Nathan Hook 4/10/12 Theories of deviance in gang membership Gangs have long caused issues in society.

From the early years stemming from a need for protection, to the wars in California and drug smuggling operations of today, they have always been looked on as deviant by those who subscribe to a normative life in American society. While actual gang membership is not in itself illegal, many of the activities in which they engage are. This creates a subculture considered deviant by most normative individuals. First off, I will look at the issue of gangs from a phenomenological standpoint. What does the actual gang member think of his actions; how does he justify them? As a former detention officer, I spoke with many gang members in casual conversations and, over my time there and at school, I have attempted to educate myself more on the subject. There are many different reasons why people have joined gangs. One of the primary reasons I have seen is protection. Sometimes this is on the street in a rough neighborhood, but most often it happens while behind bars. For the person who is locked up and alone, if he does not ally himself with a gang (most often along the lines of race), he is left vulnerable. The issue is, after being

released, he has built up a debt to the gang. Even so-called prison gangs operate in the street as well. Many times they expect the former inmate to continue to work for them in exchange for the protection they offered. The reason justifying membership is safety. In the beginning it was for safety in the prison. In the end it is for safety from the gang that protected him. Others look at is as a family. Looking at the social and family issues that many gang members faced in their early life, its easy to see how they would want that acceptance. Many

(but not all) come from single parent families and did not get the attention they needed as children. They see siblings and friends who gain the acceptance and apparent love of other people, who act, in some ways, as a family. Their desire for this acceptance draws them toward the gang lifestyle. This theory, however, I believe misses the point of gangs in a sense. That point, when boiled down, is to make money. Social reality theory can also be used to explain gang membership. Essentially, the ruling class of capitalists will create laws making the activities that gangs engage in illegal to avert any threat to their power. The things they do to make money, trafficking weapons, drugs, or even people are illegal. Whenever they are caught, the government (AKA the ruling class) has the power to arrest them, seize their money and belongings, and make an attempt at ending whatever operation in which they were involved. This can effectively cut them off at the knees. Under this theory, the crimes they commit would be of a lesser importance. The government uses those crimes to 1) make those in society who are complying see these members as deviant and 2) control the deviant individual. The control is the most important part. If the crime goes on elsewhere, it doesnt matter, so long as no one gets too powerful from it. By hampering the individuals means to get ahead financially by illegitimate means the ruling class is able to better secure their place at the top of society. I find social reality theory a bit weak in its explanation of gang membership as well. This is mostly because it ignores the damage caused to society by the gang and says that it is the ruling class causing damage to the lower class. This damage is inherent in gangs. The struggle

to get ahead means they battle each other, sometimes taking innocent life, all in the name of money. It does not acknowledge that the government may legitimately be trying to protect its citizens rather than its own interests.

The third and, I think, best way to describe the issue of gangs is Anomie-Strain theory. This focuses on the means-goals gap created in American society. All who attend school, watch TV, listen to the radio, etc. are indoctrinated with the American Dream to achieve success, make plenty of money, and retire. However, whether it be from living in the wrong area of town, going to the wrong school, or racist class structure, the means to achieve these goals are not always present in everyones life. When conventional means are not there, the individual is more likely to engage in unconventional (deviant) acts to achieve the conventional goals. The movie Scarface portrays this perfectly. The individual comes to the states for a better life; he isnt able to in a legal way, so he turns to selling drugs. Gangs also fall easily into this category. Many gang members come from poorer communities, places with strained incomes and unreached goals. Seeing that they will have a hard time reaching their desired place in society, they will be more inclined to turn to a gang to make the money they want once they see some of the success stories. A true gang is just like a business. The point is to make money. Everybody profits. Everybody gets their cut. The difference is you dont have to have a college education or a normative societys acceptance to do it. However, there are some gang members who have gone to college. Some have a little bit of a different twist than the basic street dealer, but when looked at are in many ways just as deviant. While I was working at the Sandoval County Detention Center, I found out about another tactic being used by gangs they works greatly to their benefit and flies a little more under societys radar. Say a potential member is smart, but doesnt have the ability to go to college because of financial issues. Gangs have been found funding individuals to go to college. This

is almost like an ROTC scholarship, but instead of owing the government time, the individual owes the gang time. This wont work for just anything, but if the person wants to be a lawyer,

the gang can certainly benefit from that. The individual is sent through law school, and comes back with the task of defending the gang members whenever they are on trial. This person isnt supposed to seem deviant, but theyre employed to keep criminals on the street making money in illegal ways. I struggle to find an area in gang membership that this theory does not explain. It gets to the true core of why gangs exist and why individuals join gangs. My first thought for a weakness is that it doesnt explain gang related violence, but it does. Violence is most often over an issue of money. Somebody didnt pay up. Somebody started trying to steal their customers or sell on their turf. These are the kind of things that bring about violence from a

gang. They are trying to achieve their goals through deviant acts therefore; they have to defend their means through deviant forms of enforcement. It is certainly the most effective way to explain gang membership in the American society.