Street Gangs in the Usa

Street Gangs in the U.S

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Abstract

The paper is a research on the existence of street gangs in the U.S, their prevalence levels, level of criminal involvement and other general information concerning street gangs. Gangs have continued to thrive in urban, suburban and the rural areas in the U.S through the recruitment of new members. This has led to strengthening of gangs to the extent of influencing criminal enterprises like drug- trafficking businesses. As the paper comes to a conclusion, it looks at the misconceptions by the society on the gang groups and a criticism as to why the youth should steer away from street gangs.

Definition of a gang

In the city of San Diego, gangs are defined as groups with a leadership that can be identified either by having an economic, geographic or criminal unifying factor. Besides, the above, the gang engages in criminal activities. The Encyclopedia of Violence defines a gang as a group of organized criminals or people from the same hood who may or may not engage in criminal activities. The common characteristics in all the above definitions is the element of criminal activities engagement.

Prevalence of street gangs in the U.S

Studies done over the years do show that gangs in the U.S have been growing in size and composition to pose an eminent threat to the security of communities within the U.S (Klein, M.W., and Maxson, 2006). Many gangs are characterized by sophisticated structures whose members distribute drugs under complicated networks. Their networks include transnational criminal groups with established drug trafficking organizations (Klein, M.W., and Maxson, 2006).

In the U.S alone, it is estimated that there are 27,900 gangs which hold up to 774,000 gang members spread across the different states (The US Department of Justice, 2006).  The statistics further points to the fact that the gang membership is on the rise as a 6% and 28 % gang membership and gang group increment respectively was reported between 2002 and 2008 (Thornberry et al., 2003, p.1).

The gang membership pattern established by the same report points out to the fact that geographic regions had strong effects on the membership process. Of all the known gang members, 85 % were form the major cities while the rural areas contributed the remaining 15 % (Klein, M.W., and Maxson, 2006). As if out to make their presence felt across the U.S, between 2002 and 2007, gangs accounted for approximately 48 % of all the violent offences in many of the jurisdictions with major cities the big victims of criminal activities by the gangs (Seigel, 2010). The surging up of the gangs has been equally boosted by collaborations within the gangs themselves more especially the influential Mexican Drug Trafficking Organization (MDTO). To protect their interests, the gang members are themselves or have family members with law enforcements from where they can gather crucial information on rival gangs and government moves as well to combat crime (Seigel, 2010).

Reasons for joining street gangs

The social structure theory has been used to explain some of the key elements towards criminal behavior by asserting the neighborhood of an individual has the potential to shape them into being a criminal (Siegel, 2010). Basically, the theory applies to the low- class group of people who lead dilapidated lives in the slums or remote rural environments. Their society is mostly disorganized and lack of ambitions to make it in life can crop form the young generation (Featherstone, R. & Deflem, M. 2003).

Their normal living is characterized by violence and unemployment. Their resources are strained already as they can’t cater for the already existing society. This kills the hope while increasing the urge to struggle in the society especially the youth. It is on such lines of thoughts that the youth feel hated and neglected with bitterness in their heart and they eventually form gang groups to act as their society that never was. This theory argues that youths from the low-class society don’t feel obligated to preserve whatever is in their neighborhood and as a result they would end up in criminal gangs for they have little to worry about.

Level of criminal involvement

The FBI report (2012) revealed some shocking details about criminology in the U.S. In the report, it was reported that in every three seconds, a property crime occurs in U.S. Also, same report stated that from findings, in every 22 seconds, a violent crime was reported. The statistics are sobering in that they signal a high level of crime rate in the U.S. Unlike what many people do think, the data revealed that actually more property crimes were reported in a period of 24 hours as compared to the violent crimes; property crimes were reported ten times more than violent crimes. Annually, property crimes would total to more than 10 million while violent crimes would range between 1and 2 million cases.

For example, according to the FBI report, theft and burglary recorded 7 and 2 million cases annually. This by far outweighed all the other forms of crimes. Motor vehicles theft is third with 1 million of recorded cases annually while robbery and aggravated assault came in fourth recording a total of less than a million each in a year.

Why criminologists and justice practitioners misunderstand gangs

Both historically and in the modern day society young people have been perceived as troublesome, or that they are always in trouble for a reason or another by their elder members of the society (Featherstone, R. & Deflem, M., 2003). The biasness is so serious that one in every three media articles concerning the youth talks about crime (NGIC, 2009). The segment of the youth that receives the worst of the deal is the teenage boys whose half of the articles written about them address crime life. It is only in occasions where a boy has met an untimely or violent death that he will be described in good names like “altar boy” (NGIC,2009). The media has been so negative about the teenage boy that even the other men are wary of him. A research with the Scout Association in the US found out that majority of the boys between the ages of 13-18years of age felt that the adults are overly critical of the young people (USDOJ, 2009). This is contrary to the findings that 34 % of the young people have in one way or the other actually participated in helping out the community they live in while a whopping 72 % were willing to make a positive change in their communities and the world as a whole (USDOJ, 2009).