Gangs In The US

20 Pages 4924 Words

Violence is a part of life out here. In our ‘hood you see violence all the time, and that’s what time it is. Either you stay ready or it’s gonna get you... To me, selling dope is the best thing a young girl can do in trying to make it in the streets. Call us a gang or whatever you want. What we is, is getting paid.
– Dewana, 20, member of drug gang (Taylor:1993, 32)


Violence is a reality for the youth of America, gang violence being one of the fastest growing forms. While overall crime rates have decreased, it is becoming more common for the youth to the perpetrators. Our youth are increasingly the perpetrators and victims of some of society’s most violent crimes. Until recently, the rate of youth violence has climed drastically, between 1984 and 1993, the rate of homicides commited by juveniles increased 169%. (Walker:1993, 506) Gangs have become violent street families for many of our youth. Less than twenty years ago fewer than half of US cities reported gang activity, now 95% of the largest cities and 88% of smaller cities suffer gang-related crime. With the ever increasing population, according to demographic experts there will be a doubling of juvenile arrests for violent crimes by the year 2010. (US Department of Justice) Luckily with action these numbers can be changed. The facts of recent studies provide proof for an alternative outcome:
o Over the past five years, violence—and especially murder—commited by young people has declined.
o While the juvenile violent crime arrest rate increased 62% between 1987 and 1993, it decresed 2.9% in 1995, the first decline in seven years.
o The juvenile murder arrest declined 15.2% in 1995—the largest one year decrease in more than ten years.
o Since 1993, the juvenile murder arrest rate has dropped 22.8% (US Department of Justice)
It has only been until recent years that the study of youth crimes has gained momentum, so far we know that:
- Only a small fractio...