Various Problems Related to Gang Violence - Research Paper Example

GVEA: Initiating New Programs to Eliminate Gang Violence September Introduction There is a continuous increase of gang violence that is becoming dominant in various sectors of the United States. The problem is not only causing difficulties and complications among various communities, but is leading to debates with political, social and cultural viewpoints. At the same time, gang violence is not decreasing in most cities and is becoming a segment of popular culture among teens and young adults. The result is the inability to meet the needs of most youth. Understanding the root causes of gang violence and beginning to change the concepts associated with this will also provide different opportunities to change the way in which communities are functioning as well as the way in which youth approach different problems within their community life. To do this, the gang violence enforcement agency (GVEA), will be created. This will specifically tackle various problems related to gang violence while creating alternatives for youth. Overview of Problem The problem of gang violence is one that is specific to different communities. Gangs are defined as a group of members, usually under the age of 25, that remain together as a peer group. The group defines their identity through clothing, symbolism and activities in which they do together. Typically, the activities lead to different levels of destruction and violence. Everything from graffiti to injury and death are common among gangs. It is known that some of these are done as gangs define their identity by marking territories and specific concepts with their gangs. They are also known to have rival gangs which have a separate identity and in which they set against, which specifically leads to the violence in various communities. Many have come to address gangs as organized offenders and spontaneous societies. The concept emerged from outlaws that worked together in the 1800s, which has led to the social associations of gangs and violence (Decker, Van Winkle, 1996). The concept of belonging to a gang is one that is divided into four main groups. Immigration, poverty levels, urbanization and ethnicity are the main features that relate to the formation of gangs. From these four definitions are formations of gangs that identify the activities of the members, specifically because each one identifies with one of the characteristics that are associated with a gang. The city population and the main economy that is associated with this then continue to identify what and how a gang is formed. For instance, larger populations and cities have more formations of gangs, all which are divided into several types of immigrants or ethnic contrasts. The levels of income as well as the motivation to create a different lifestyle through the current living conditions further this among several youth and change the association with most. There are also traces of gangs having a specific association with family conditions and friends that are related to this. The family, for instance, usually has lower income levels and has a trace of domestic violence or absent parents in the household. Friends then become more influential with the gang activities (Decker, Van Winkle, 1996). The majority of gang violence comes from larger populations, specifically with those that have more than a population of 250,000. This demographic group noted that gang violence was at 100%. In suburban areas of less than 2500, gang activity is only at 35%. 42% of the cities that have a population of more than 25,000 noted an increase in the amount of gang violence in their community. This includes homicide rates at a level of 69% since the year 2001. It has also been found that homicides in larger cities have an average rate of 59% of gang related death. By the year 2000, it was noted that there were 24,500 gangs that were active in the United States with an average of 772,500 youth that were active gang members at either a mild level or with complete commitment to a gang. On average, 94% of the gang members are male and 6% are female with 50% of the members being under the age of 18 in 1996 and 37% of the members being under 18 by the year 2000. The ethnicities of gang members are 47% Hispanic, 31% African American, 13% white and 7% Asian (Fasten, 2010). The problem with gangs is one that is continuing to increase with the amount of violence being responsible for over 50% of the homicides in America. More importantly the demographics show that there are many gangs who continue to belong to the same group after the age of 18, which is leading to more influences and a large amount of youth who continue to remain in gangs after graduating from high school. If the problem doesn’t begin to be addressed, specifically in terms of the amount of violence that is in gangs, then it will continue to increase in various cities and suburbs with the number of youth who are drawn to gangs as a form of identity. Changing the amount of education and creating alternatives for youth and young adults will decrease the amount of violence and homicides in the city and will begin to change the way in which most approach being a part of gangs. Analysis There are several causes and consequences that are associated with gang violence and the association this has on youth. Typically, youth will join a gang as a way of finding an association with identity. The analysis of ethnicity, immigration and urbanization show that there is a direct association with identity and gangs that begin at different ages. More importantly, the relationship of identity to economic levels in the household and poverty become a main reason why many join gangs. The consequences is one that begins to move into a type of peer pressure among gangs, which leads to several levels of destruction and to the violence and homicides that are popular among gangs. It is known that this exposure to violence changes the associations in which youth have while growing up, specifically through a psychological and social viewpoint. Psychobiological effects, cognitive consequences and peer problems all become associated with the gang violence and associations among children. The problem arises not only among the violence that occurs, but also in ways that affect the youth in their formative years by changing their course in cognitive and psychological responses that become diagnosable disorders (Margolin, Gordis, 2000). The main concept used within gang violence is one that leads to ideologies and values among gangs. Specifically, the ideologies begin with peer members who mention specific values that they see within their home or through other areas. Most gang members believe in these values from problems such as domestic violence and other consequences in which they have been exposed to. The ideologies grow from the leaders of the gang, who usually are associated with levels of violence either in the home or through other peers. As this occurs, those who are in the gangs begin to believe in the violence at a similar level. At the same time, the questions of identity and the associations with the different ethnic values become a question for most that are within the gang. As this is accepted among peers, it becomes the driving force where the concepts of identity are closely associated with gang violence and the need to be a part of the power struggle within the group for a specific identity (Brown, 2007). Even though most believe that gangs are not a way to become associated with groups, it is known to have gainers and losers among the group. For peers that are in a gang group, there is the ability to gain a sense of identity and to feel a sense of belonging to the group. More importantly, this is a way of growing with specific associations of what it takes to belong to a specific space among others. For the youth, the association with violence is not as pertinent as the identity and the expectations among peers. However, the losers are the same members who then have psychological problems associated with the violence and the expectations from gangs. More importantly, the losers come into the communities and schools by changing the environment into one that is based on violence and difficulties among various regions. Policy Elements To counteract gang violence, the GVEA will work toward creating an alternative program for youth that provides them with benefits. The main goal will be to stop, prevent and interact with those that are in a gang and that are associated with gang violence. At the same time, there will be a deeper understanding of why many of the youth decide to associate with specific gangs. The policies will be as follows: Mission: To assist youth who are in a gang to become educated about gang violence and to begin building an alternative path toward identity and belonging. Goals: 1. To lower the percentage rates of gang violence and homicides. 2. To educate youth on the consequences of violence and the wrong peer associations. 3. To support youth who are unable to find the correct identity within the community. 4. To build different activities and alternatives for youth who feel the need to be in a gang. 5. To assist youth who have come from families that are dealing with poverty, violence, domestic problems, etc. Objectives: 1. To lower the level of gang activity, specifically related to gang violence 2. To intercept with gang violence by educating youth and providing alternatives 3. To reach to youth who need assistance from backgrounds that create psychological confusion and confusion in identity 4. To create alternative activities for those who are associated with gangs 5. To assist those who currently belong in gangs to begin moving out of the environment The benefits of using the GVEA for gang members will be to change their future and their psychological perspective on what is occurring. This will be combined with the benefits to the community, specifically which are designed to change the level of violence in the community. Services will include activities for youth and those in gangs, counseling for those who are suffering psychologically from gang violence and educational means for those that have considered a gang or that belong to a gang. To be eligible for GVEA, you need to be between the years of 12 – 25. You need to either be associated with a gang, a former member of a gang or considering joining a gang. You need to have associations with the different identities that are a part of the gang. The service delivery will be based on the youth showing up to a specific center and taking part in activities or working with counselors and groups through certain initiatives. The theory for the GVEA will be based on the ability to work with youth who need different peer activities while forming alternative concepts for identity. Since most youth form a gang because of their living situation and identity, the alternative means will help them to begin moving in a different direction. More importantly, it will stop the psychological scaring and the amount of gang violence within the community by showing alternative paths for those with a specific identity. Financing The budget that will be used for the GVEA will be an average of $300,000 per year, which will be divided among staff, supplies and the rental of different buildings. The budget will be divided as follows: Type Amount Total Staff 2 activity staff 2 counselors $30,000 / staff $120,000 total Training 2xs per year $50,000 Supplies and equipment $100,000 limit Travel N/A N/A Building and utilities $2000/ month $24,000 / year $295,000 / year The payment for the program will initially be based on available grants for the different activities. Government funding, both locally and through federal applications will be considered. There will also be options for private donors and those that are interested in supporting through smaller donations. If there isn’t enough to pay for the programs, then there will be fundraising that is done to initiate more donations and money among groups. To further this, there will be opportunities for some unpaid activities, while other services are paid for. The accountability of funds will be provided through a board of directors, which will comprise of volunteers that overlook the activities. One of the directors will be responsible for accounts and funding while others will overlook the funds while providing semi – annual reports on the budget. Staffing There will be a board of directors for GVEA, which will consist of a president, vice – president, treasurer and secretary. The activities will be initiated and approved through this board and will provide support through the administrative portions of working as a non – profit. The GVEA will start with 4 main employees. This will comprise of 2 group leaders who will work with youth for activities. There will also be 2 counselors that will be contracted to work with those who have been involved in gang violence. A main secretary will be contracted out to help with development of activities, communication and other needs. The rules will include policies for confidentiality as well as policies based on the ability to meet the psychological needs of those involved in gangs. Other rules will be based on the types of activities to include, educational means and the ability to work with youth in a way that is non – offensive and non – discriminatory. Evaluation The evaluation of the program will be based on the response from the youth as well as the growth of the programs. To begin, a few foundational programs will be built while trying to initiate funds as a start up group. After 1 – 2 years, there will be evaluations over how many youth have joined as well as the response from the community. The number of people who have responded to GVEA and the recognition in the community will be evaluated. The success will then increase by showing more programs for education, counseling and activities. This will be combined with several specialized programs that will help with the success of different programs. This will continue to be evaluated by the responses from youth and the interest they have in the overall needs within the community. The last portion of this will be created through the programs that have little to no response from the community. After every year, an evaluation or survey will be sent to the community to define the percentage of gang violence as well as the educational levels that are related to peer groups. This will further direct what types of activities to include in the community and how these will influence the youth that are involved in gangs and violent activities. Doing this will help to define what GVEA needs to do to further the success of the group. References Brown, Videtta. (2007). “Gang Member Perpetrated Domestic Violence: A New Conversation.” Race, Religion, Gender and Class (395). Decker, Scott, Barrik Van Winkle. (1996). Life in the Gang: Family, Friends and Violence. New York: Cambridge University Press. Fasten. (2010). “Gang Statistics 2009.” Retrieved from: http://www.urbanministry.org/wiki/gang-statistics. Margolin, Gayla, Elana Gordis. (2000). “The Effects of Family and Community Violence on Children.” Annual Review of Psychology (51). Read More