Gang Involvement in Drugs and Violence

Gang Involvement in Drugs and Violence

America has become a society almost preoccupied with gangs—especially their relationship to drugs and violence. While it is true that violence among gang members has escalated and involvement in drugs has been a feature of gang life for many years, gangs are now increasingly and almost exclusively blamed for the drug and violence problems of the last decade.
This is partly because gangs have grown in number and diversity across the Nation, affecting both large cities and smaller communities.
During various times in American history, particularly the 1970s and 1980s, gangs have received considerable media attention. Moreover, in movies, television, radio, newspapers, and even documentaries, the image created about gangs was consistent—they were heavily involved in the drug trade and exceptionally prone to violence. Based on media accounts, the public believes gangs are extremely violent, are involved in drug trafficking, are highly organized, and are a pervasive part of the social landscape.
Gangs and the media both benefit from exaggerated portrayals of gangs and gang life. The media attempt to increase their profits by providing the public with sensationalized stories that relate to crime and violence. Increasingly, the media achieve this goal by attributing these events to gangs. As the media continue to portray gangs in this negative light, gang members gain a reputation of being tough and savvy, enhancing their standing in their communities.
Another media distortion about gangs relates to their ethnic and racial composition. Gangs are not exclusively a minority phenomenon. Most research has attributed gangs and their associated problems to elements in the social structure—either the social environment or the opportunities associated with being a member of a particular social class. Gangs and violence are associated with urban poverty, and gang life is seen as a source of social identity in the face of impoverished living conditions. Moreover, the social and economic opportunities and living conditions of some groups have not improved—or have become worse. Gang members now may be more likely to be motivated by the pursuit of profit than by the cultural or territorial reasons used in earlier decades.
One researcher groups gang characteristics into three categories—corporate, territorial, and scavenger. Corporate gangs focus their attention on making money. Territorial gangs focus on possession of turf, and gang members are quick to use violence to secure or protect what belongs to the gang. Scavenger gangs have very little organizational structure, and gang members are motivated by a need to belong to a group.
A number of gangs are involved in using and selling drugs, while others are involved in selling but prohibit use by gang members. Some gangs are highly organized, while others are fragmented, with individual members involved in drug dealing but acting independently of the gang. And still other gangs and gang members are heavily involved in using drugs but do not sell them.
The research community has found little evidence of a relationship between drug use in general and violent behavior. However, drug users do commit crimes to support their habits, which can lead to violent crime such as street robberies. Systemic violence, the type of violence most commonly associated with gangs, is a function of the illegal sale and distribution of drugs. This type of gang violence invades a neighborhood’s sense of community and poses a risk to innocent bystanders.
The best possible explanation of the relationship between gangs and violence is that it depends primarily on the gang’s organization. Some gangs are organized to fight, while others are organized to make money, and the level of violence associated with each gang depends on its type. In an expressive violent confrontation, the primary goal of violence is injury. The primary purpose of instrumental violence is to acquire money or property.
Gangs specializing in instrumental violence are strongest in disrupted and declining neighborhoods. Gangs involved in expressive violence are strongest in relatively prosperous neighborhoods.
Although gang-related violence appears to be increasing, there is little evidence to support the theory that gang involvement in the drug trade is responsible for a substantial proportion of homicides. Moreover, some scholars contend that the connections among street gangs, drug sales, and violence have been overstated by media reports, especially during the mid-1980s when gangs became involved in the crack cocaine trade. Gang involvement in violence and homicide is more often turf related than drug related. In one study of 288 gang-motivated homicides, only 8 were drug related. A 1992 study assessing the relationship among gangs, drug sales, and violence concluded that gang-motivated homicides were less likely than other homicides to involve drugs, and drug-motivated homicides were less likely to involve a gang member. Also, victims of gang motivated homicides were no more likely to have a history of drug arrests than other victims.

Addressing Community Gang Problems: A Practical Guide

Despite recent increases in the use of violence by gang members, especially if their organizational viability or their competitive edge in the drug market is challenged, much gang activity is fairly mundane. A study in Ohio found that gang members spent most of their time acting like typical adolescents—disobeying parents and skipping school.

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