How Gang Membership Effect the Youth of Today

Youth in today's society are allowing their lives to be shaped by the music they listen to, neighborhoods they live in, peer pressure, and many other outside factors. Unfortunately, these factors are telling these youth that gang/thug life is the way to go. For many years we have watched as juvenile crimes have simulated a roller-coaster with its many ups and downs; gang numbers growing at an alarming rate, drugs being sold on the streets and in schools purposed to reach even the youngest of youth, violent beatings, murders and terrifying school shootings being the topic of many news related items. The youth in our society today have been drawn in a direction that is not only harming society, but themselves as well. This path contains a large amount of what society calls deviance and is defined as "the recognized violation of cultural norms," according to Society: The Basics. The question to ask is how does gang membership effect the youth in society today?

Statistics show that in 1996 the youth membership in gangs nationwide was estimated at 846,000 (Espejo, 2010) that belonged to one of 31,000 gangs spread out over approximately 4,824 jurisdictions; while in 2009 these numbers have grown to 870,310 youth gang members. (According to the National Gang Threat Assessment street-gangs are a growing and posing threat to those around them. Many of these youth join gangs because they are following their family ties, peer pressure, musical influences, need of stable family life, want for respect, money, and at times protection; The average recruitment age is as 11/12 years old and can be as young as 9/10 in some cases. The reason youth are recruited so young is because they are not held as accountable or dealt with as severely as those 13 and older.

One may ask how these youth are recruited and what makes gang-life so appealing to these youth in so many communities. First, an influence to look at would be the neighborhoods they live in and the need for protection. Two of the most widely known street-gangs include the Bloods and the Crips. The crips gang was one of the first known street-gangs that can be traced back to the early 60's. They were the product of the racial tension and poverty in South Central. They formed to serve as protection and producing economic relief for the people in their area. The bloods formed as protection for their neighborhood as well. Their streets were being taken over by the crips and they formed with intentions of keeping the crips out of their neighborhood, and the Bloods were born on Piru Street in Compton. This "protection" is still offered for those becoming "brothers" of a specific set or gang. Despite this promised protection gang members are more likely to be the victims of violent crimes because they are embracing a life of violence that reaps more violence. One former member by the name of Mr. Kalikote tells of his "homies" from the gang he was involved in retaliating against a rival gang because of an attack on him causing him to become permanently paralyzed.

Then next reason many youth join gangs would be because of peer pressure and the music they listen to. The music sensation often referred to as "gangsta rap" is becoming more of a role model for the youth of today and glamorizing gangs by writing about gang exploits, money, drugs, and sex in their lyrics. A popular group among youth is a group called Dip Set whose lyrics brag of money; in fact, a short excerpt of their song Bloodshed R.I.P. states "Cash expanding, flash it for granted, stash it in the ceramic.... And keep it in my crime family, -glaciers and ice-...Cuz life ain't nothing but papers and dice..." These promises of money pique the interest of many inner city youth. Dax a member of the Folk Nation tells in an interview of the money he could make and the protection he would gain in his neighborhood; "I ain't ever had my dad round, an' we ain't ever had money when I was young. I joined the gang when I was bout 12 years ol' an' after provin myself I was give the job of sellin (drugs). I made lots of money an' helped my family to pay bills. An' I ain't ever had a 'spect prolem cuz I bang."

Unfortunately, once these youth become involved in the gang the real test begins. These test include being made to either commit a serious crime such as murder, or be "jumped in/ sexed in"; a formal jump in is where a youth is beaten by gang members to prove their toughness and worth to the gang. If the recruit survives the beating they are then part of the group. To be sexed in (this is usually only for females) one must do sexual favors for the hierarchy in that particular branch of the gang; after she has endured the test she will then be accepted into the ranks. The lowest ranking members of the gang are often given jobs to do or assignments to complete. These jobs are meant to promote the gang and can range from beating/killing a rival or other person with a price on their head to illegal drugs. It has been documented that criminal gangs commit approximately 80% of the crime in some communities and that local street or neighborhood gangs remain a significant threat because most are involved with violence mixed with other criminal activities.

Many look at the statistics and wonder what happens to these youth. Why would a youth allow someone to kick repeatedly and violently beat them just to feel like they were part of a family? Why would a youth allow someone tell them that they must kill a rival just to fit in and be accepted? Why would a youth believe that the only way to get even with someone that has hurt them is to go to school and violently kill their peers, teachers, and innocent bystanders? Where do these youth end up after all this? The answer is many of these youth are incarcerated or killed in the "line of duty," or injured severely. Gang life for many is a constant battle which is also why the ranks of many gangs are modeled after the military and structured as such as well. There are Generals, Captains, Sergeants, and Soldiers. All are ready to fight and die for what they believe, for property (turf/territory) all willing to kill. Ely Flores tells of his life as a gang member in Gangs are a problem of the underprivileged he states; "I conditioned myself not to care whether or not my victim ended up in the hospital or dead. The same rules my homies and I lived by, also ruled the people I thought of as my enemy...As I adopted a gang life style, incarceration naturally followed. For four years I went in and out of prison." Another gang member speaks of his life, feelings, and family in this poem - Here I Stand by La Gueritta: here I am. En las Calles. In the same street where my father, my sister, my two brothers, 2 of my aunts, 3 of my uncles and countless amounts of homies have died, yet I still stand here. My feet planted in the cement. Rage fills my inside. I try; I try real hard to walk away. To say good bye, yet here I stand. I've watched killings y some times I was the one holding the cuete. Been in and out of jail yet here I stand. I have no motivation to turn away. R i ps don't help me. They give me more reasons to hate. I have nothing except the Calles, our streets, my life, the only thing I've known...here I stand. A third and former gang member that goes by the name Baby StudderBoxx (Bloods) tells of his experience when 2 Crips shot him several times once just below the temple that went straight through his skull permanently blinding him. In an interview with several incarcerated youth gang members in South Carolina 16-year-old Dax tells other youth "While I worked my 'job' another gang invaded my territory an' started messin wit my money; just case your wonderin....I'm here cuz I shot them. I was 12 the first time, 13 the second, and this was the third time." When asked what he would do if something like this happened again Dax stated "I gotta do my business."

In conclusion, gang membership and youth crimes are a growing trend in the United States today. Gangs are recruiting younger members and putting them on the streets committing illegal acts to bring revenue into the gang. Violence is a way of life including being beaten to enter the gang and killing for the gang; then comes their destiny; imprisonment or death. Some of the biggest influences include music, peers, family, and money in which they strive to achieve. Many may ask how this can be, why would a child endure so much pain, where are their role models. What the real question should be is "How can I make a difference in a youth's life?" or "How can I change the impact a gang has on my child?"