Gangs can include people of every gender, race, culture and socioeconomic group. Some children and adolescents are motivated to join a gang for a sense of connection or to define a new sense of who they are. Others are motivated by peer pressure, a need to protect themselves and their family, because a family member also is in a gang, or to make money. One of the worst effects of gang membership is the exposure to violence. Gang members may be pressured to commit a crime to become part of the gang.
Consequences of gang membership may include exposure to drugs and alcohol, age-inappropriate sexual behavior, difficulty finding a job because of lack of education and work skills, removal from ones family, imprisonment and even death. There are many signs that parents and guardians can use to tell if a child may be involved in gang activity.
These include:. One of the most amazing women I have ever worked with, who has dedicated decades of her life to working with young people in the inner city, lost her son.
He had been stabbed through the heart three days after his 16th birthday in an unprovoked attack. I could barely believe what I was being told. I felt physically sick; I couldn't hold it together. A few days later, we held a service for peace at a church in Peckham to pray for the community. Courageously, through tears of pain, she came and joined many others who had lost their children in similar circumstances. After the riots of , we were told that one in five of the rioters was part of a gang.
As a result, the government declared an "all-out war on gangs". This information sheet is one of a series providing information related to youth gang involvement. It is designed to assist those who are concerned about youth gangs and who are working to help prevent youth from becoming involved in gangs or to help them leave gangs. The vast majority of young people never get involved in crime or join gangs.
Those who do join gangs tend to have specific risk factors that influence their involvement and membership in gangs. To effectively prevent youth from joining gangs it is essential to understand these risk factors.
Risk factors can be defined as life events or experiences that are associated with an increase in problem behaviours, such as drug use or gang activities Footnote 1. For example, being the child of a single-parent who is often absent from the home and lacks adequate support, can be considered a risk factor. The negative influence of a friend Footnote 2 or sibling can be another. The Seattle study found that children and youth are two to four times more likely to join gangs if they are affected by these factors Footnote 3.
Prevention programs target youth at risk of gang involvement and help reduce the number of youth who join gangs. Intervention programs and strategies provide sanctions and services for younger youth who are actively involved in gangs to push them away from gangs. Law enforcement suppression strategies and intensive services target and rehabilitate the most violent gangs and older, criminally active gang members.
For more information about why youths join gangs and gang prevention strategies, the bulletin is available in full PDF, 24 Pages.
Learn about six communities and their innovative strategies to address youth violence. The following are some key findings: Youth join gangs for protection, enjoyment, respect, money, or because a friend is in a gang.
Youth are at higher risk of joining a gang if they engage in delinquent behaviors, are aggressive or violent, experience multiple caretaker transitions, have many problems at school, associate with other gang-involved youth, or live in communities where they feel unsafe and where many youth are in trouble. To prevent youth from joining gangs, communities must strengthen families and schools, improve community supervision, train teachers and parents to manage disruptive youth, and teach students interpersonal skills.
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