Abstract This paper prevents an overview of the Crips street gang of Los Angeles. The paper first explains how gang life in California becomes a sort of surrogate family life, where individuals turn to their neighborhood gangs for protection as well as a source of potential income. The paper then discusses the gang hierarchy and the varying levels of positions and authority and reveals that the biggest profit seen in gang activities comes from drug sales. Next, the paper shows how, despite the lure of fortune and protection, the consequences of claiming Crip membership can be devastating. The police response to gang activity is also looked at and it is posited that no matter how hard the city of Los Angeles tries to rid itself of further gang activity, the perils of inner city life will always force individuals to turn to gang life to make a living and protect themselves and their family.
From the Paper "California street gangs have a long and checkered past which has been both demonized and romanticized. The Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence labels the definition of a gang as "a group of young people whose members recognize themselves as a distinct entity and are recognized as such by their community," (Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence, 2008). These groups of individuals band together for various reasons; in California the main reason being financial and emotional support for one another. Due to the incredibly poor neighborhoods of inner-city Los Angeles, there are a myriad of gangs which have sprung up all over the city to provide protection and financial support to their members based on profits from illicit activities. In 1991, a study done by the University of California, USC, in the heart of gang territory, estimated an astounding 130,000 active gang members currently living in Los Angeles, (Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence, 2008)."
Tags: crime, violence, drugs, murders, street, life
Abstract The paper examines gangs from a historical perspective and shows how immigrant communities formed gangs as a reaction to living in a new world and having to confront difficulties with schooling and police brutality. The paper reveals that in today's society, certain races and ethnic groups are prone to engaging in gang activity because they feel disenfranchised or because they are products of one parent homes in which the father is not present. Finally, the paper discusses the negative impact of gang activity.
Outline:
Introduction
History of Race and Ethnicity in Gangs
Why People Join Gangs
Effects of Gang Activity
Conclusion
From the Paper "As it pertains to race/ethnicity and the current structure or status of gang activity, the majority of gangs are composed of people of the same race or ethnicity. For instance, when two of the most notorious rival gangs, the bloods and the crips began they were composed mostly of African Americans. These two gangs are no longer race explicit and they have been warring for decades with the largest concentrations of these gangs residing in South Central Los Angeles. However the gangs also have a presence in other regions of the United States. Although the Bloods and Crips and their rivalry are amongst the most infamous in the United States, there are also many other gangs throughout the United States. Again these gangs are most abundant in densely populated urban areas."
Tags: bloods, crips, MS-13, guns, violence, immigrants, family
