Gangs are a major threat to many citizens in the United States. They cause terror on the streets, while these young kids try to impress the older and wiser O.G.'s. Gangs also have a major part in the trafficking and distribution of drugs.
Even though there are big differences in the way that these gangs operate, the idea of a gang has many definite aspects to it. A gang is considered a gang with a minimum of just three people. Although most gangs have hundreds or even thousands of members, most of them average anywhere from twenty to fifty members. These members are bonded by race, national origin, culture, or neighborhoods. The members get together regularly to commit criminal acts (Webb 5).
Today's gangs are much different from the gangs of yesterday, such as Al Capone's gang. Today the members of the gangs are much younger than the first gangs. They are also dumber, for the reason that many of them don"t care about who they shoot and just try to impress older members.
Gangs are all over the United States. Most people make the mistake of thinking gangs are only in bigger cities such as Los Angeles, New York, or Chicago, when in fact gangs are in smaller rural communities as well. Not only have gangs moved to the suburbs, but the activity in these parts is steadily increasing.
There are different levels of membership in a gang. First starting with the leaders or the O.G.'s which stands for Original Gansta's. Then down to the hard-core members, then the cliques, and the fringe members and wanna-be's (What is a Gang).
The leaders or O.G.'s are the oldest and wisest members of the gang. They are usually twenty two to twenty five years of age. These were the original gang members and have shown loyalty to the gang for ten to fifteen years. Next, the hard-core members, the smallest part of the gang that take up only about ten percent of total membership. The hard-core members commit most of the criminal acts and have all earned a name for themselves.