The break down of neighborhood relation and social institutions create a higher likely hood that young people will affiliate with deviant peers and get involved in gangs. When there is lack of social controls within a neighborhood the opportunity to commit deviance increases and the exposure to deviant groups such as street gangs increase. Which causes an increase in the chances of young people joining street gangs. If social controls are strong remain strong within a neighborhood and/or community the chances of young people committing crime and joining gangs decreases. Many young people join street gangs due to weak family relationships and poor social control.
Many societies with high reported cases of mob activities frequently see youths link with a bunch of criminals just for endurance. For many, it is better to connect with the mob that to stay vulnerable and defenseless in their localities (Klein & Maxson, 2006). For many being connected to mob guarantees sustenance in case of assault and retaliation for wrongdoings. While the young people with a good family unit often feel protected hence they desire not to link with
Gang Violence The man on the corner of the sidewalk with all his boys is what most people think of a gang. Being disrespectful to people walking by on the street is what some kids are going to do. Gang members are going to try and make a lasting impression on younger kids. They want to look and act cool to draw them into a whole group of illegal activities. It has always been a problem with gangs influencing kids to do the crime.
With no economic power, these teenagers often turn to violence as an alternate from of power. With all the violence out on the streets, gangbangers do not ... ... middle of paper ... ...for the purpose of being “hard.” At first, it may be fun and games, but when real gangbangers confront them, they are in serious danger. Many middle-class gang members usually back down because they are afraid of confronation from a real hard-core gangbanger. Middle-class gang members do not have the same mentality as hard-core gangbangers. Suburban gangsters have something to live for while inner city gangsters feel that they do not.
Violence is the worst aspect of gang life because it keeps getting worse as gangs keep growing larger. Violent acts are the biggest reason society has a negative outlook on gang life. But young gang members don’t start out using violent acts to get attention but by simple crimes like shoplifting. Even though shoplifting is a crime that puts people in jail, it seems like an easy way for attention for young kids. Shoplifting is also a very addicting activity because it’s a rush for the people that do it.
Youth don’t want to seem weak or vulnerable, so joining a gang is easier than to remain vulnerable and unprotected in their neighborhoods (Gang Alternatives Program). It is not just the streets, but also in the household there can be violence or abuse. The violence or abuse in the household can cause a teenager to see unsafe and think that joining a gang will make them tougher. Low in her article says, “A feeling of lack of safety in a high crime hood, availability of firearms can influence kids to join gangs”. Youth need to make sure they feel safe and if their hood if full of violence then they are more likely to join a
These influences are not always good, in fact results show that when youth joins a gang and become a member they end up committing more delinquent behavior then they did before their involvement. In similar results claims the same to be true for affiliation with delinquent peers. As a society we must be aware of the needs of our youth or more and more youths will choose the friends wrong friends to hang around as well as the wrong group to associate
Gangs often target youth when recruiting new members, with the average age of initiation being 13 years old (Omizo, Omizo, and Honda). A personal interview with police gang specialist, Rob Geis, revealed that the rapid growth of gangs is resulting in recruitment at shockingly young ages. The youth are easily enticed by gangs for a number of reasons. Availability of guns and drugs, a lack of education and good parenting, and economic and financial status all contribute to the problem of youth gang involvement (Rob Geis, Personal Interview). Youth begin to realize if they have a low socioeconomic status, and feel pressured to find a way to better their economic situations.
So they will do rebellious acts to get this attention. And the child is more likely to get away with their rebellious acts due to the lack of supervision since only one parent is around. And in a single parent family since income is cut in half, the family may have to move to a lower income neighborhood where the risk of crimes and drugs is more prevalent. And the children may find the attention they seek in gangs. Next we move to education.
On the other hand it studies how a particular environment causes stress, disillusion, and disorders among individuals who live in it, and why substance abuse, deviance, crime, and other social problems tend to increase in a time when or in a place where change occurs abruptly Social Class Most of the gang members that have been reported come from the lower social economical class. When these kids are out in the streets they have nothing better to do so they begin go commit delinquent behavior. Since these economically challenged kids have no money to go anywhere they tend to hang round their neighbor hood. These kinds of groups encourage each other to commit criminal activity. Since they feel that if one does it all of them can do it too.