Kaitlyn Thornton Abbott

What are gangs?  Gangs, by definition, are “an organized group of individuals.”  When gangs are talked about, it usually comes with a negative connotation.  For example, gangs are usually associated with inner cities and trouble.  Albeit, it might be true there is certain criminal-esque intent behind the formation of gangs, there are aspects to gangs in neighborhoods that aren’t necessarily bad, depending on one’s perspective.

Being a part of a gang guarantees one a family environment for the rest of one’s life.  Being a part of a gang ensures everyone has each other’s back, regardless of the circumstance.  For example, Carlos T. Ramirez, Jr. speaks out about his life in one of the most well-known gangs in Texas.  He has spent a majority of his life in prison and explains the pros and cons of being a part of a gang.  When speaking about his life in the gang, he explains how they opened up their arms to him when his home life was not welcoming or loving.  As he gives his testimony about his former gang life, he reminisces about how for the first time in his life, he felt like he was a part of something special.  For the first time, he felt included.  For the first time, he was able to call on people and have them always be there for him.

Another benefit of being a part of a gang is it gives you financial stability.  The best part — it’s not taxed!  No matter what one plunders, and comes to have through the glamorous life of gang membership, the government can’t take it!  It’s like being a pirate, except the swashbuckling rogue has been transformed into a baggy-pants thug.  Who wouldn’t love that life?

Speaking of the thug life, it’s another added benefit of being part of a gang.  If one happens to have fathered a child out of wedlock, nobody is going to mess with that kid if they know the father is a member of a notorious gang.  So, even if the father wants to walk out on his family, one can see he still genuinely cares about his child.  Although most would consider a father walking out on his child an example of bad parenting, they should consider the positives it brings.  For example, it builds character. If children are forced to stand up for themselves without having anyone to fight their battles for them, they learn how to handle themselves and to evade situations that could end detrimentally for them.  It also allows the women to stand up for themselves.  Feminism is a huge part of American society; having a significant other walk out on the family allows them to work and find self-realization.

Many people are hesitant to say gangs are a good faction of society.  However, gangs are really only members of the police force without the badges.  They all share a certain uniform, usually a bandana that marks which group they are a part of.  Also, they all carry weapons.  Every police officer carries weapons not only to protect themselves, but also to protect civilians who might need it, such as people in the Witness Protection Program.  In comparison, gang members carry guns with them as well.  Unless fired on, they usually will not use them except in self-defense or as an act of retaliation, which, essentially is what the military does.

Gangs also encourage physical activity and finesse.  When one sees a gang strolling down the block, rarely does one see an obese member.  They encourage one another, strongly, to stay in great physical shape.  What happens if during an afternoon stroll, they are just suddenly attacked?  They must be in shape to defend themselves against any enemy.  Gang members can be seen at one’s local gym, but usually they will stick to working out in their own homes.  Lots of times, gangs will spend quality time together by playing street sports, like football or basketball.  Not only does this help build the bond between members, but it also gives them the competitive edge it takes to live the lifestyle they have chosen.

Gangs are also fantastic for reducing population.  Inner cities quickly become over populated, and there is usually no motivation to move out of slums.  That’s where our lovely friends come into play.  If they were not there to help with population control, then it would just completely overrun the city, and there would be even more children and mothers homeless.  The gangs really are a huge asset to the community; society would be lost without them.

Now, many people would not agree with my assertion gangs are a helpful part of our communities.  They tend to argue gangs are dangerous, that it only leads to drug usage, violence in the home, coarse language, and traditional values are no longer held sacred; instead they are traded in for casual sex and binge drinking.

Gangs may be dangerous; there is no denial of that.  But realistically, there are much more dangerous things in life than being part of a gang.  For example, driving a car!  It’s a huge, metal, deathtrap one willingly enters multiple times a day.  Not only do you put your own life in danger, you also put others in danger, too!  Being on the road is a much more life-threatening situation than being a part of gang is.  If one were to compare the potential threats of simply driving to work and being in a gang, the results would be astounding.  For example, Drivesafety.net gives the statistics of driving related accidents: there were 30,196 traffic related deaths in 2010.  In gang-related deaths … less than three thousand per year.

Gangs also do tend to run in the drug circles.  But going back to my earlier point, they are making money!  They make glorious amounts of non-taxed money, which they could be saving for their college education.  Not only are they using their God-given talents, they are also learning!  Mixing drugs is a simple matter of chemistry.  For them to create the drugs, they are learning the infinitely valuable lesson of which chemicals can mix with what without exploding.  If that isn’t a valuable life lesson, I’m not sure what is.

The violence in the home isn’t created by the gang presence.  The gang presence is a direct result of the violence found within the home.  When the fathers continue to abuse their children, the children try to find an escape.  Once they find themselves welcomed into the gang, they are taught to fight back.  Self-defense is not morally or legally wrong; so the “violence” caused inside the home life is really created from the parental figures; the gangs are simply a response to how the parents treat their children.

Many people will also argue gangs have given up traditional values and traded them in for casual sex and incessant drinking.  Realistically, that behavior goes far beyond the gang atmosphere.  Casual sex is something Hollywood has taken upon itself to glorify, not only in the movies and television shows it produces, but also in the real lives of the actors and actresses it employs.

All in all, gangs are not the blot on society they are portrayed to be.  Yes, they could use some bettering of their situation, but hey, so could we all.