Views On Gangs From Different Sociological Perspectives And Theories

Deviance Research Report - Gang Membership
Youth gangs are groups of three or more individuals aged between 12-24 years whose members collectively identify themselves by adopting a group identity, which they use to create fear and intimidation within society. Gangs may be identifiable through a slogan, identifying symbol, tattoo, style of clothing, hand sign or graffiti. Gangs may be known through their deviant behaviours such as property theft, drug selling and street fighting which are used to gain social status and street reputation. It is not known when gangs first appeared. The earliest recorded appearance of gangs may have been as early as 1783 in Boston as the American Revolution ended.

It is very rare for someone who had taken a firsthand experience in gang life to come up in the open and narrate these experiences to the public as well as the dangers which they go through. This is irrespective of the fact that the realism of gang life can be seen in news, movies or in the actual streets, reading about it and visualizing the scenes in one’s mind is like taking a firsthand experience in these

Sanchez-Jankowski recognizes the gap in such an understanding because he saw the gang as a subjective system which gave residents an understanding of their neighbourhood’s social world, a sense of pride in belonging to their specific social fragment, a greater sense of solidarity within their group, a

The theory that best support gang violence is the conflict delinquent subculture. Conflict delinquent subculture is a subculture in which youth oppose the mainstream through violence, underground economies and/or gang activity because of a lack of opportunities to succeed. Majority gangs are in low class neighborhoods where the kids there don’t have much offered to them. These adolescents are usually not completely loved and cared for within their households so they turn to the streets for “love” in gangs. These juveniles believe that once they gain a gang their going to be protected at all times by any counts, they mistake this for love.

Recent Department of Justice figures indicate that there are currently over 26,000 gangs involving over 800,000 members active in virtually every community in the nation (Decker, Melde & Pyrooz, 2013). Traditionally, a large presence of gangs have been found in the more specifically poor neighborhoods, however, gangs have now reached across territorial boundaries into the more affluent and isolated rural communities. Beyond engagement in illegal activity, and the economic rewards that brings, gangs provide a sense of power, belonging, and recognition for their members (Johnston, 2013). This paper will compare and contrast a traditional gang (The Outlaws Motorcycle Club) with a neo-traditional gang (Zoe Pound). Introduction

During his time studying these boys, he found that most cases of conflict were resolved without the use of weapon(s), but rather with “harsh conversation”. This observation highly contradicts the typical view of gang members who are commonly stereotyped by their local community and justice system in Oakland. Rios describes how the boys “Conversations often involved references to guns as analogies for resolving conflict and demonstrating manhood”. The fact that most conflicts are dealt with in non-violent ways, highlights the negative role

“Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean,” -Romeo & Juliet. We all know the classic story- fighting, love, death. But how does such an old story relate to our society today? In what ways? The first thing that stands out to audiences in Shakespeare's story is the immense fighting that takes place between the two families.

In the past, the word “Gang” was used to describe a group of people who banded together to form a type of club. However, in modern times it has a much more negative meaning. “Gang” now refers basically to “a group of people coming together for some criminal action or other antisocial purpose (Erkan 2012)”. The United States became known for gangs in certain areas around the year 2011. With over a million people involved in gangs, and more that 33 thousand gangs here in the states.

The media has fed myself and others lies about what gangs truly are and what their purpose is. The overarching theme of gangs is that they are dangerous, full of thugs, blood-thirsty, and out to cause trouble. The truth is that they are more complicated than what society and the media has often made them out to be. There are multiple factors that go into making a gang what it is including why they form, the environment that their society and culture create for them, the structure and laws they enforce within the group, and the harsh reality of how difficult it is to leave. The first lie I was told about gangs is that they are formed with an intent to cause harm to others and to create a dangerous environment.

Gangs in the United States Gangs have been a part of the United States culture since the beginning of our nation. They are an organized group of criminals who defend their turf and mark the streets and territory with graffiti (Stark 15). Most gang members wear color bandanas in order to represent their gang and to create an identity. Today, gang violence is a huge problem in America because it creates homicides and violence crimes. There is also a problem regarding the reason why young people join gangs.

In the United States, every year there are around 2,000 gang-related homicides and in the realistic fiction novel, The Outsiders, by S. E. Hinton, it explores the issues of gang violence, and teenagers in gangs. Around 40% of all members in gangs are teenagers who are getting involved in some dangerous things early in life. In the novel, The Outsiders, the “Greasers”, which is a gang of all teenagers, fight other gangs and commit serious crimes such as assault. With help, society need to pinpoint why teenagers join gangs and stop them beforehand. In addition, people also need to help others get out of gangs if they are already in one.

Gangs started in the early eighteen hundreds and have continued to grow. A few of the reasons people join gangs are that they are looking for acceptance, money, or security. Some gang members come from a poor home life. Eighteenth-century gangs were not as violent as what they are today.

Gangs The label gang continues to be put on various groups including outlaws from the nineteenth-century American West, prison inmates, Mafioso along with other organized crooks, bikers, and categories of inner city youths. Despite its diverse application, the word gang more often than not connotes participation in dishonest or illegal activities. Social researchers make use of the term gang most often when explaining categories of juveniles. This inclination goes back to Frederic Thrasher 's The Gang: Research of just 1,313 Gangs in Chicago (1927).

Gang Violence Theory – General problem The dominant indicator or measure for gang violence is gang-related homicides (Mares 2010: 39). Though not all gangs or gang members engage in violent offences, gang violence is most prevalent in cities and thus constitutes a pervasive problem (Mares 2010: 40). However, explaining gang violence is a complex matter and without a concrete answer (Mares 2010: 41). One explanation is that gangs in the 20th and 21st centuries have become increasingly involved with the development and trafficking of drugs (Mares 2010: 41).

Throughout the 17th-century gangs have been causing havoc in people's life and destroying the society. The National Institute of Justice (2011) has defined a gang as "A group of collective members which create an atmosphere of intimidation among citizens. " Many of these gangs are well organized, using different forms of violence to control neighbourhoods and to conduct their illegal activities. The National Gang Threat Assessment (2011) reports that “Gangs are responsible for an average of 48 percent of violent crime in most jurisdictions.” Street Gangs have caused incidences of violence that is confined in the inner city of many countries.