Why Gangs Need Love

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Gangs - Gang Members Need Love

Although gang members insist that gangs are the only way to ensure success today, others maintain that the only way to survive is to eliminate them. Many gangs threaten the safety of everyone in their 'hood (territory or neighborhood). Innocent people living in gang war-torn towns live in constant fear of death. However, for children who have no one to look up to and no future to look forward to, gangs can become their surrogate family. Gangs are not only a set of friends or a nights activity. Gangs are a way of life. There is no way to eliminate them, but changing the violent nature of many gangs is possible. Admittedly, gangs cause many serious problems, but they could end up helping more people than they …show more content…

People outside the gang life see only either the climate of fear created by the gangs or the sense of belonging experienced by those inside of them. What they do not see is the day to day reality of living inside their secrets - the initiations, the daily rituals, the network of friends and enemies, all of the information they each have that could get them killed upon suspicion of informing. A friend of mine who belongs to a gang once told me that a gang is more than your family, it is your entire life. Once a person has joined a gang, they can not see past it. The gang takes over everything, leaving no time for school, work, or any other commitments that a member may have made prior to joining. This may be considered unhealthy by outsiders, but it gives a focus to a person's life that otherwise would not have been provided in many cases. Gang life is hectic. Many times, the older members (those that can drive) sleep in a different city each night. This can go on for years, until someone this person gets too tired or old to perform their various jobs as well as someone else might be able to. Although gang members pretend to be unaffected by the violence they perpetrate onto others, they are perhaps the most sensitive people in the world. Having never known happiness, many are driven to the never-ending war of gang violence to get money to support their starving families, which are beyond wondering or even caring where the money came from. They hate themselves and those around them so much that they eventually become hardened to their pain and so can make the lives of those around them miserable without even realizing it. Many gang members take drugs constantly, which makes them believe they are invincible - and many times they are. Although many gang members are involved in drug trafficking, it is not a primary gang activity. (http://www.ncjrs.org) Many people think that without

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