A gang is and organized group with a recognized leader whose activities are either criminal or, at the very least, threatening to the community.  Although gang members are part of these organizations, they rarely acknowledge their own roles as contributing to the problems in that community.

Street gangs in Los Angels are described as a group of individuals who may or may not claim control over a certain territory in the community and engage, either individually or collectively, in violent or other forms of illegal behaviors.  However, one of the simplest and most functional definitions is that a gang is a group  of people who form an allegiance for a common purpose and engage in violent, unlawful, or criminal activity.

Modern Street Gangs

While modern street gangs have do history to race and region specific recruitment, the current trends that are being identified are that RACE, ETHNICITY, SOCIOECONOMICS, and GENDER are NO LONGER A FACTOR

Facts About Gangs

• A gang is a group of people who claim a territory and use it to make money through illegal activities (i.e. drug trafficking)
• Gangs can be organized based upon race, ethnicity, territory, or money-making activities, and are generally made up of members ages 8 to 22
• Members of gangs wear specific articles of clothing to be recognized as part of the group such as bandanas, hats, scarves of certain colors, or gang-related tattoos or symbols
• Gangs are one of the leading factors for growth of violent crimes both on and off school property
• When jining a gang often times there is an initiation that needs to be passed.  The initiation is usually a violent crime that could include the, murder, gang-rape, or drive-by shootings
• Gang members are more likely to be arrested or involved with drugs and alcohol than non-gang members
• 86% of U.S. cities with a population of 100,000 or more report gang activities
• According to the FBI in 2011, there were 33,000 violent street, motorcycle, and prison gangs active in the U.S. with more than 1.4 million members (a 40% increase from 2009)
• In recent years, gangs are participating in more non-traditional crimes such as prostitution, alien smuggling and human trafficking, identify theft and mortgage fraud
• According to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Long Beach,  Los Angeles, and Oakland  California, Newark New Jersey and Oklahoma City Oklahoma are the capitals of gang homicide
• Neighborhood-based gangs pose the highest rate of significant threat for violent crimes in the U.S. versus national-level street gangs, prison gangs, and outlaw motorcycle gangs

Gang Violence Statistics

• Gang-related homicides account for approximately 13% of all homicides annually
• Highly populated areas account for the vast majority of gang homicides
  • Nearly 67% occurred in cities with populations over 100,000
  • And 17% occurred in suburban counties in 2012
• In a typical year in the so-called ‘gang-capitals” of Chicago and Los Angeles, around half of all homicides are gang-related
  • These two cities account for approximately 1 in 4 homicides reported in 2011-2012
• Among agencies serving rural counties and smaller cities that reported gang activities, around 75% reported zero gang-related homicides
• Overall, these results demonstrate conclusively that gang violence is greatly concentrated in the largest cities in the U.S.

Why Do Young Adults Join Street Gangs?

• Street gangs promise to provide a sense of camaraderie, friendship and family, as members establish a strong loyalty to alliances
• Members experience false senses of success and confidence within the gang, as street gangs promote power and wealth
• Security and protection becomes a factor, as respect, fear, and recognition are gained by joining
• Members are sometimes born into families and neighborhoods that identify with the gangster lifestyle
• Members are influenced through false role models, as they look up to gang leaders and elders to provide missing life values
  • Threats of bodily injury or death to individuals and/or their immediate friends or family for refusing to join a gang

Universal Street Gang Identifiers & Warnings

• Self-admission
• Gang specific body markings, tattoos, burns, and branding
• Possession of gang specific paraphernalia that is solely identified within the gang specific groups through the display of colors, reading materials, graffiti, clothing, and/or symbology
• Association to identified and active street gangs and/or associated members
• Observation of unexpected new friends, money, and expensive  clothing and/or electronics
• Signs of physical altercations and/or possession of weapons
• Unexpected trouble with law enforcement, school attendance and activities, distancing from family and friends and/or disregard fro family rules and curfews

What Can Schools Do About Gangs

Summary

• In this module, you were able to
  • Define bullying and cyberbullying
  • Understand hoe bullying and cyberbullying impact society
  • Identify and explore your potential role in preventing bullying and cyberbullying
  • Explore the impact of gangs and gang violence in the U.S.

Module 3 is Now Complete

You may now take Module 3 Quiz Now