NCJ Number
171778
Journal
Valparaiso University Law Review Volume: 31 Issue: 2 Dated: (Spring 1997) Pages: 501-514
Date Published
1997
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This paper examines the issue of gang definition from the perspectives of gang members in three cities: Chicago, San Diego, and St. Louis.
Abstract
The data came from three sources: interviews with 67 self- identified gang members in the juvenile detention center in St. Louis; interviews in an ethnographic study of active gang members in St. Louis from 1990 through 1993 (99 interviews); and interviews with 44 gang members in Chicago and 41 gang members in San Diego. In each city, interviews were conducted with members of an African-American and Hispanic gang. The definition of a gang is problematic. Gangs vary on a number of dimensions, including size, use of symbolic representations of membership, age of gang, age of members, level of organization, and involvement in crime. One of the most difficult issues in defining gangs is the fact that most youth crime, indeed most youthful activity, occurs in groups. Thus, distinguishing between gang activity and group activity is a significant task in attempting to understand and respond to gangs. The current study is unique, in that it presents the perspectives of gang members from various gangs in different cities, located through different sources. The results of the collective interviews can be subdivided into two main categories suggested by Bursik and Grasmick: those who define the gang in terms of some characteristics of groups and those who define the gang in terms of the activities in which the gang engages. Those who chose the "group" nomenclature focused on the organizational or affiliational issues of gangs. Those who focused on "gang" nomenclature emphasized criminal activities. To be sure, gangs are a form of group, but gangs have a strong criminal orientation, and gang members commit crimes. During periods of gang membership, young men and women commit more crimes and more serious crimes than prior to entering or after leaving the gang. The distinctive character of gangs is that they foster and facilitate the commission of crime. 12 footnotes