...Lizotte, A. J., & Chu, R. (2011, November). The cascading effects of adolescent gang involvement across the life course. Criminology, 49(4), 991-1028. doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.2011.00250.x
Growing up in the city we experience more than those who did not. We are accustomed to seeing things other people would not be used to. One thing we are accustomed to be violence, more specifically gang violence. Gangs are a group of people who join together because of a common interest. Gangs are that have been around for ages. Dating back to the mafia in the roaring 20s all the way to present day gangs like the Bloods and Crips. It’s hard to imagine if gangs will ever cease to exist. They are too big and too strong for all of them to disappear one day.
The book emphasizes the idea of how difficult it is to leave the gang lifestyle. There are frequent cases of relapse by individuals in the book, who were once out to again return to gangs. This case is brought by what gangs represent to this in the book and what leaving entails them to give up. The definition of gangs presented to the class was, three or more members, share name, color, or affiliation, or must exist in a geopolitical context. To members associated with gangs, this definition can include your family members, neighborhood, everyone that they associate with. Take for example Ronnie from Jumped in by Jorja Leap it states,” Ronny’s role models are gangbangers. His family is a hood. His mentors are older homies in county jail.”(102). Ronnie and other gang members like him do not
The documentary Crips and Bloods: Made in America, can be analyzed through three works: “Modern Theories of Criminality” by C.B. de Quirόs, “Broken Windows” by James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling and “Social Structure and Anomie” by Robert K. Merton.
The Crips, originating in Los Angeles, California, are one of the oldest, largest, and most notorious gangs in the United States. They have been involved in murders, robberies and drug dealing in the Los Angeles area. The Crips are mostly identified by the blue color worn by their members. What was once a single gang is now a loose network of "franchises" around the United States. The gang primarily (but not exclusively) comprises African Americans. The Crips have an intense rivalry with the Bloods and are also known to feud with Chicano gangs.
Crips are a major gang affiliation that was formed in the year of 1969 in Los Angeles, California. The two men responsible for its creation were Raymond Lee Washington and Stanley Tookie Williams. There is an estimate of 30,000 to 35,000 gang members in the United States. Bloods are also a major gang affiliation, and was created in 1972 also in Los Angeles. Pirus are the creators of this gang. Crips and Bloods have an intense rivalry between each other that has been going on ever since both were created(“Gangs”).Though the Crips and Bloods have a long history, they are just two of the gangs that exist.
Many gangs are formed due to racism, ethnic discrimination, poverty, poor schools, unemployment, and broken homes. Some gangs stick around and some don’t; the biggest factor is level of wealth and job opportunities, if these are available then gangs usually fade out if these are not available then the gangs stick around. Many new immigrants face hardship from already formed organizations and use that as an excuse to get away from day to day suffering. (Hile #26) About 20,000 street gang members patrol neighborhoods all over southern Nevada. In Las Vegas alone, there are about 600 individual gangs crawling around and hiding from the police. (Gangs - Official Website)
Historically, gangs began to develop around the time frame of the 1970’s. Irish gangs have been known to be the first initial gang, followed by the Germans, Jewish, and Italians (Pacheco, 2010, p. 10). Gangs are larger in population and tend to be more prevalent in the United States, compared to other countries. In 2008, statistics showed that there were 20,000 active gangs and more than 1 million gang members in the United States (Pacheco, 2010, p. 12). According to Pacheco (2010) there are different types of gangs. Although these gangs are formed for individual purposes, broken up, they can form a multitude of different types of gangs. There are your traditional gangs (Crips, Bloods). Business, profit gangs, which are generated around financial gains. Hate group gangs, which their purpose is to target different ethnic groups, races or homosexuals. Copycat and delinquent social gangs, which seem to be the least relevant. Street gangs, which are prone to target younger individuals, but the actual ages of the gang members vary. Third generation gangs which are known as “terrorist”. Hybrid gangs are new to this generation, they could be considered the “hipster” of gangs. Then there are prison gangs. They are usually small in population and are structured along an individuals ethnicity (Pacheco, 2010, pp. 12-15). Gangs serve a multitude of purposes for their members. The gang becomes their family. They are able to trust them, rely on them, and the gang gives them a sense of self and importance. Gangs have the ability to offer status, refuge, protection, and opportunity of stigma free life within this population (Tower, 2013, p. 82). In the PBS show Interrupter ex-gang members and ex-gang enforcers joined together ...
Having had limited instruction in this complicated issue, I’m unable to use more than supposition to describe how I view gang related behavior. I focus on gang activity because the social isolation suffered by many children has left few options for family oriented connections. I feel that the economic disparity that has grown increasingly worse over these many years plays a major role in the rise in gangs and gang-like activity. The resulting increase in poverty has produced a rise in anger and frustration that is exhibited by more than one race, cultural, or e...
(brown-face.com) Dating back all the way to the frontier era, Hispanic Americans have been victims of racial discrimination due to the constant images portrayed about them that began with the battle over Mexican land in the Southwest. As the Hispanics settled in and time went on, Hispanic gangs began forming in California during the early 1920’s. It began with the desire for unity as they banded together, socializing within their very own neighborhoods where they all shared the same language, customs, and culture. They began with hardly any leadership or formal structure, but maintained a strong defense of their territorial boundaries. Eventually the gangs developed some organization and structure, along with harsher acts of violence and it became a way of life for them. (Hoover) Though these gangs maintain their image of tough, violent members of society, many still hold tight to their beliefs of strong family morals and religious back
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.
When Kody Scott was 6 years old, the gang wars started in Los Angeles. It started out as a battle between the Crips and the Bloods, but by the late 70's and continuing today, the biggest killer of Crips is other Crips. The Crip Nation was divided into different divisions, which Monster compares to the U.S. Army. "For instance, one who is in the army may belong to the F...
One direct quote from the film, Crips and Bloods: Made in America that Differential Association Theory can be used to explain is “I joined a gang not only for the protection but for the love for the unity, to be a part of
Surprisingly, little has been written about the historical significance of black gangs in Los Angeles (LA). Literature and firsthand interviews with Los Angeles residents seem to point to three significant periods relevant to the development of the contemporary black gangs. The first period, which followed WWII and significant black migrations from the South, is when the first major black clubs formed. After the Watts rebellion of 1965, the second period gave way to the civil rights period of Los Angeles where blacks, including those who where former club members who became politically active for the remainder of the 1960s. By the early 1970s black street gangs began to reemerge. By 1972, the Crips were firmly established and the Bloods were beginning to organize. This period saw the rise of LA’s newest gangs, which continued to grow during the 1970s, and later formed in several other cities throughout the United States by the 1990s. While black gangs do not make up the largest or most active gang population in Los Angeles today, their influence on street gang culture nationally has been profound.
The City of Los Angeles is the “gang capital” of the nation. There are more than 450 active gangs in the City of Los Angeles. Many of these gangs have been in existence for over 50 years. These gangs have a combined membership of over 45,000 individuals. Gang violence has for a long time been a major issue. Now it may not be as bad as it was back in the 90’s when it really first surfaced but gang violence is still a critical issue. A place where gang violence has really been an issue is none other than the state of California.