Gangs and School Violence Julene Maniak Hour 1

Definition Gang: “A group working unlawfully.” (Sonder 9) Neighborhood Gang: when people in a neighborhood are threatened and take violent action Street Gang: a large community gang Prison gang: Gang that functions in prisons for protection, drugs and illegal goods. “School Violence is rampages, homicide, rape and assault.” (Driscoll and Geier 1)

Examples School Violence Gangs El Rukns is a Chicago crime gang. There are 33,000 gangs in the USA with 1.4 million members. “They were attacking them with racial slurs and sometimes even with fists. As a solution, the four friends decided to form a formal support group now known as the Diamond Heights Gang.” (Sonder 19) In 2007 the worst shooting happened at Virginia Tech., killing 32 and wounding more than 12.

Causes and Effects People - Gangs “Many gangs started as a necessary support group of friends.” (Sonder 19) “Their crew formed in 1990 at a time when unemployment was high and most fathers were out of work.” (Sonder 34) “Single race gangs get their energy from anger about not getting what they want.” (Sonder 33) “Historically, if a gang was formed in an Irish neighborhood, the nearby Italian neighborhood would soon have it’s gang.” (gang 1) Some dangerous results from gangs are theft, homicide, drug trafficking and other crimes. “Gang Violence is increasingly posing a threat to innocent bystanders and the well-being of neighborhood communities.” (Whittaker and Newton 1) “Gang, the word sends shivers of fear through those who live in places like Little Rock.” (Sonder 9) Felipe Santana died in a shootout with Zatin Kings.

Causes and Effects People - Gangs “The most-publicized occasions for gangs were Prohibition, from 1920-1933, and the emergence of the drug culture in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s.” (gang 1) “It was and remains today a matter of self-defense, neighborhood protection and pride.” (gang 1) “Residents of the gang’s turf were exploited first by robbery and other crimes.” (gang 1)

Causes and Effects on People- School Violence “The problem of school violence reflects a variety of social, mental health, political, and educational issues.” (Driscoll and Geier 1) “Psychologists debate effects of violence in song lyrics, video games, and other media on violent behavior.” (Driscoll and Geier 1) In 2005-2006 there were 21 homicides of children under 18 and 136,500 other serious violent crimes in schools.

Why are Gangs and School Violence a problem Guns cause ¼ of deaths among teens and in 4,200 teenage gun deaths. “Once you become a member of a gang, you cannot quit.” (Sonder 45) “According to the codes of most gangs, a vendetta is supposed to right a wrong. It is paying back a rival gang or enemy for hurt done.” (Sonder 48)

Possible Solutions Many U.S. judges have raised the penalties for gang related crimes. In 1992 Illinois had TV ads saying the Gangs just in 1991 killed more people than both the KKK and Neo-Nazis. The government has laws to reduce guns in schools. Critics want more money for school mental staff, anti-bullying curriculum, and more school-parent programs. “Once a neighborhood or a sizeable portion of it’s residents begin to prosper, gang activity usually diminished.” ( Gang 1)

Comparison/Contrast Compare Contrast “Thus, in stark contrast to the Prohibition era, today’s gangs embrace a greater age range- from young children to mature adults.” (gang 1) The Klu Klux Klan have killed 20 people while just in 1991 gangs killed 1,300. The Klu Klux Klan is an all white group while gangs can be multicultural. Youth gangs in 1970 were rich vs. earlier gangs were poor. Most all gangs have some sort of a vendetta.

Comparison/Contrast Compare Contrast School Violence has always included fighting and bullying. D.A.R.E, Gun-Free School Zone Act, Safe School and Zero Tolerance Policy are programs that are against school violence. Statistics from the FBI say that knives are used three times more than guns in school violence situations.

Personal Insight Two things that I learned about Gangs and School Violence. I learned that there are many ways that the government is trying to stop school violence. I believe that these are helping stop bullies, but kids who are bullied still need to step up and tell someone. There are many people killed by gangs each year, I believe cities with gangs should try to have a gang unit not only would it help with gangs but it would also give new jobs to police.