Gang Violence: An Argument Of Nature Or Nurture?

In a life like ours where decisions and actions define who we are as a person; can those actions affect other people that are in our life. From gang violence, death of family member, drugs and alcohol, and abuse; these are all examples of conflicts that happen in daily life that affect the person next to you. Gang violence is responsible for approximately sixteen percent of all homicides in the US and twenty-five percent in cities with a population over 100,000.Gun violence has contributed to over 11,000 deaths in just a year. Events like this contribute to kids losing family members and relatives affecting their mental state at a young age and their maturity level. Some of these kids end up in prison where currently over 2 million occupants

reside. The reasons that can contribute to these factors are the argument of “Nature vs. Nurture” including what morals and messages they are taught at a young age, their role models or parents adding to the help they can receive and the way they treated in life.
One factor that could`ve contributed to two completely different fates of the Wes Moores` is “Nature vs.

Nurture,” the mentality that is built in them. The argument of “Nature vs. Nurture” is whether you were born with a that certain mentality or you were taught to have that certain mentality. This influences the way your life turns out whether you were born with something inside or taught to act a certain a way. “I was taught to remember, but never question, Wes was to taught to forget, and never ask why.”(Moore, 4) This quote shows the different ideas they were taught at a young age and the drastic difference between the two. Scholar Wes Moore was taught more to trust the decisions made, and the imprisoned Wes Moore was taught to just forget about it. “Rule number one: If someone disrespects you, you send a message so fierce that they won't have the chance to do it again. It was Murphy homes law and Wes took it to heart.”(Moore, 33) This ideology was ingrained into Wes`s mind which will lead into the violent actions he performs throughout his life including almost stabbing a kid and shooting a person. The Scholar Wes never had this kind of influence because he didn't have brother or a family member in such a situation that would give him such ideas. This is where Nurture argument starts to become stronger because what they are taught will differ in the way they make out messages and

situations.
Another factor that contributes to two completely different fates of the Wes Moores` is their parents, relatives, and role models in life. There are kids in the US with a single parent whether it's because of death or imprisonment. When the man in the family is gone, then the boy now becomes the man and doesn't learn all the aspects through his own father possibly causing confusion one`s life. For this situation, your father being in jail or dead can be two different reactions as shown by the imprisoned Wes Moore. To scholar Wes, “Your father wasn't there because he couldn't be, my father wasn't there because he chose not to be.” The imprisoned Wes is not upset about his father`s absence because he lost a liking for him since his father did not want to be a part of the family. Scholar Wes Moore is upset because his father didn't really have choice of leaving because he died of health complication.