The development of gangs over the many years of their existence has caused the growth of different gangs and gang members to all parts of the world. These developing gangs have created major attention and awareness to this culture of life that is becoming so common amongst our communities. There have been said to be around 30,000 or more gangs with at least 800,000 gang members in the United States, whom were fully active in 2007. In 2009, the statics showed 147,000 in the United States prison and detention (jail) facilities and 900,000 living within our communities around the United States. Gangs in America and around the world often bring our young kids into this violent life of guns, drugs, murder, burglary, and many more criminal activities and heinous crimes.
Gangs are often said to be known for most of the criminal activities in this country and around the world; why? We often ask ourselves, well this is because the many different gangs in this world. Some gangs are based on ethnic, race, religious backgrounds and then you have the turf gangs which are defined by territory. You also have prison gangs which almost every prison gang has street gangs that represent them outside the walls. Then there are motorcycle gangs which are often known as some of the most notorious gang members who venture into a little bit of all the types of gangs bases and their activities are just like all the other gangs activities. In this research paper I will be reviewing one of the most notorious street gangs and prison gangs in our nation in which, this particular gang has many of their gang member alliances in other countries as well. This gang is the “Mara Salvatrucha” also known as the “MS-13” and they are the number one most notorious gang in the United States of American and also in many other countries.
The “Mara Salvatrucha” gang is considered to be the number one most notorious active gang in America according to the FBI statistics. The “MS-13” is a transnational gang and is also known as one of the most organized gangs in America. The “MS-13” gang is a Salvadoran gang that was started in the streets of Pico Union in Los Angeles, California in the 1980’s. The founders of the “MS-13” were immigrants fleeing from the Civil War in El Salvador. One of the main founders’ names that have continuously reoccurred during this research is Ernesto Miranda also known as “Smokey”. Ernesto Miranda was a soldier in the Civil War in El Salvador who fled to California to escape the bloody war going on there. It was said that Ernesto Miranda “banned together with other young Salvadoran immigrants to form what would become one of the city’s most notorious gangs” (Del Barco, 2006). Ernesto Miranda was eventually deported back to El Salvador where he then started turning his life around. “At the age 38, he was a doting father, study law, working to keep kids out of gangs and advocating for greater human rights of prisoners” (Del Barco, 2006). Ernesto Miranda’s life ended on May 13, 2006, when he decided to decline an invitation to a “MS-13” members release from prison party. The gang retaliated by shooting Miranda in the doorway of his home.
The Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) gang’s main purpose for starting the gang was to protect the immigrants who were Salvadoran from other gangs whom were a lot more established and who were also more predominantly African-American and Mexican gangs in the Los Angeles, Ca area. The gang is made up of the first generation Salvadoran – Americans that came over to get away from a bloody war and unfortunately they walked into another with the street gang wars of Los Angeles. This gang was formed to protect themselves and the fellow Salvadoran’s from such threats and harm from the criminal activities happening around them. The “MS-13” gang has been said to have 30,000 to 50,000 members and also known associates across the world. There are eight to ten thousand of the “MS-13” members and known associates here in the United States of America. The Mara Salvatrucha gangs has been said to have 36,000 known members and or associates in Honduras alone. The members of the “MS-13” range from 11 to 40 years of age. They also have both male and female members in this gang.
Due to the Mara Salvatrucha gang being in so many states across the U.S., the Northern Triangle (Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador), Canada, Europe, Mexico and many other Central American countries has now made them become “on the verge of becoming the first gang to be categorized as an “organized crime entity”” ( Altered Dimensions, 1998-2014). The Mara Salvatrucha is and has always been involved in a very wide range of criminal activities and some of these crimes are very heinous crimes. The criminal activities that the “MS-13” gang involves themselves in and with are the following; vandalism, kidnapping, home invasions, immigration offenses, murder, rape, extortion, prostitution, drug trafficking, smuggling, and distribution; robbery, carjacking and automobile theft, and human trafficking. The level of violence for this gang is so severe that the President Obama Administration has finally declared this gang to be an “international criminal group” (Caldwell, 2012). This vicious gang is known for “hacking and stabbing their victims with Machetes” (Caldwell, 2012). The “MS-13’s” are also known to shoot their victims in the executioner style (in the head) in the middle of the day and their victims have included, women, children, teens, women and teens who are with child (pregnant), men, rivalry gang members, authorities, informants, and snitches (people who go against their gang). An Immigration and Customs Agent Jason Shatarsky said that the MS-13 members target residents and business owners. Shatarsky also stated “they saw a level of violence that they hadn’t seen before” (Caldwell, 2012). This gang’s level of criminal activities is so vicious and heinous that the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) created a “MS-13 Task Force” for fighting this criminal organization/gang in 2004. The “MS-13” gang’s structure is very widely ranged across the world. This gang operates in 42 American states and District of Columbia, and other nations across the world bringing criminal activity to a rise in each and every city, state, country and nation. The “MS-13” members engage in a variety of criminal activities against many types of people, places, and things. This group’s member number is continuously rising due to the recruiting and migrating that their members are doing. The latest two leaders of the “MS-13” gang were sentenced to life in 2013, for racketeering, murder, assaults with deadly weapons, and other crimes. These are the last two leaders known. Some of the “MS-13” members have also been in militaries around the world and the three common military groups they are known for been in here in the United States are the Navy, Marines, and Army. This gang is a notorious criminal gang that has no kind of mercy on its victims what so ever.
There are many gangs and gang members her in the United States and around the world the “MS-13” is just one of thousands. The crime rates are causing death rates to continuously grow in our country and this is not a new problem by any means. But, until the problem at hand is dealt with and actions against the gangs are taken than these criminals like the “MS-13” gang will continue to raise the crime rates, death rates, member and recruit rates. The gang life is taking over so many of our children and younger generations life’s and guns, drugs, and other illegal items are being put in the hands of children. We have to fight against this war with gangs and stand behind the agencies trying to put a stop to this war of violence to make changes in and around our lives, communities, cities, states, and nations happen.
Reference Page
FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigations) 2008; the MS-13 Threat (A National Assessment); FBI.Gov; US Department of Justice; US Government. (www.FBI.gov/news/stories/2008/January/ms13_011408)
Altered Dimensions (2012) MS13 Gang-One of the Most Violent and Dangerous Gangs in the United States; Altered Dimensions (Gangs and Organizations). (www.Altereddimensions.net/2012/ms13-gang.com)
Torres, Andrea (2014) History of Mara Salvatrucha Gang; WPLG- Miami; Miami, FL. (www.local10.com/news/history-of-the-mara-salvatrucha/27431146)
Logan, Samuel (2009); this is for the Mara Salvatrucha. Minimal Web Design. (www.thisisforthemararsalvatrucha.com/ms-13.html)
Caldwell, Alicia (2012) US Names Violent Street Gang MS-13 as International Criminal Group. The Denver Post; Denver, Co. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/11/ms-13-street-gang_n_1957977.html)
Wikipedia (2015) MS-13 Gang; Wikipedia
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MS-13)
Reference Page 2 Del Barco, Mandalit (2006) Gang Leader Shot to Death on Road to Reform; NPR (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5409128)
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