Why Do People Join Gangs

Gangs are a problem in every major city in the United States, and membership is rising. They are responsible for countless crimes, including murder, theft, vandalism, and causing terror within their communities. The question that remains is, “Why would anyone want to join a gang?” People join gangs for many reasons. Some of these reason include, a sense of “family”, protection, family tradition, or simply to look cool, but there are four primary reasons that describe most gang members:
Poverty- Most gangs exist because of one reason, money. By committing countless crimes of theft and drugs, gangs can make large amounts of money. Some people with money problems may turn to crime if they can't make enough with a job. This partly explains why some gangs exist in poor, rundown areas of cities.
Peer Pressure- Some gang members tend to be young, because gangs
intentionally recruit teenagers, it's also because they are very susceptible to peer pressure. Kids and teens face constant pressure just to fit in and may not have the support to avoid temptation.
Boredom- If kids and teens have nothing else to do with their time they may turn to mischief to keep themselves occupied. This could drive kids to join a gang or start a gang of their own. Many community have tried to combat gangs by trying to give these kids something to do, such as dances, sports tournaments, and other programs that can help kids out of gangs and off the streets.
Despair- There are people who have always lived in poverty, as well as their parents, who often see no chance of getting a job, an education, or leaving to a better neighborhood, that despair becomes a state of mind. This could cause parents to be addicts or non-responsive, which could cause their children to turn to gangs. Gangs can seem like the only real family they’ve ever had. There are gangs that hope to exist in the future so they must recruit new members or it will perish. Gangs try to look for new recruits in schools, on the street, at parties, and anywhere else they could find potential recruits. Some gangs have initiation ceremonies for potential members to see if they “have what it takes” to join. These initiations include: killing a police officer or “initiation by cop”(which is rarely used today), committing a theft or “jacked in”, commit a drive-by-shooting, Russian roulette, having to fight or be beating by a certain number of gang members for a given period of time, fight through the center of a circle of gang members or “circled in”, and being punched in the chest aggressively one time, on the sternum(though some gang members have been killed this way). There are other ways to be tested prior to entrance or as it used to be called a “trial by ordeal”. Gangs are known to commit countless crimes against rival gangs, innocent civilians, and even their fellow members.
Gangs commit crimes that vary, depending on the nature of the gang and members in it. There are gangs that just deal with drugs and commit drug related crimes, but not all gangs are involved with drugs. The drug related crimes that gangs commit are cultivation (marijuana) and manufacture (methamphetamine, crack cocaine, etc.) including distribution, sales, and possession of drugs. They are also involved with theft with manufactured drugs for selling them for a profit or for their own consumption. Beyond drugs, there are other crimes that gangs commit. Gangs may specialize in other crimes like car theft, shoplifting, weapons, gambling, prostitution, or have no speciality and commit various other crimes. Street gangs of today are different in some ways from gangs in the past. Today’s gangs are more involved in illegal drugs, commit more violent crimes, and use deadlier weapons in commision of those crimes, and it’s because of this that gangs are a major threat across the United
States. Gangs use a variety of ways to communicate and to symbolize their affiliation. The following are the most commonly used:
Graffiti- Gang Graffiti symbolizes the strength of the gang or claimed territory, it may also be an advertisement for the type of activity that gang was apart of or is still involved in.
Taggers & Tagger Graffiti- Taggers think of themselves as artists. While their graffiti may be artful, it is also an act of vandalism(since they usually post their work on public property) and may become a marker for a gang. Some taggers are members of a gang, although they themselves may or may not be involved with criminal activity. Instead, they proudly display their art which sometimes include references to the gang that they belong to.
Tattoos- Tattoos or “Tats” are much like graffiti, they communicate one thing or another to people and make statements about themselves. They may also signify gang affiliation, gang status, past life experiences, and memorials of people who have died. Hand Signs- Hand signals are used by gangs as a shorthand of communicating just about anything words could transmit.They are the sign language of gangs. Clothing- Clothing and Accessories indicate one's gang affiliation. The problem today is that the way of gang attire has crossed into youth culture and worn by kids and teens who are not gang affiliated. Experienced gangs tend to hide their gang membership in order to avoid police and rivals. Some gang members have tried to escape detection by the police, distance themselves from the gang, and even try to quit by having their tattoos removed. There are gangs that are almost impossible to leave alive and other gangs that let you leave with less serious consequences. A member may try to leave, but be unable to if they are threatened by rival gangs, who might not care or know about the individuals attempt to leave.(Baba, Y.).There are many gang members who had to leave their hometown just to escape the gangs they have joined and fear that a member of their gang will find them. They also find it difficult knowing that they can never go home again, and if they do, they have to make sure they keep an eye out for a former gang member or a rival. Some gang members have left because the violence they witness or experience. It’s also stated that lower class member have a better chance of leaving than core members did because of their involvement in gang activities subsequent dependence on the gang for social support and other benefits. (Horowitz, R.)