Putting Youth Crime and Gangs inPerspective: Lessons from the (failed)

American and Emerging EuropeanExperiences

Scott Decker, Ph.D.Curator’s Professor

Department of Criminology and Criminal JusticeUM-St. Louis

8001 Natural Bridge RoadSt. Louis, MO 63121-4499

deckers@msx.umsl.edu

Evolution of Gangs in America

1890’s

1920’s

1960’s

1980’s and beyond

Common issues: (1) immigration, (2) economic transitions, (3) focus on minority populations, and (4) rapid population change.

Elements of a Gang Definition

Group characteristics.

Symbols of membership.

Persistence of membership.

Self-identification.

Criminal involvement.

Recognizing GangsSources of Gangs.

Troubled Individuals?

Young Criminals?

Disrupted or ineffective social systems?

Sources of Knowledge about Gangs.

The case of the St. Louis Task Force and the media.

The Social Process of Responding to Gangs.

DenialIdentificationOver-identification

Y e s N o

G a n g a n d N o n g a n g C itie s Y e a r 2 0 0 0 N a tio n a l Y o u th G a n g S u rv e y

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

3,500

4,000

Number of Gang Cities by Year.Similar growth in number of gangs (28,000) and members (850,000by 2000).

Characteristics of Gang Members

62%

38%

Gender of U.S. Gang Members

Data Sources: NYGC 1996 Survey, Esbensen & Winfree (1998)

90%

10%

Survey DataLaw Enforcement Data

FemaleMale

77%

23%15%

85%

15 & OverUnder 15

Age of U.S. Gang Members

Survey DataLaw Enforcement Data

Data Sources: NYGC 1996 Survey, Esbensen & Winfree (1998)

26%

74%

14%

86%

WhiteOther

Ethnicity of U.S. Gang Members

Survey DataLaw Enforcement Data

Data Sources: NYGC 1996 Survey, Esbensen & Winfree (1998)

Characteristics of Gang Behavior

Homicide and “Hangin’ out”

THREAT

From Outside/Rival GangEscalates Violence and Weapons

Compels NeighborhoodYoung People to Join

The Gang

From NeighborhoodGang

Symbolic Benefits(power, prestige, thrills)

Disrupts Socializing Power of Social Institutions

(family, school, labor market)

Instrumental Benefits(drug sales, property crime, protection)

Social Aspectsof Membership

(belonging, hanging out, cohesion)

0

10

20

30

40

50

0

10

20

30

40

50

Self-Reported Gang Status & Juvenile Court Records 1997

% with Status Offense

None Involved Member

% with Delinquency Referral

11% 23% 18% 44%

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

70%34%

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Gang Status & Self-Reported Involvement in Violence St. Louis STG Study.

% Used Violence

None Involved Member

% Carried Gun

5% 40%

% Shot At

7% 34%

Gang Status

Common Myths About American Gangs

Myths About American GangsStreet Gangs resemble Organized Crime Groups

Gang members specialize in particular offenses

Gang Members Graduate to Organized Crime Groups

Status as a Gang Member is permanent

Gangs Control Drug Retail and Wholesale Drugs Sales

Gangs Are Effective Business Organizations

You can never leave the Gang

Gangs are like a Family

Gangs Protect their Neighborhoods

Gangs don’t exist outside the United States (e.g. inEurope)

The number of girl gang members is too small to worryabout

Crime is the primary activity that gang members dotogether

All gangs are the same

Los Angeles and Chicago gangs are the model for gangsacross the country

Responding to Gangs

Five Strategies for Responding to Gangs

Source: Spergel & Curry 1990, 1993; Spergel 1995

Suppression

CommunityOrganization

OrganizationalChange/Development

OpportunityProvision

SocialIntervention

Five Strategies for Responding to GangsLevels of Application as Primary Strategy

1988 National Youth Gang Survey

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Su

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sio

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Org

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Pro

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Five Strategies for Responding to GangsPerceived Effectiveness Ratings

1988 National Youth Gang Survey

0%

10%

20%

30%

Su

pp

res

sio

n

So

cia

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tio

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The Eurogang Program

A group of European and American scholars that has met every year since 1997 to work to understand emerging gangs in Europe. The group has faced a remarkably similar set of issues as American gang researchers did in the 1980’s. Key issues include: immigration, diversity, moral panic, the Eurogang “paradox”, and the role of cultural transmission.

Somalian gangs in Oslo.Turkish and Moroccan gangs in Amsterdam and den Hague. Youth gangs in Russia and Kazan.Youth gangs in Italy. Ausiedler (Germans repatriated from the former Soviet Union) in Germany.Hate groups and neo-Nazis in Germany, Norway, and Finland.Jamaican gangs in Britain.British gang boys in Manchester.

The Perils of Misunderstanding Gangs

Why is it important to understand gangs?

What errors does it lead us to make for policy, practice and programming if we misunderstand gangs?

Who suffers from such a misunderstanding?

Police.Youth.Youth Workers.Society.Gang members.Family members.Criminal Justice and Youth Policy.

Useful Websites for Further Information about Gangs

www.nupi.no/ForskFelles/eurogang/gang-set.html

www.ojjdp.ncjrs.org

www.iir.com/nygc - the site of the National Youth Gang Center

http://courses.smsu.edu/mkc096f/gangbook/default.htm - the siteOf a comprehensive online book about gangs by Dr. Mike Carlie atSouthwest Missouri State University

http://streetgangs.com/ - A general website with lots of arcane And interesting information. http://www.lib.msu.edu/harris23/crimjust/gangs.htm - A website

Developed by the Michigan State library about gangs.