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Youth Gangs & Guns: Americas

 

Table of Contents


Youth gang activity particularly acute in the Americas

significant numbers of active gangs and gang members

US – 760,000 gang members; 24,000 gangs in 29,000 jurisdictions (2004)

  • research shows scope of youth gang issues in US cities is generally greater than in other areas of the world

estimates of gang membership in Central America range from 100,000 – 300,000

  • increasing since 1980s

most prevalent in urban environments; also proliferating in suburban and rural settings

current growth-trends of gangs and gang membership vary across the Americas

gang prevalence and membership in US appears to be stabilizing, but areas with long-standing youth gang activity generally report that local gang problems are “getting worse” 

Central American gangs and gang membership continue to grow – research indicates that this growth is “exponential”

  • gang membership increasingly driven by forced removals of incarcerated and gang-involved immigrants from the US to their countries of origin
  • gang-involved deportees likely to join violent youth gangs upon return
  • proliferation of MS-13 and Calle 18 in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras indicative of this trend

WHY FOCUS ON THE AMERICAS?

Youth gangs are not unique to the Americas – activity is on the rise in various regions throughout the world. However, the violence and gun crime exhibited by youth gangs in North and South America are distinguishing features. 

US gang culture strongly influences youth gangs across the region. Gangs in the Americas are known to be extremely violent, especially in Central America, where youth gang-related executions and brutal attacks on members of the public have been reported.

contemporary forms of youth gangs first emerged during 1970s and continue to evolve 

evolution driven by increased mobility, access to increasingly lethal weaponry and proliferation of drug trade 

Central America youth gang phenomenon emerged in 1980s in wake of civil wars and insurgencies in the region

  • emerged as a public policy issue in 1990s as unrest in the region came to an end

majority of youth gang activities employ offensive and aggressive strategies

shifting away from defensive and territorial strategies 

youth gang activity penetrating all aspects of society 

youth gangs present in communities, schools and correctional facilities

Gang activity increased in the 1980s. At the beginning of the decade, gang problems were recognized in only a few large cities, particularly Chicago, Detroit and Los Angeles. But, by the end of the decade, gangs appeared in large and medium-sized cities as well as in many rural areas. The levels of violence were much higher than in any previous wave of gang problems, corresponding with even more widespread availability of automobiles and firearms.

Decker and Curry, “Gangs” in The Encyclopedia of
Crime and Punishment, 2002