Topic 2:
The Age and Social Class Composition of Gangs
Field Note: The gang unit supervisor told me "There are a bunch of sixty and seventy year old Latino gang members who still meet each day for breakfast here in East L.A. They're not in to gang banging, but the point is that the spirit of the gang association goes on 'til death." Age
The last national survey which collected data on the age of gang members was conducted in 1998. Based upon the findings of that survey we know that "Fifty percent of gang members in 1999 were ages 18 to 24, an increase from 46 percent in 1998 and 37 percent in 1996 (see Figure 4 below). The proportion of gang members ages 15 to 17 decreased to 26 percent from a high of 34 percent in 1996." (Egley, 2000, page 1)
Overall, the proportion of known gang members 18 years of age and over (people who are defined as "adults" in most jurisdictions) increased from 50% in 1996 to 60% in 1998. "This represents a significant shift in the age of gang members." (1998 National Youth Gang Survey, 2000, page) Future surveys will reveal if this trend is continuing.
(1998 National Youth Gang Survey, 2000, page)
The age group older than 24 grew only 1 percent, and the age groups 15–17 and younger than 15 each decreased 5 percent. Thus, aging of youth gangs between 1996 and 1998 can be attributed mainly to fewer youth 17 and younger joining gangs, some older adolescents staying in gangs longer (thus moving into the 18 or older categories), and some youth age 18 or older staying in gangs longer. (1998 National Youth Gang Survey, 2000, page)
The oldest gang member I interviewed was 61 years of age. Sixty and seventy year old gang members may not be the norm but gang members who are in their twenties and thirties are no longer uncommon. While twenty or thirty years ago a gang member may have been able to leave a gang in their teens or early twenties and enter legitimate employment, that transition is not as easily made today.
The reason for this, in part, may be attributed to the inability of adolescent gang members to find employment sufficient to take them out of the gang life. Chart 1 (below) illustrates that as high school graduation rates decrease and the lowest level of competency required by the business sector increases, gang members are cast into a limbo in which they are displaced from employment well beyond their youth. The alternative for some is to remain in the gang.
Chart 1: A Graphic Representation of the Relationship Between Level of Skill Needed to Enter the Legitimate Job Market and High School Graduation Rates
Other explanations for the aging of gang members include the ability of some to maintain a sufficient livelihood from their gang-related or other criminal activities and for others to live at subsistence levels from welfare, alms, someone else's earnings, or other sources of income.
As to the 11% of gang members who were under 15 years of age in 1998 (see Figure 4 above), we may note that "Offenders under age 15 represent the leading edge of the juvenile crime problem, and their numbers have been growing." (Butts and Snyder, 1997, p. 1) In addition, "Offenders age 12 or younger were involved in 9% of all juvenile arrests." (Butts and Snyder, 1997, p. 2)
Field Note: The youngest gang member I learned about while conducting my research was four years of age. There was no suggestion that he participated in criminal acts with the rest of the gang members, but he could be seen in the late afternoon "proudly walking up and down his block all 'flamed up' - dressed from head to toe in red" [the chosen color of Blood gang members]. Evidence from local law enforcement sources indicated both the mother and father were involved in gang activities for many years. The child was "blessed in," otherwise known as being born into a gang.
Social Class
Field Note: The Muslims which the British intelligence officer told me about are typically from, or descents of, people from Northern Africa including Pakistan and Bangladesh. "I avoid using the word 'gang,'" he said, "because it has so many negative meanings. Our (British) gangs do not have a family atmosphere like yours (American) do. Our gangs are often made up of youths from middle-class, monied, educated parents who have a home and a nice car. These youths either go on to graduate from school and build a legitimate life for themselves or they become career offenders. Most of the Sikh and Muslim youth, including the gang members, drive nice cars." Data on the social class of gang members is notoriously absent from the literature. There are references, to be sure, to the poverty from which many gang members come but there is precious little data on their socio-economic status (income, education, and occupation of the parents). Arlen Egley reported the following findings in his most recent survey of gangs in the United States.
In a question new to the 1999 survey, respondents were asked to identify gang members by social class. Fifty percent of gang members were reported as underclass, followed by working class (35 percent), middle class (12 percent), and upper middle class (3 percent). (Egley, 2000, page 1)
Poverty has become so ingrained in American society that a relatively new class has emerged over the past several decades. It is referred to as the "underclass" and consists of people who have lived in poverty for generations. It is the class below the lower-class and the one from which, according to Egley's research, one-half of gang members emerge.
That 15% of gang members may be from the middle- and upper-middle class is supported by my observations in the field and suggests probation/parole and police officers are correct when they say "Gang members can be found in all neighborhoods, rich or poor." We should note, however, Egley does not categorize any gang members as being upper-class. There may be gang members who come from wealthy families, but they were not represented in the data Egley collected.
We now turn our attention to the gender profile of American gangs.
Additional Resources: You can learn more about the new Latino underclass.
© 2002 Michael K. Carlie
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the author and copyright holder - Michael K. Carlie.