). In an interview with fifteen female gang members, majority of them reported abuse, domestic violence, and wide-ranging alcohol and drug use among their parents (Molidor, 1996, p.253). Hunt and Joe-Laidler (2001) studied the role of violence in female gang members’ lives (with 141 female respondents). They learned that many have mothers who have been locked up because of drugs or violent assault; some of their mothers also have lasting alcohol and/or drug abuse problems (Hunt & Joe-Laidler, 2001, p.376). Their study also revealed that numerous of these girls have fathers who have left them or are always away and cannot provide emotional and financial support, especially when the latter are also involved in drugs, alcohol, and crimes (Hunt & Joe-Laidler, 2001, p.377). Several studies found that some female gang members also reported being physically and/or sexually abused by their fathers or stepfathers, and their mothers were not able to protect or help them (Hunt & Joe-Laidler, 2001, p.378; Nimmo, 2001, p.9; Vigil, 2008, p.58). A specific example of family abuse comes from Siegel and Welsh (2012), who reported the case of Lisa, a young European-American, who was imprisoned for murder (p.260). Lisa said she joined gangs because she wanted to escape her troubled home life. Her mother was an alcoholic, while her father was a convicted rapist. She also could not stay at home, since her stepfather raped her when she was nine to eleven years old. Lisa said that she joined a gang when she was 12 and they were her real family since then, although gang life introduced her to drugs and criminal activities too (Siegel and Welsh, 2012, p.206). These girls who join gangs have problems in getting emotional, social, or even financial support from their own families, so they crave to have another family that can respond to their needs. Self-worth and Acceptance Another reason why girls join gangs is because they feel that gangs give them self-worth and belongingness. In Molidor’s 1996 study, female gang members reported that being in a gang made them feel important because the gang accepted them as part of their family. A sixteen-year-old respondent said: “My family [gang] makes me feel like I’m a somebody. When we’re hanging, people respect me” (Molidor, 1996, p.254). She believed that being in gang helps her build a stronger identity because a gang represents a source of power for her self-worth. One more study indicates how gangs provide a means for having self-esteem. Hunt et al. (2000) interviewed 97 female gang members in San Francisco, California to understand the role of alcohol in their gangs. Some respondents asserted that when they drank alcohol with their gang friends, they feel more important as people. One of the correspondents stressed that drinking made her feel “more [confident]” (Hunt et al., 2000, p.340). Another gang member who had weight issues explained that drinking made her feel better about herself: “Alcohol boosts your mentality. Like right now I can be fat but if I go to the store and get a tall can, I would forget all about being fat. It just takes away how you are feeling for the moment” (Hunt et al., 2000, p.340). These are examples of girls, who, through what they do with their gang members, feel greater worth as individuals. Another study shows the connection between cultural and economic disadvantaged positions and identity problems. Vigil (2008) conducted a three-year ethnographic study of Pico Gardens in East Los Angeles, where he observed and interviewed twelve females called cholas, a word for female gang members. He learned the underlying hopelessness that marginalized minority youth members experience because of their double identities, Mexican versus American, where none offers a reliable source of positive identification and support due to interconnected cultural and socio-economic disadvantages: “These children find themselves caught between two competing cultures, and made vulnerable in this betwixt-and-between situation, seek other means of cultural adaptation and relief” (p.54). He underscored that Mexican Americans who are poor and living in communities with low access to quality, free education, and with high unemployment, violence, and crime rates are hotbeds for developing youth who are uncertain of their identities and futures (Vigil, 2008, p.53). Those who cannot cope with their oppressed conditions turn to gangs to help build their identity through group identification (Vigil, 2008, p.53). Aside from self-worth, acceptance or belongingness is an essential motive for girls joining gangs. Girls who come from problematic families and violent neighborhoods desire to be part of a gang who will accept them and make them forget their troubles (Walker-Barnes & Mason, 2001, p.307). Vigil (2008) observed from his study that, with family problems and other cultural and economic issues, minority girls want to become gang members, so that they can belong to something more solid and reliable. One of the girl gang members said in an interview: “My homies will always find me a place to stay when shit gets too bad at home” (Vigil, 2008, p.58). She believes that acceptance in her gang means no one ever has to be alone with her problems. Another girl explained that gangs provide emotional comfort and support, which makes them feel accepted, however troubling their lives are: “Were like one big family. If they do wrong to my homegirl or homeboy it is like doing wrong to me and it hurts” (Quicker, 1983, p.24 as cited in Vigil, 2008, p.58). One more girl asserts: “They were always there for me. I wouldnt have made it without my homegirls” (Vigil, 2008, p.58). Group identity is a strong influence on their identities and belongingness. Girls use gangs to develop self-respect because gang members make them feel important and because they can depend on their gang as they would a real family. Power Besides developing self-worth and having something to belong with, girls join gangs because it gives them power. Eghigian and Kirby (2006) stated that girls want to be gang members to gain status in their community (p.48). When the neighborhood is unsafe because of violence and gang-related crimes, the more that these girls want to feel powerful, and gangs can give them that sense of power. A sixteen-year old gang member underlined that her gang makes her feel respected because of the power it gives her: “They’re [students in school] afraid of our gang [the Black Widows], and because I’m in the gang, people show me respect and won’t mess with me. I like that feeling of power” (Molidor, 1996, p.254). Other studies interviewed girls who also underlined that their gangs make them feel powerful, especially when they protect them, and when they carry weapons, such as guns and knives because of their gangs (Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2004, p.49; Nimmo, 2001, p.11; Siegel and Welsh, 2012, p.206). Vigil (2008) provided examples of gang members who oppose the female stereotype by having the same machismo as other male gang members (p.63). Gangs offer girls a source of power through their belongingness to a group that makes them feel strong and that “has their back.” Protection Feeling powerful is connected to the protection that gangs provide to their members, which is another reason that influences girls to join gangs. Hunt and Joe-Laidler (2001) interviewed female gang members who explained that they needed protection from people who harasses and assault them. An example is a Latina who asked her homeboys to beat up another boy because he was sexually harassing her (Hunt & Joe-Laidler, 2001, p.374). She uses her gang to protect herself from sexual violence. Others want to be protected from the general violence in the neighborhood, including the violence that comes from their gang membership (i.e. gang feuds) (Fleisher & Krienert, 2004, p.613; Hunt & Joe-Laidler, 2001, p.371). Gangs provide protection to their female members who are involved in criminal activities too. A fifteen-year-old female member said that it was risky to sell drugs alone: “I needed back-up bad, and the Crips [her gang] gave it to me. When I was hangin’ with the Crips, nobody messed with me then. They respected me” (Molidor, 1996, p.254). Gangs provided power and protection for girls who conduct criminal activities. People feared how gangs would treat them if ever they crossed gang members. Excitement and Entertainment Other reasons why girls join gangs are to find excitement and entertainment. Although these motives seem shallow compared to needs for belongingness and identity, it cannot be denied that boredom due to lack of attention from parents and having no access to decent economic and social opportunities (Fleisher & Krienert, 2004, p.612) can influence girls to join gangs for entertainment purposes too (Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2004, p.53). Some girls believe that joining gangs can alleviate their boredom and lack of thrilling activities (Eghigian & Kirby, 2006, p.48). Other girls see gang membership as about partying, drinking, and doing drugs (Molidor, 1996, p.254). One female gang member said that with her gang, they can get drunk and go to carnival and other fun places: “Whatever is going on, we have fun. We don’t worry about petty little things…We all just work something out” (Hunt et al., 2000, p.342). These girls find entertaining and other activities as ways of having fun without social controls. Other girls, however, find joy in more violent activities. Vigil (2008) interviewed girls who liked hurting other people and doing other deviant or criminal activities (i.e. robbery and vandalism) with the gang just for the thrill of it (p.67). These girls see membership in gangs as a socialization and entertainment outlet. Conclusion Some people think that it is impossible for girls to want to join gangs, when they hold stereotypes that only boys like being in gangs. Girls have reasons in wanting gang membership, which are the same reasons as boys, though their gender’s vulnerabilities can make these motives somewhat different. Girls join gangs because they want a sense of family, belongingness, power, protection, and excitement. These reasons reveal reasons that are attributed to their young ages and developmental needs and concerns, as well as their particular troubling environmental conditions. Girls join gangs, not just because they want to rebel, but because they feel that gangs are the solution to their unmet needs and desires. References Chesney-Lind, M., & Pasko, L. (2004). Chapter 3: Girls, gangs, and violence. In The female offender: Girls, women, and crime (2nd ed.) (pp.33-56). Los Angeles: SAGE. Eghigian, M., & Kirby, K. (2006). Girls in gangs: On the rise in America. Corrections Today, 68(2), 48-50. Fleisher, M.S., & Krienert, J.L. (2004). Life-course events, social networks, and the emergence of violence among female gang members. Journal of Community Psychology, 32(5), 607-622. Hunt, G., & Joe-Laidler, K. (2001). Situations of violence in the lives of girl gang members. Health Care for Women International, 22(4), 363-384. Hunt, G., Joe-Laidler, K., & MacKenzie, K. (2000). Chillin, being dogged and getting buzzed: Alcohol in the lives of female gang members. Drugs: Education, Prevention & Policy, 7(4), 331-353. Molidor, C.E. (1996). Female gang members: A profile of aggression and victimization. Social Work, 41(3), 251-257. Nimmo, M. (2001). The “invisible” gang members: A report on female gang association in Winnipeg. Retrieved from http://www.apin.org/uploads/files/invisible-gang-members.pdf Shelden, R., Tracy, S., & Brown, W. (2012). Youth gangs in American society (3rd ed.). California: Wadsworh-Cengage. Siegel, L., & Welsh, B. (2012). Juvenile delinquency: Theory, practice, and law (12th ed.). Connecticut: Cengage. Vigil, J.D. (2008). Female gang members from East Los Angeles. International Journal of Social Inquiry, 1(1), 47-74. Walker-Barnes, C.J., & Mason, C.A. (2001). Perceptions of risk factors for female gang involvement among African American and Hispanic women. Youth & Society, 32(3), 303-336. Read More