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suburban gangs

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Length: 623 words (1.8 double-spaced pages)
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Across the United States and Europe, suburban gangs are growing as never before,

estimations that in a typical inner city American community of 50,000 or more, there are

200 to 500 gang members. Some even larger organization called super gangs, which have more

than 1,000 members spread over several states, have been known to operate in small town

America. You cant say that any community is insulated from this activity," There's no restriction

on where gang members can live. Gang members living in the suburbs share traits with recruits

in the cities, and many of those factors have been exacerbated by tough economic times, The list

of factors include divorce, separation, physical abuse, sexual abuse and having a parent with "a

severe dysfunction," situations that can be found anywhere. The factor that can push a child over

the top and into a gang is a "missing protector," someone the youth can count on in emergencies,

"If you come from an at-risk home, and you don't feel you have someone to turn to in a crisis,

there are three things these kids are looking for: a mask to deal with their pain, a distraction

device to divert them from what they're experiencing or an overpowering device to overpower

that's hurting them," A gang, can provide all three.

Of 64 million youths in the United States, there are an estimated 40 million youth meet at

least one of his risk criteria, although both "at-risk" traits do not automatically translate into gang

activity. They simply create a fertile ground, in cities, rural areas and suburbs

     Gang growth in the suburbs occurs in one of three ways, Sometimes established gangs

move into new communities to expand their drug dealing through new recruits. Other times,

parents send their troubled children to live with families in the suburbs and, instead of curing the

problem, the gang members will build up a new crew in their new homes, often exaggerating

their rank and reputation.

Then there are what "teenage mutant gangs," groups of individuals who coalesce on their own.

They sometimes imitate big-city gangs, he said, but often make up their own rules.

"A lot of the people in the business call them 'wannabes,' or imitators." It doesn't matter how

much money a kid's have in thier pockets. If there's not positive activities for a young person to

pursue, they'll follow the negative route. Or, you have parents who are working full-time jobs but

don't realize the impact on their child. In some cases the youth feel abandoned and angry, and in

other situations they simply do whatever they want with no daytime supervision.

Suburban gangs tend to sell different drugs-such as Ecstasy, as opposed to crack-cocaine

offered in the cities-and begin with lower levels of violence, But as drug trade grows, so do the

levels of conflict. While suburban gangs tend to be less structured, allowing law enforcement to

sometimes dismiss their threat, suburban gangs can be more dangerous because of their desire to

prove themselves as hardcore.

Gangs offer alternatives to disillusioned youths, allowing them to come together like a

surrogate family. Kids that get into gangs are seeking identity and recognition. a gang expert

from Little Rock, Ark., who helped create the HBO documentary "Bangin' in Little Rock" and

speaks on gangs around the country. Said that Members of what he calls the "5H Club"-hopeless,

helpless, hugless, hungry and homeless-are the youths most likely to join a gang, regardless of

race, economic situation or setting. Gangs offer young people a chance to feel accepted and bond

with others like them.

James Gallaty
December 16, 2002
Juvenile Justice
Describe how Urban Gang infiltrate suburban areas. What role do local schools play in the saturation of communities by gang?

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"suburban gangs." 123HelpMe.com. 23 May 2015

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