The Media’s Portrayal of Gangs
History has shown time and time again that most gangs are violent, involved in drug activity, murder, sex, and all types of illegal activities. And how do we know this? Gangs are portrayed in mass media, TV, games, and movies as being completely evil and extremely filled with horrible people. Most people believe that gangs are going to take over and fill the streets with violence and death if they are not stopped because of what they have seen or heard in the media. Some believe that media actually contributes to gang related crime. While yes most gangs are bad for our youth, the community and everyone involved, but there are also positive aspects that are not shown and some gangs try to good and make a difference in the community. The good aspects of gangs are not widely talked about as the negative aspects are so people have a negative viewpoint of gangs. While I am not for one minute saying some gangs are not horrible I am going to talk about a few gangs who are
Gangs are responsible for all sorts of violent acts, drug deals, murders and every other sin that can be names. In the past they have been responsible for crime after crime but in today’s day and time some gangs are trying to be better and make a difference. The fact is not all gangs are bad, like the media would like you to think they are. I think the media should start covering both the good and bad aspects of gangs and what they truly do for the community. If children and our youth saw the positive aspect that gangs have to offer they may be less likely to only follow the negative path gangs can take them down. I hope that the media will one day realize what a positive impact they can have on society and they will one day quit being so biased in their reporting. This is not only the case with gangs but so many other topics that only have one side of their story
Gangs have been in existence since the beginning of the Roman Empire. There were speeches made by Roman orator, Marcus Tullius Cicero, which references groups of men who constantly fought and disrupted Roman politics (Curry, 2013). The history of street gangs in the United States begins with their emergence on the East Coast around 1783, as the American Revolution ended. Though many believe the best available evidence suggests that the more serious street gangs likely did not emerge until the early part of the nineteenth century (Sante, 1991). Although our country has had their share of feared gangs like in the 1980’s with the turf war between the Bloods and Crips, back in the 17th and 18th century the Mohocks of Georgian, England were one of the most feared gangs. What draws juveniles to the gang lifestyle? Many people will say that most gang members are children from impoverished communities, single family homes where there was no father present, or maybe there is a more psychological/sociological answer? By appearance and presence most gangs cause fear, crime, and disillusionment in the communities they occupy. Throughout history joining a gang has been perceived as a life without any reward, yet by joining this lifestyle many juveniles are able to gain the needed stability and security in their lives.
Gangs are a group of boys and believe it or not girls too, that frequently get together to make all types of vandalism and actions that are not admitted by the law. Gangs have been part of the world for a very long time; they have also evolved through time. For example gangs in the 1960’s are not the same as the gangs we see today in our days. Many gangs were made before and after the 1960’s but the major gangs in this time were: The Crips, The Latin Kings, KKK, The Bloods which were enemies of The Crips, and the 18th Street Gang.
First let's focus on the fact that gang related crime is one of the most dangerous challenges facing society and law enforcement today. They are younger, more brutal, unafraid of consequences and becoming increasingly more vicious. Gang members work together as cliques, they commit all sorts of violent crimes including murders, rapes, robberies and kidnappings. "They live in aimless and violent presents; have no sense of the past and no hope for the future; they commit unspeakably brutal crimes against other people often to gratify whatever urges of desires drive them at the moment and their utter lack of remorse is...
States such as California and New York have a big problem with gangs. Gang-related homicides in Los Angeles County has increased dramatically in the last 16 years, reaching epidemic proportions especially for young male African Americans and Hispanics, according to a study by co-authored by Deirdre Anglin, assistant professor of emergency medicine at LAC+USC (Maceo para.1). When someone decides to join a gang they have to let current members of the gang know that they are going to be a member for life and they are dedicated to the gang, this can be proven in a gang affiliation. Boys are usually forced to fight several gang members at the same time. This is called being "rolled-in" or "walking the line." Girls may be forced to have sex with several gang members or fight other female members. For some gangs you have to beat someone up, rob a store or commit a drive-by shooting. This puts innocent citizens in danger. In Chicago, the year 2012, more than 40 people were shot over Memorial Day weekend alone (Childress para.2).
Gangs have been around forever and there are two types of gangs which are, street gangs and prison gangs. They have the same structures that are divided as leadership and soldiers. The main difference between a street gang and prison gang is that a prison gangs are more disciplined than a street gang. Incarcerated members cannot escape their environment and therefore, are forced to comply with the facilities and gangs regulation. Gangs are always involved with criminal activity and it's difficult to control negative behavior and to lower recidivism rates for gang members.
Violence Gangs are known to be very violent. Gangs use violence to protect their own gang members from enemy attacks.
When one hears the word “gangs”, many would start leaving the premises or speak in hushed whispers due to the threats attached to these groups. Some would argue, especially its members, that the perceptions on gangs are exaggerated considering that not all gangs are violent in nature. Regardless of these arguments, many often fear gangs as history and the media portray the violence and chaos brought by these groups when they are in their territories or fighting rival organizations. However, there are several sentiments being raised by people when it comes to the possible impacts of gang membership to the individual who become involved with these gangs. How much changes would these gangs bring to the individual and the community? Gang membership
Gangs are very unsafe to every person in society. “Gangs are groups of people (mostly young males) who band together for security and a sense of belonging. The U.S. Department of Justice officially defines a youth gang as a group of young people involved in criminal activity”. There are about one million gang members in more than 20,000 criminally active gangs in the United States. Also, that group of about one million people is accountable for up to eighty percent of our nation’s crimes. Since 2005, gangs have nationally added about 200,000 members. This is why more action from the community needs to be taken to help with the growing gang-related crimes here in America.
Did you know gang's first started off as a way to help stop police brutality? Some gang members are “jumped in” or have to prove their loyalty by committing criminal acts. In the 1960s many gang organizations joined the Black Panthers. The Black Panthers wanted blacks to control businesses, education, employment, and the media in their area instead of having these businesses controlled by white people. They wanted to act as a community army so they can stop police brutality and racism. The leader of this important organization was Bunchy Carter. Street gangs had completely stopped as more black empowered organizations began to form in Los Angeles. After the Black Panthers disbanded that is when street gangs began to become popular because
Kids that get into gangs are seeking identity and recognition. a gang
Gang members are typical members of the same ethnic group. Fear and hatred for people of another race is called xenophobia. People who are victims of racism are often racists themselves. Rap music often features lyrics that are offensive to Asians, Jews, and African Americans. Earlier this century, the United States was divided into ghettos. Those days' gangs were from all races. Gangs today sell drugs to every race and share or compete for street corners. Most of gang's enemies are gang members of the same background. The Crips and Bloods continuously wage war at one or another. They even shoot members of the same ethnic group.
This country was built on gangs and still run on gangs. Republicans, Democrats, the police departments, and the FBI. Those are gangs.Think about it. They wear certain color, they are respected, some of them carry weapons and they promote following the rules they made . Also Gangs probably see characters from TV shows or movies who use violence in order to increase their apparent masculinity and try to mimic them (Esbensen & Tusinski, 2007). With media as their main source for information about the world, what boys to think about what they must become when they grow up besides dominant and
Gangs originated in the mid 1800’s in the cardinal direction using it as a method to defend themselves against outsiders.The idea of gangs became populous, powerful, and a broad influence. But like all powers, they tend to corrupt and recognizes violence as a way of getting what they want faster than other methods.They turn violence into fun, profit, and control.Creating a situation that affects youth in today’s society.
Schools are supposed to be safe-havens and the surrounding community should be a place of amity and togetherness. A school’s culture is often a mirror image of the students that it serves. Working in urban education has allowed me to witness this concept first-hand. This chapter on assessment allowed me to realize the important factors that contribute to the negative culture of my school environment. The manifestation of gangs in schools affects the safety, security and educational progress of students. Gang involvement originates in the community and spills over into the school environment. Gang involvement has significantly amplified the amount of violence in schools and the number of students involved with drugs and weapons. Regardless of
Gang violence is a major problem in our society today. If nothing is done soon, gang violence could take place in our neighborhoods. MW Klein, a gang researcher, says that gangs are an aggregation of youths who perceive themselves as distinct, and that are viewed as distinct by the community. Klein also states that the gangs call forth a consistently negative image of themselves through their actions (Klein). To those involved in gangs however, gang membership provided a youth means of attempting to consolidate their gender identities (Douglas). Most of the early American street gangs have historically been ethnically based. Early gangs were mainly Irish, Polish, or Italian (Klein).