Poverty, Broken Homes, Violence: The Making of a Gang Member
Sylvester Akapalara, 17, Hanzel Saucedo, 18, Genaro Ramirez, 19, Alexander Ibarra, 17, Aljoven Canalete, 19, and Ebony Huel, 16 were all found murdered in gun-related shootings in the past two months. Some of these teens were members of gangs, others were innocent people in the wrong place at the wrong time. Approximately 5750 people were killed in Los Angeles county alone in the past ten years in gang-related violence, many of them children and teenagers. With gangs reportedly recruiting members as young as eleven, this is a social problem that mustn’t be ignored.
There are many risks associated with gang membership including exposure to violent crime, and possible incarceration. Why are so many adolescents willing to join? Several risk factors have been identified that increase the likelihood that a teen will join a gang including the presence of gangs in the neighborhood, having gang members in the family already, histories of