Youth and Gangs
Gangs are corrupting minds and ruining our youth, many teens need to open their eyes and see the truth. A gang could just be a social group of friends and family that just hang out, but many of these gangs are involved in criminal activity like murders, robberies and drug dealing. One thing all gangs share in common is that they all want to claim territory (Conly) Gangs have been a part of history for thousands of years and their roots run deep into Americas past and culture. (Lewis) Gangs are a growing problem in the United States. In every city in the United States with more than 250,000 residents there has been reported gang activity. In Los Angeles alone there are more than 90,000 gang members. No ethnic group is excluded from gangs. Today there are more racially mixed gangs in the United States.( Dyson) The biggest problem with gangs is that they are recruiting more and more teenagers for their gangs and setting up kids for a life of crime.
There are so many reasons kids decide to join gangs. Sometimes kids feel they have no choice and have to join gangs to survive in their neighborhood. They see their neighborhood gangs as a way to stay safe from other rival gangs that might threaten them. (Dyson) Some teens that might not have a lot of friends could want to join to make friends and boost their self esteem. Family is another reason teen turn to gangs, if a kid doesn’t like to be home because of family problems or even if they’re on their own because their parents just don’t care them, then there is a higher chance that kid will spend more time on the streets with gangs. Since that kid doesn’t have much of a family they will find the closest thing to a family by being part of a gang. (Lewis). Gang activity can seem exciting to teens and since they get bored easily they see getting involved in a gang as something to do when they’re bored. ( Dyson ) Another reason a teenager might join is that they see the opportunity to make fast and easy money. They
There are so many reasons kids decide to join gangs. Sometimes kids feel they have no choice and have to join gangs to survive in their neighborhood. They see their neighborhood gangs as a way to stay safe from other rival gangs that might threaten them. (Dyson) Some teens that might not have a lot of friends could want to join to make friends and boost their self esteem. Family is another reason teen turn to gangs, if a kid doesn’t like to be home because of family problems or even if they’re on their own because their parents just don’t care them, then there is a higher chance that kid will spend more time on the streets with gangs. Since that kid doesn’t have much of a family they will find the closest thing to a family by being part of a gang. (Lewis). Gang activity can seem exciting to teens and since they get bored easily they see getting involved in a gang as something to do when they’re bored. ( Dyson ) Another reason a teenager might join is that they see the opportunity to make fast and easy money. They