...E. Costanza and Ronald Helms. "Street Gangs and Aggregate Homicides: An Analysis of Effects During the 1990s Violent Crime Peak" Homicide Studies 16(3): 280-307. June 11, 2012. Online. June 12, 2013. City-level violence escalated and peaked during the 1990’s, which possibly caused a similarly high homicide rate. Many studies have linked gang activity with higher rates of violent crimes. This study uses empirical research to link gang violence with homicide rates. A majority of studies only looked at the micro level of gang attribute violence and homicide correlation. Costanza focused on the macro level using 154 U.S. cities to determine if active gangs directly correlated with homicide rates. Criminologist in the 1990’s paid special attention to the structural factors contributing to the all-time peak of violence in the young men demographic. Researchers have remained focused on the patterns of homicide within the context of the violence peak in the 90’s. Costanza chose to “focus explicitly on the plausible empirical link between street gangs and homicide offending in central cities throughout the Unites States”. The factors that lead to an increase in homicide include the drug market, guns, and gang presence. Recent studies have shown that it is a combination of factors, as opposed to just financial opportunity, that lead to gang membership. The reason for the lack of macro level studies of gang violence has been due to the lack of gang related studies. Maxson in 1992...
Words: 1459 - Pages: 6
...There are has almost as many gangs as there are communities in the United States. This paper will explain the three most popular types of gangs, and what they all have to afford. It will also provide some personal background information on the individual. Then give the criterion that best fits the individual being discussed. It will also make the argument for which gang, they should join. This will all be explained more in depth in this paper. First, it is important to give some background information on the individual. The individual is the oldest of four children, a nineteen year old white male originality from northeast Tennessee, specify Johnson City, TN who moved to Inglewood, California after he dropped out of high school his junior year at Science Hill High School because of fighting . His parents divorced when he was only five years old. His father, after the divorce, moved to Jackson, TN in the East...
Words: 1383 - Pages: 6
...Social Problems Associated with Street Gangs Gangs are becoming prevalent in today’s society and within our schools. More and more young people are turning to gangs in an attempt to escape their everyday lives and the future, which they perceive as dismal and bleak. They are initially attracted to the prestige and cash flow, which is glamorized by the street gang. Many gangs are actively involved in criminal misconduct, such as drug and gun trafficking, burglaries and homicides. However, street gangs are not just a criminal justice issue, but a social problem, which is triggered by poverty, peer pressure, boredom, despair and lacking a sense of belonging. A street gang can be defined as “an organized social system that is both quasi-private (not fully open to the public) and quasi-secretive (much of the information concerning its business remains confined with the group) and one whose size and goals have necessitated that social interaction be governed by a leadership structure that has defined roles; where the authority associated with these roles has been legitimized to the extent that social codes are operational to regulate the behavior of both the leadership and the rank and file; that plans and provides not only for the social and economic services of its members, but also for its own maintenance as an organization; that pursues such goals irrespective of whether the action is legal or not; and that lacks a bureaucracy (i.e., an administrative staff that is hierarchically...
Words: 1818 - Pages: 8
...Chapter 12, Gangs and Drugs: Two National Threats. They are something that is spreading in this country and destroying families and the communities. Two big national threats in today’s society are gangs and drugs. The one major one is the gang threat. The National Alliance of Gang Investigators Associations (NAGIA) is a cooperative organization formed in 1998. They have more than 20,000 members that are representing 23 state and region across the country (National Gang Intelligence Center 2013). The NAGIA works to ensure the public safety and respond to violence, drugs, and other gang-related crimes that impact our community (National Gang Intelligence Center 2013). A gang is defined, as a group of individuals...
Words: 1050 - Pages: 5
...the norm of this place we live, which is “society”. One opposes this view that “Young public leaders are usually less effective because they have so little experience”, due to which public sphere they interact in. The definition of the public sphere is a metaphorical term used to describe the virtual space where people can interact. The World Wide Web, for example, is not actually a web; cyberspace is not a space; and so with the public sphere. It's the virtual space where the citizens of a country exchange ideas and discuss issues, in order to reach agreement about 'matters of general interest' ([Jurgen] Habermas, 1997: 105) Other examples of this ideal is social/work organizations such as the police force and public school systems, gangs such as the BLOODs, CRIPs, MS13, and The Aryan Brotherhood, fraternal societies such as Masons, Elks, and the Shriner, political affiliations such as Republican or Democrat, church affiliations such as Catholic, Christian,...
Words: 1033 - Pages: 5
...Chapter 1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY A fraternity is an organization, formed chiefly for social purposes having secret rites and name consisting of Greek letters. Fraternities get a lot of bad publicity as with that hazing problems at many colleges and universities, but there is another side to fraternities that many people do not see. Fraternities do have plenty of social events, service projects and other school and community related events. There are several factors such as personal, social, emotional and community factors that influence students to join fraternities. In order to join a fraternity, a neophyte has to undergo different rites or servicing in order to be accepted. The frequent reason that students join fraternity is for brotherhood and a place to belong. A special bond is formed between fraternity brothers. They will be there and will do almost anything for each other. Whether these set of friends make or break the student’s academic career, maybe hard to differentiate if a member is having too much fun. It sometimes depends on the individuals on how they will handle their selves as they join fraternities. But regardless, a fraternity is like any other group: what you get out of it depends on who you are and how you handle it .The problem focused on the involvement population/students in fraternities. Presently, the school/community does not recognize the presence of fraternities in the campus/population and have implied rules concerning this matter. But then...
Words: 3048 - Pages: 13
...The effects of Gang Violence Gangs have been around since the beginning of time. Humans have always banded together for mutual protection and support - and to better dominate others. Gangs have always provided a way for people to more effectively get what they want, especially if it comes to force. And weaker members of society gravitate toward gangs that they feel can offer a sense of community and protection from others. But today were going to reflect on the effects of the most modern gangs. I watched the movie “Boys In The Hood” Directed by John Singleton in 1991. And it was an onscreen representation of what takes place in the urban areas of our country. Street gangs in the U.S. arose with Italian immigrants related to the Sicilian Mafia and others. These street gangs in New York City stole and killed to get what they wanted. One of the most famous street gang members was Al Capone, who later moved to Chicago in 1919 to help keep the other gangsters in order. Street gangs of this type were quite popular in the 1920s and 1930s.Gang Violence as we know goes beyond racial barriers, but it more vividly affects black and Latinos in America. I have chosen this topic because I have witnessed the effects of gang violence culturally, socially, and personally. It’s no secret that even St.Louis, MO is well known for gang violence. I don’t condone gangs but there are key factors that give reason for its existence. Gangs today have similar practices of creating their own sub-language...
Words: 1906 - Pages: 8
...Angeles, joins a street gang and goes to prison when he still in high school. Now prison is his school in where he learns skills and by the time he is back on the streets again, he is a better educated criminal. During prison time, there is no punishment or the extinction of crime but there is the training of crime. Santana leads with the reality of street gangs and prison, in where drugs is the finance process to create a professional criminal class. According to a women voice in the movie, Santana is two men, one men is fearful and sweet, and doesn't know how to dance, or make love. The other man is a murderer. Santana’s life is cover many years in the movie in which it shows how a sweet man can change gradually to a killer. Santana is a person who hide his secrets but he is an excellent leader when he knows how to handle the consumption of cigarettes in prison because that is the only symbol in prison. He knows better how to run the operations from the inside of the prison as well as the drug issues outside of it. He takes control of the drug traffic from the inside. But, from the outside, he falls in love with a woman that makes him change in somehow the way he is acting. Santana leads his gang in a rebellion against the Mafia who controls all the street drugs. A war begins in the wrong time, and it makes enemies of the blacks. Santana struggles to hold things together but little by little everything turns the opposite way. Both sides he know, the street of East L.A. and...
Words: 492 - Pages: 2
...Gang Life The term gang (noun) is simply defined as an organized group of criminals. However, the gang sub-culture is more complex. A gang is better defined as a group of adolescents and young adults who are united upon on a common idea/identity, and are often involved in delinquent activities to better their own stature. Gangs usually have a somewhat military like structure, with leaders at the top, lieutenants and sergeants, and soldiers at the bottom. Young children have various reasons for joining street gangs, but do not realize the ramifications caused by the gang life. Children often believe joining a neighborhood gang will make them become recognized, or safer, but the harsh reality is that so many youths don’t realize the hazards associated with gangs until it is too late. The history of street gangs in America dates back to the formation of America herself. The first gang-like groups formed in the Northeast right after the Revolutionary war ended, in 1783, in New York City. These groups were mainly young white immigrants from Europe who just fought over turf in the city. In the Midwest region (mainly Chicago) the first street gangs developed in the 1860s and were mainly white immigrants from Ireland, Germany, and Lithuania. In the most western region of the United States Mexican gang-like groups started appearing in Los Angeles sometime around 1890s. Gang-like groups have been around America for quite some time but a few key events escalated gang presence in the...
Words: 2124 - Pages: 9
...already afflicted with gangs and crimes. For the local population of Mexican-Americans, this was the most unwelcome development. The combustible youth immigrants from Salvador took the problem of their survival in response to the victimization at the hands of local gangs, as a serious challenge and formed a new gang by name Mara Salvatrucha, popularly known as MS-13. “Las-Mara” is a notorious street gang that engages in violent crimes in El Salvador. Salvatruchas, refers to the members of the political entity, styled Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front. This is a group of Peasants from Salvador, trained in guerilla warfare. The number 13 refers to the California prison gang, the Mexican Mafia. A youth facing the unemployment problem, not getting support from the government and the society, when he is constantly nagged, abused, condemned and ostracized by the society, turns into a viler and bitter individual. With no authority to show heartfelt care and concern, and an understanding approach to the problems of teeming millions of refugees, the frustrated immigrant youth formed a new gang and began to engage in violent criminal acts. The founding members of the gang were guerilla warfare experts. The training and sophistication they provided to the new recruits was more advanced as compared to their rivals. The new gang topped the list of gangs that have been engaging in violent criminal activities of all sorts. The initiation procedures into the gang are...
Words: 2736 - Pages: 11
...taken home. Do we need them? This is a good question because there are so many different opinions. I will be trying to cover most of these opinions in the text you are about to read. Curfews, what are they? A curfew is a time of day or night, usually around 8 or 9 o’clock, where you have to be off the streets if you are under a certain age (around 16 or 18 would be normal). If you are on the streets without an adult or someone over the allowed age you will be fined and taken home. If you are doing any criminal activity you could be taken straight into police custody. Do we need them? At the moment there is lot of youth crime and gang related violence. These problems lead to even bigger problems such as deaths, drugs and little children being educated to think that gang wars and drug lords are the way of life. This will never stop unless strong actions are taken and maybe a curfew could stop this. A curfew is a good choice to stop this behaviour by not letting young kids get dragged into the gang way of life and stopping drugs being sold to the children. It could also break down gang work because normally 40% to 60% of a gang would be under the age of 18. So do you think your kids would be safe enough without a youth curfew in place? On one hand you have a thing that could stop youth crime but on the other hand it could be a breach of human rights and could also be a really annoying experience. If you have not committed...
Words: 611 - Pages: 3
...01/13/2011 Juvenile Gangs My bias opinion on youth gangs is the same as I view planting a seed. If you plant a seed in bad soil most likely you’ll grow a defected or bad plant. I say that to say this “if a child is raised in an unstructured household most of the time that child will take his home training outside the home. Then we also have our young kids joining gangs that come from good homes, but can’t escape their negative environments once they walk outside their front door. Also some of the youths get involved in gangs looking for something to call a family; these are mostly our kids coming from foster homes, adoption agencies and so forth. Personally I feel the majority of the kids involved in gangs are lost and out trying to find themselves. Then we have younger kids who are labeled gang members, but are far from it. These kids usually grow up together and have strong bonds with one another; they occasionally dress alike, hang together, and claim to belong to a certain neighborhood only by personal childhood reasons. But the local authorities see things different, they feel as if you wear certain colors, hang in certain areas with 3 or more kids claiming to belong to anything other than a sports team are considered gang related. To the rise of drug use amongst teens is also a major contribution to the growing number of youth kids joining gangs. Being that drugs from marijuana, to heroin has become so easy to get a hold of the kids are experimenting more freely now...
Words: 1645 - Pages: 7
...Gangs: Economical Crimes Tajinder Dhami August 12, 2015 JADM 494: Senior Project II Professor Robbins Abstract Gang violence and activity is on the raise, this activity is not only affecting the people who have been victimized first hand but also those who live in the same area as the victim. In this day of age, gangs are no longer seen as a group of thugs, they are now well-organized organizations that are capable of committing crimes that effect everyone in a city. Today, the most common crimes committed by gang members are economical crimes, these crimes include auto theft, drug dealing, prostitution, and taxing. Now you may be thinking to yourself, how is an economical crime just as bad as a homicide. Well these crimes allow gangs to grow and make money buy weapons and equipment to commit very serious crimes. By identifying these crimes and finding a solution to them we can prevent gangs from becoming very powerful. La w enforcement organizations like the Central Valley Gang Impact Force work hard to prevent and reduce the amount of crimes committed by gangs. Throughout my research was able to learn about the different crimes that gangs commit, the different ways to prevent them, and come up with an idea that will bring the community closer and also reduce crime. My idea involves using courtesy notices to educate the public and teach them how they can prevent crime in their areas. I received a lot of positive feedback about this idea form the Central valley Gang...
Words: 4015 - Pages: 17
...profit in the fastest way possible. The Armenian Power is prevalent in the Los Angeles area participating in mostly white collar-crime. This organized crime group is involved with kidnapping, bank fraud, credit card theft, and numerous other technology criminal acts. This group has proven to be a powerful and dangerous group, stopping at nothing to reach the goal they set out to obtain. Determine the group’s national and multination structure and operation methods, pertaining to the drug business. The organized crime group known as the Armenian Power or AP was “formed in the 1980s by Armenian immigrants and others from former Soviet-bloc countries as protections against other ethnic gangs in the neighborhood” (Kandel, 2011, para. 3). The AP crime organization began as a gang and still has gang affiliations that include individuals classified as Armenian Power Associates and not members. The criminal enterprise consists of approximately 200 members who include Armenian Americans, Armenian immigrants, Soviet-bloc immigrants, and Hispanic members. The AP’s list of criminal activities include; defrauding “patrons of 99 Cents Only stores out of millions of dollars (credit and debit card fraud), kidnapping, identity theft, mortgage fraud, gun violations, extortion, gambling, and drug trafficking” (Kandel, 2011, para. 6). The AP is known for technology crimes, but they also trafficked and distributed large amounts of marijuana, cocaine, and heroin. The Armenian Power is a legitimate...
Words: 1299 - Pages: 6
...Disciples Street gangs have always been a major force in Chicago. In 1969 two street gang families united and formed the Gangster Disciples. They reshaped the life of a gangster. Many gangsters have said that being G.D. was not just a thing to be involved in it was a job, an opportunity. Some have even said, “It was a lifestyle.” The Gangster Disciples turned young men into the people they wanted them to be. They changed the way you lived, acted, walked, talked, and even dressed. This was not just a gang it was any army of young men. An army that was going to get what it wanted at all cost. The Gangster Disciples influenced everything and everyone around them. The Gangster Disciples were born from two organizations. The two gangs in the beginning were Disciple Nation led by David Barksdale and Gangster Nation led by Larry Hoover. Each organization had many branches, such as Royal Disciples, Motown Disciples, and Boss Pimp Disciples of Barksdale side. On Hoover's side there were 18 gangs including; Mafia Gangster, 75th Street Gangsters, and the African Sniper Gangsters. Barksdale was tired of the senseless violence and mayhem between the black communities. (“History of Gangster Disciples”) He really wanted to stop the violence between the Gangster Nation and the Disciple Nation. Barksdale offered Hoover a partnership and equal power of the gang, which Hoover accepted (“History of Gangster Disciples”). The two gangs became one, creating one of...
Words: 2877 - Pages: 12
