Prominence of Gangs

It is important for society to be aware of gangs and how prominent they are all over the world because anyone at anytime my be affected by acts of violence at the hand of a gang member.
Over a twelve year study by the National Gang Center, there was an annual average of 775,000 gang members. Their study also concluded the following information on the racial breakdown of gangs: 49 percent are Hispanic/Latino gang members, 35 percent are African-American/black gang members, 9 are percent white gang members, and 7 percent are other race/ethnicity of gang members. Even though there are only roughly 775,000 gang members in the United States that has a population of over 304,000,000 people, it is apparent that gangs are affecting a significant number of members of certain races.

Common gang-related offenses include aggravated assault, burglary/breaking and entering, drug sales, larceny/theft, motor vehicle theft, and robbery. Out of the 2500 law enforcement agencies that were surveyed, more than half of them reported that drug related factors and inter-gang conflict directly affected gang related violence. Many people across the U.S. are affected by gangs, whether it is directly or indirectly. Gang members do not need a valid reason to take an individuals life or perform and act of violence; that is one of the reasons gangs are feared.

It is hard to deter people from joining gangs. The future of gangs most likely will not be much of an improvement form where we are with gangs today. Gangs offer its members a level of protection that no one else can offer. Gangs also provide a pseudo family, a sense of strength and power, and money earning potential that individuals feel they cannot make any other way. When a gang can offer individuals all this, how can society prevent people from joining gangs? This is a question that many have spent years trying to determine and they have yet to find an answer.