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Inmates and Prison Gangs

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Submitted By nyzfinest24
Words 1265
Pages 6
Nicholas Dukhedin
Professor Seessel
English 101
November 8, 2014 Do Inmates Really Have a Choice when it comes to Joining Prison Gangs? Are prison gangs forced upon inmates? Do they really have a choice whether or not they join one while incarcerated? This topic was brought to my attention in my criminal justice (Corrections) class last semester. The question was brought up in a group discussion and was never really discussed after that day. However, these questions stayed with me and left me wondering why an inmate would join a prison gang. While some people would say “So what, it’s their choice whether they want to join a gang. Why should I care?” Well I believe & my research shows that it’s not always that simple. Life is already difficult when you’re sent to prison, adapting to a new way of living in the prison culture. Prison gangs are a major part of prison culture. These gangs have many secret and intellectual ways in which they go about operating, communicating, and recruiting. Also I wanted to find out who the main inmates targeted were and why. Why are these topics important to me? Because I feel that people may look over these problems, maybe because there are many harsh answers that people may not care enough about to do something about it. People may think everyone in prison is a gang member, but I want to show them that there are many reasons why they joined a prison gang and if you were put in the same situation, maybe you would too. Prison gangs are criminal organizations that originated within the penal system and they have continued to operate within correctional facilities throughout the United States. Prison gangs are also self-perpetuating and can continue their operations outside the lines of the penal system. Usually, a prison gang consists of a select group of inmates who have an organized

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