When a person thinks of a “gang,” Native Americans are often not the first group of people that come to mind. Throughout the past 20 years however, Native American gangs have begun to draw attention to themselves. Though they often contrast their urban counterparts, Native gangs are a difficult force to be addressed by tribal leaders and authorities, as well as parents, and educators. Understanding such gangs is a difficult concept, using Native history and culture; this essay will provide insight into the emergence of Native gangs, as well as some prevention strategies taken on by the tribal communities. In contrast with urban gangs, studies of Native Americans living on rural areas on reservations in 1998 indicate that only 15% of the youth …show more content…
Topics such as organizational factors, symbolic characteristics, and criminal behavior set these two gangs apart from one another. Organizational factors such as having a leader present and territory to protect are a relatively new concept to Native gangs (Major 2004). Because reservations are fairly spread out and there is little competition among the gangs, there isn’t a whole lot of fighting amongst one another for turf. Also, many members of the tribal gangs feel no need to hide their leaders from the authorities and will talk openly about them. An insight as to why they would discuss their involvement is because they simply haven’t been exposed to the criminal justice system to be silent when it comes to their involvement (Hailer 1999). Symbolic characteristics of these gangs actually are quite similar to the urban gangs. In fact, terms such as Crips, Bloods, and the Latin Kings are used as names for the Native gangs due in part by their perception of what they expect gang life to be (Theriot 2007). Criminal behavior is perhaps the biggest difference amongst the two lifestyles of these gangs. Whereas Urban gangs are driven by the economic aspect of gang life involving drugs and weapon trafficking, Native gangs are often seen acting out property crimes and misdemeanor offenses such as graffiti and theft, as well as alcohol offenses. Native gangs as a whole seem to be more on the pursuit …show more content…
"Native American Involvement in the Gang Subculture." Community Corrections. Community Corrections Institute, July 13. Web. 02 Apr. 14. Hailer, Julie A. A Loss of Traditions: The Emergence of American Indian Youth Gangs. Petaluma, CA: National Indian Justice Center, 1998. Print. Hazlehurst, Kayleen M., and Cameron Hazlehurst. Gangs and Youth Subcultures: International Explorations. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction, 1998. Print. Hernandez, Arturo. Can Education Play a Role in the Prevention of Youth Gangs in Indian Country?: One Tribe's Approach. Charleston, WV: ERIC Clearinghouse on Rural Education and Small Schools, AEL, 2002. Print. Indian Youth Gangs & Juvenile Justice: March 22-24, 2000, New Orleans, LA. Petaluma, CA: National Indian Justice Center, 2000. Print. Major, Aline K. Youth Gangs in Indian Country. Washington, DC: U.S. Dept. of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2004. Print. Merton, R.K. (1938). Social structure and anomie. American Sociological Review, 3, 672-682. "Native American Youth 101." Aspen Institue. Aspen Institues, 24 July 11. Web. 8 Apr. 2014. "POOREST Place in AMERICA Pine Ridge Indian Reservation Native American YouTu." YouTube. YouTube, 11 Oct. 2012. Web. 08 Apr.
Inventing the Savage: The Social Construct of Native American Criminality. Luana Ross. Austin: University of Texas Press. 1998.
As many prominent scholars have postulated, there is very little research addressing the multifaceted dynamics with respect to Aboriginal gang involvement from a Canadian perspective. This paper intends to advance the understanding of the pathways involved in Aboriginal gang formation, recruitment and participation by critically examining the historical and institutional impediments, which have contributed to the facilitation of this phenomenon. In the process, this paper will apply the foremost tenets of social control theory in order to provide a holistic account of the context that enables the proliferation of Aboriginal gangs within Canada. Correspondingly, the formulation of these results will subsequently be useful for policy-makers and others who hope to find solutions to the challenges associated with the paramount issue of Aboriginal overrepresentation, an epidemic that the Supreme Court of Canada has referred to as, “a crisis in the Canadian justice system” (Rudin 2005, 1). With this intention, social control theory will be utilized in order to explain how colonialism manifests itself contemporarily, resulting in the inhibition of the internalization of conventional societal bonds for Aboriginal youth and the consequent perpetuation of Aboriginal gangs.
In 2003 as a response to communities with a large amount and growing number of youth gangs the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), a branch of the U.S. Department of Justice, initiated the Gang Reduction Program (GRP) (U.S. Department of Justice 2008). The formation of gangs is seen as a response to system failures and community dysfunction. As a result, one of OJJPD’s anti-gang initiatives is to make communities safer and have a pro-social environment (U.S. Department of Justice 2008). Furthermore, OJJDP plans to provide economic and social opportunities that gangs often promise to new recruits which are often obtained in an illegal and dangerous fashion (U.S. Department of Justice 2008). OJJDP believes that the GRP is capable of addressing the underlying issues for the increasing popularity and intensity of gang activity in specific suburban and rural neighborhoods (U.S. Department of Justice 2008). The program takes an integrative approach to dealing with the issue of increasing membership and participation with gangs. The following will discuss the program’s goal, theoretical basis, methods of operation, and overall effectiveness. After reviewing these major aspects of the GRP I will personally assess the value of this program and conclude whether or not the evidence supporting the program’s efficiency is strong enough for me to recommend it for implementation.
Gang involvement has been quite higher than past years. The 2008 National Youth Gang Survey estimates that about 32.4 percent of all cities, suburban areas, towns, and rural counties had a gang problem (Egley et al., 2010). This represented a 15 percent increase from the year 2002. The total number of gangs has also increased by 28 percent and total gang members have increased by 6 percent (Egley et al., 2010). This shows how relevant gang related activity is in today’s society. More locations are beginning to experience gang activity for the first time. Gang crime has also been on the rise in the past...
Gangs have been around for many years; the founders of some of the original gangs in the United States will be discussed. The statistics of youth gangs in Canada will be presented followed by an in depth discussion about why young adults can be persuade into joining a gang. Often females do not contribute that the youth gangs in society; a discussion about the increasing presence of females and their roles among male dominate gangs. Young adults from Surrey, British Columbia, speak up about youth gangs and the influence of their presents within their community in a documentary called Warrior Boyz.
Youth gangs are defined as any group of people who engage in socially disruptive or criminal behaviour, usually within a defined territory, and operate by creating an atmosphere of fear and intimidation in a community. Federally in Canada “…Bill C-95… says a gang must include five or more people involved in criminal activity.” Over the last ten or so years, youth gangs have become more violent and dangerous than ever before. They have more access to sophisticated knives and guns and use these weapons to gain power and fear. The problem of youth gangs is especially apparent in low-income neighbourhoods in Canadian cities. Low income neighbourhoods in the Greater Toronto Area are a...
Gangs have been a point of concern for states and societies around the world for centuries. Youth gangs are not exempt from that same categorization and have operated for the same amount of time worldwide. Over the last century however, a proliferation of youth gangs has been witnessed, especially among Hispanic youths immigrating into the United States. Researchers and scholars have offered multiple theories as to why youths, and Hispanics youths in particular integrate themselves into gang organizations. Three schools of thought arise when conducting gang integration research. Rational Economics Theory1 proposes that youths, and all individuals, join gangs for financial and material benefit. Cultural Deviance Theory considers youth gang members as exposed to a lower class subculture that rationalizes and even promotes crime, delinquency and gang membership, contrasting to the “normal” set of prescribed values and culture in more civilized society. Acculturation Theory argues that youths join gangs as a means to be acculturated by ethnically or compositionally similar peers, whether as a response to ethnic marginalization by members of the host country or inability to acculturate to their new home.
This book review covers Policing Gangs in America by Charles Katz and Vincent Webb. Charles Katz has a Ph.D. in Criminal Justice, while Vincent Webb has a Ph.D. in Sociology, making both qualified to conduct and discuss research on gangs. Research for Policing Gangs in America was gathered in four cities across the American Southwest; Inglewood, California, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Las Vegas, Nevada, and Phoenix, Arizona. This review will summarize and discuss the main points of each chapter, then cover the relationship between the literature and class discussions in Introduction to Policing and finally it will note the strengths and weaknesses of book.
The presence of gang violence has been a long lasting problem in Philadelphia. Since the American Revolution, gangs have been overpopulating the streets of Philadelphia (Johnson, Muhlhausen, 2005). Most gangs in history have been of lower class members of society, and they often are immigrants into the U.S (Teen Gangs, 1996). Gangs provided lower class teens to have an opportunity to bond with other lower class teens. However over time, the original motive of being in a gang has changed. In the past, gangs used to provide an escape for teens to express themselves, let out aggression, and to socialize with their peers. It was also an opportunity for teens to control their territory and fit in (Johnson, Muhlhausen, 2005). In the past, authorities would only focus on symptoms of gang violence and not the root. They would focus on arresting crime members instead of preventing gang violence. Gangs are beginning to expand from inner-city blo...
"Poverty, Broken Homes, Violence: The Making of a Gang Member." The Trauma Mental Health Report. N.p., 4 Nov. 2011. Web. 18 Feb. 2014.
Our focus is to reintegrate Aboriginal Youth Gang members back into conventional society. Each youth will focus on themselves, regain values and become accustom to their culture, spirituality, and community. A large portion of youth gangs members in Canada are 22% Aboriginal. In addition, Aboriginal people are three times more likely to be been victimized. “Social interventions included counseling, crisis intervention, gang homicide intervention, job placement, and family, school, and special education, programs and services. There also was notable improvement in residents’ perceptions of gang crime and police effectiveness in dealing with that crime” (Howell & Wilson 2000). This existing program shows evidence and improvement in youth who
Taylor, Carl S. “Gang Imperialism.” Gangs in America. Ed. C. Ronald Huff. London: Sage Publications, 1991.
Belliar, Paul E., and Thomas L. McNulty. 2009. “Gang Membership, Drug Selling, and Violence in Neighborhood Context.” JQ: Justice Quarterly 26 (4): 644-69. Web. 15 March 2014.
When beginning a discussion or exploration of youth gangs, the longevity of the social problem becomes a reasonable starting point. Youth joining together and roaming the streets of London together in packs were described as early as 1830 in Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist (Burnett, 1999). Before considering the current state of affairs with youth gangs, it first becomes important to focus attention on developing a concise understanding of what is meant by the term “youth gang.” Additionally, what are trends relating to the spread and progression of youth gangs in America? In order to do this, a close examination of a common definition of a youth gang and research relating to the spread and migration of youth gangs must occur.
Hallswort, S. And Young, T. (2004) Getting Real About Gang. Criminal Justice Matters [online]. 55. (1), pp 12-13 [Accessed 10 December 2013]