Revised Summary/Plan/Udate

I am sticking with the research and plan I have since the beginning. I'm going to use the Archival Research method as I said I would, and I'm still focusing on the things that make young people, under the age 18, want to join a gang, such as power, a sense of belonging/identity, etc. I'm also going to look at their backgrounds and environments they grew up in because I think that has a lot to do with them joining a gang. For example, if a kid grew up in a poor, bad neighborhood and have been around gangs, they most likely will be influenced to join one because they've grown in up that type of area and have been in presence with gangs.

The statistics are really helpful, and will definitely help me with my research. They really help me look further into my research and benefit it as well. I have finally found a YouTube video that I will be using, actually two of them. One of them is about real teenagers who talk about someone they know who has been or is in a gang, and why they joined gangs in the first place. Then, I have a YouTube video that is global. It's about gang members from London who talk about all the things they do, and how they feel about the things they have committed. This gives us a really good insight on how gangs function and what they actually do.

Research Update

The research so far has been going pretty well! I have found numerous sites on more statistics, and have been looking up articles on why people join gangs. All of the sites I have been on so far have been extremely helpful and intend to use most of them for my research project. Most of the articles are pretty repetitive on why people join gangs, although some do bring up something different from the articles. Most likely, I will probably take those different things from the various articles and make a list.

I have looked on YouTube and have found some videos for the reason why kids join gangs. Not a lot of them have jumped out at me, so I'm going to keep searching. Once I find the one I want to use, my research project will be in pretty good shape. I'm extremely excited to get my project started.

My Strategy/Plan for Gang Research

As I said in my previous post, I still plan on using the Archival Research method for my research on gangs. I will be focusing mainly on what reels young people into joining gangs. I'm going to focus on kids under the age 18, and their environments in which they grew up in, and see how that affects and plays into their decision into joining a gang.

I will be looking at statistics on all different aspects. I will use statistics from the Federal Bureau of Investigations, and others sources such as Court Service Unit of Virginia and the University of Nebraska studies. The statistics I will be using from the FBI are: gangs demographics, total number of gangs from the year 2000 to now, percentage of gangs who are under 18, and how many gang members are in poverty or come from a low income family. 

As well as statistics from various sources, I will be including a video from YouTube. I will try to find a video on a teenager being interviewed on why he or she joined a gang in the first place.

I picked this area on the topic of gangs because I find it really intriguing. I am extremely curious on why kids under 18 join gangs. I want to explore their surroundings and environment, and get some insight on why they felt they needed to join a gang.

Research Method

The research method I chose for my topic, gangs, is Archival Research. I really want to go more into why people join gangs. I want to go more into the environment they grew up in, the influences that persuaded them into going, and psychological reasons. This research method is broader, and I want to get as much insight as I can. I want to fully understand why people join gangs.

Motorcycle Members Arrested on Weapons Trafficking Charge

A Brooklyn Motorcycle gang group, the Forbidden Ones, had a secret clubhouse in Brooklyn, where they held secret meetings. During these secret meetings, members of this outlawed motorcycle gang secured themselves with assault rifles, pistols, and grenades just to make sure they were protected from intruders. Their first line of defense though was a cannon, ready to fire, aimed at the door in case anyone dared to come in and interrupt them.

What these members didn't know is that one of them had turned them in and was working with the New York Police Department. The gang member who turned them in told the police all about their defensive line and weapons ready to go off if anyone came in during their special meetings.

On Tuesday, law enforcement officials arrested seven members of the Forbidden Ones and two others from other Brooklyn motorcycle gangs, the Dirty Ones and the Troublemakers. The police charged them with trafficking high-caliber weapons.

Some of the weapons discovered in 15 other locations were an AK-47 assault rifles, homemade bombs and a .410-caliber revolver. Some of these guns were kept at one of the gang member's house, where his wife ran a day care center!

The men arrested had different nicknames such as "Spider" and "Afro." Some of the gang members wore patches to show off their accomplishments. One had a "1% patch" which declared they rejected society and lived outside the law. Another had a "bangout patch" which shows two handguns crossing each other signifying the member had assaulted or had another confrontation with the police. The gang members arrested face up to 5 years of conviction.

I think this whole thing is really crazy. The amount of weapons they had was crazy, and I think it was completely ridiculous that they had a cannon ready to fire if someone opened the door! Another thing that made me really upset is that some of these weapons they bought were being held in one of the gang members house, and his wife runs a day care center! I can't even begin to explain how idiotic this is. They obviously didn't even think this out because if something went off while the kids were at his house there could have been some major damage done to both their criminal record and the kids. I'm glad their locked up, and hopefully it puts them in their place.

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Chicago & Guns

Chicago has hit a milestone last week, with the famous city recording it's 400th murder for the year. Homicides have raised up to 25% over the last year. Chicago has now surpassed both New York and Los Angeles for gun-related violence, most of this violence involving youth. Since 2001, Chicago has recorded more than 5,000 gun-related deaths; compare this to the 2,000 American military deaths in the war in Afghanistan.. This is a really scary fact.

So how are all of these people, especially the younger ones, obtaining these guns? A lot of them, 40%, of them are getting it through the secondary market- gun brokers, gangs, and other informal traders.A lot of men who own guns, especially in the inner city, shows a sign of honor and makes them seem more masculine.

Chicago has made many efforts to try and have people turn in guns. One way was when the police finally started targeting the secondary market, they started to let the public turn in guns to them with no questions asked. For example, in June, they had an annual gun "buyback" program where 5,500 guns were turned in (most of them replicas and BB guns). For every real gun turned in, a $100 gift card was given to the person. Although, there wasn't a significant drop in crimes rates, it was a way for the police to show they are trying to protect their city and handle taking the guns in a nicer manner.

Another problem though is that 40% of all criminals are getting guns in Chicago, and all over, from friends or family members. This is a serious problem. I think we should start getting people more aware of this. Sure, we can't take guns from the family members or friends; but we should try to advocate this message by telling people to not give their guns to others, no matter how close they are to them. They should spread the word like they do with texting and driving, or driving drunk- they should help get the message out by convincing friends and family members to not give away their armed guns. This would make people more aware of the situation.

Reading this article really opened my eyes. I mean, 5,000 gun-related deaths just in Chicago alone compared to the 2,000 American military deaths in the war?! That's absolutely crazy! And family members and friends are giving other people their guns, like why?! This article brought a lot to my attention, and I'm really glad I came across it and read it. I think you guys should really read it- it's very informative! All in all, let's just say I will never live in Chicago, ever.

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Street Gang Now Declared as an International Criminal Organization in the U.S.

Obama's administration has finally declared an American street gang as an international criminal organization in the U.S., which is the first time this has ever happened to such a group.

This American street gang is known as the MS-13. This local street gang had started out with just immigrants from El Salvador and has grew immensely since then. Now, the gang has more than 10,000 members in 46 states and Central America. MS-13 has members who are involved in crimes such as kidnapping, murder, to drug smuggling, and human trafficking.

This decision will make it easier for federal authorities to seize important assets that are associated with the organization. Immigration and Custom Enforcement,ICE, gang investigators have been suspicious and targeting this group, arresting thousands of members suspected in the more recent years. This decision will also make it easier for ICE and other federal investigators to target and take away millions of dollars in profit from the drug smuggling, human trafficking, and other crimes. By declaring this gang group as an international criminal organization, this will make it hard for the gang members to use banks and wire transfer services to move profits from the gang's crimes.

I am extremely happy about this decision. MS-13 is one of the world's most dangerous gangs. They are known for their violence and ruthlessness. Many of the members have committed international crimes that some people may be aware of. One of the international crimes being the stabbing to death of a pregnant Virginia girl who used to be in the gang and left. The crimes MS-13 has done are appalling. So, all in all I really think this was a very good decision on Obama's administration part.

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Shots Fired during "Gangnam Style" Dance Contest

I'm pretty sure most of you are familiar with the hit song from Korea, Gangnam Style. And I'm sure most of you are familiar with the dance, because even gang members know it apparently.

Last Friday, two teenage rival gangs were out all night partying and drinking and confronted each other later that night. They both put on a dance contest by mimicking Gangnam Style dancing. The dance off between the two gang rivals turned into a lot more than just dancing. Soon, the dancing became into a fight which spilled over into a shooting. Apparently, one of the two groups left the dance showdown and showed up with weapons. Over 50 shots were fired after this dance showdown.

This dance showdown became more than just a dance showdown by the intensity becoming inevitable between them, so weapons were bound to come into this. Because of this shooting, several cars were hit, none injured thankfully.

I think this whole scenario was really stupid and immature in a way. The two gang rivals were just looking for trouble by starting this whole thing. I don't get why they had a dance off, or why they even confronted each other. Nothing good was bound to come out of this.. This was something that could have been prevented and could have never happened.

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Prison Gangs

While researching about gangs and trying to find a video, I came across this YouTube video. It's a Hard Time episode about Prison Gangs.This video shows how gang members act in prison, specifically Ross Correctional Institution. In prison, gang members like to mark their territory. There are 2 sides of this prison, the South and the North. The South side is the medium side, level 2, where rules aren't as strict and they get more privileges than the North. On the North side, level 3, time is tougher and has closed security. Throughout the video, different stories are told by the prisoners and stories that have happened throughout the jail are talked about as well.

This video gives us such an insight on how gang members act outside of jail and inside of jail. While I was watching this, most of the prisoners don't seem upset about being in prison because as the narrator said, "they've got nothing to lose." In this video, there is not one person who does not have a tattoo on him. Most of them have their whole bodies covered in them. One of the prisoners, "Bulldog", had his gang member group initial tattooed on his arm, like many of the others. The security guards talk about why people join gangs: money, power, and protection. The video is 46 minutes long, but I was not bored during any of it. If you are really interested in gangs, this will give you a really clear insight on how and why people are a part of a gang.

Reasons for why people join gangs

Many of us, including myself, sometimes wonder why people would ever join gangs? The answer for that is for various reasons. A lot of people join gangs for the desire of power, respect, money, and protection. This especially attracts the youth to join. In some cases, kids are unfortunately grown up in or around areas where most kids are a part of a gang. 

Many times, people are experiencing low levels of these various factors, such as the ones I listed above, which is why they seek out to join a gang. Kids feel that joining a gang is the only way to obtain status and success. 

They also join gangs to gain a feeling of belonging and identity. This is a huge influence on people of all ages; every human being likes to feel like they belong, and to some people- gangs can give them just that. Gang members feel that sense of identity and belonging by getting numerous tattoos that represent their gang group. Other than tattoos, they have certain colors, symbols, hand-signals, and clothing that correspond to which gang group they are members of as well.

I posted a link to a YouTube video below about a truly remarkable story. It's 11 minutes long, but trust me it is worth every single second. It's about a man, Marlin Henderson, who was in a gang during his younger years. He tells his story about how and why he joined a gang, his life during his gang years, and how he turned his life around. 

This video on Marlin Henderson is really inspiring, and it opened my eyes as to how fortunate we are. I am extremely blessed for the family I have been brought up with, and the area I live around. If you have the time, please watch this. This video really spoke out to me.

Facebook Friends Boasted of Gang War

Members of the two gangs in East New York, The Very Crispy Gangsters & The Rockstarz, became Facebook friends boasting about how many murders each gang had. They would keep score and taunted each other endlessly. Because they bragged non stop, investigators were able to draw a virtual map of their activities and bring them to justice. This "war" has been going on for 3 years now, and 2 members of the Very Crispy Gangsters, and 1 from the Rockstarz are dead. After each murder one of the two gangs had done, they would post a picture and write, for example, Rockstarz are 3-0. This Wednesday, the city's police commissioners made an announcement of the indictment of the 49 members of the two gangs. The charges include murder, attempted murder and conspiracy.

I feel actually pretty disturbed after reading this article. Both these gangs were murdering people, and then bragging about it? I find it quite disgusting, and don't really get, how these guys can just murder someone and then boast about it to another gang. The keeping score of each of the gangs murders, too, really put me over the top, and got me extremely angry and sad by the actions these gangs did, and probably still do.

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Interest in Gangs

I have never had a real interest in Gangs, until this summer. I read a book, Perfect Chemistry, and it really opened my eyes. It is a drama/romantic book, and the main guy character, Alex, is part of a gang called the Latino Blood. Alex has to wear a red and white bandanna, has tattoos, and has to be loyal to the Latino Blood. I was so intrigued by this book that I had to take the opportunity to research more about gangs. I am really interested in how people come about in joining into these gangs, and why they do.