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More Gang Life Q & A -HOMEPAGE
Questions about Gang Life
Answers
How has life in a gang affected your life in whole?
Thank you. Salvador.
Salvador,
Moving into a new city I felt alone. My only friends were my brothers and
sister. I started to meet people but did not feel close to any of them.
Despite these feelings, my outlook on life was very optimistic. Soon after
I started to meet new people and was making friends. I started hanging out
with the “cool crowd” and sitting at their table during lunch. A lot of
people knew of me and socially I was doing well in school.
Academically I was not doing so well because I was kind of lazy. After
awhile, I applied myself to a test here and there, but failed. I began to
feel I was stupid, never relating my slacking off to my problem.
At home, many things were changing. Things went from bad to worst. I was
never talked to, just talked down at. Feeling like I was nothing, I began
to leave home more often, staying out for days at a time.
at school I started to analyze the people who were around me. The “cool
crowd” was full of people who spoke behind each other’s s. I broke from
that group and started to look for people who I thought were more like me.
I was jumped by this gang in school and days later I stuck up for myself.
The kids from another gang liked what I did and one thing led to another.
I ended up becoming a member. At first it was all going out to parties,
meeting girls and even fighting. Fighting made me feel like a man and I
got mad respect for it.
However, things inside me began to change. I began to do things just
because the other members wanted to do them, in order to retain their
respect - losing my self-respect each time. Compromising more and more, I
started to forget who I was. All I believed in became what others believed
in. I became a follower and lost myself completely.
I am now in prison with double life. Arrested when I was sixteen, I ended
any real possibility of having a successful life. When joining a gang, my
outlook changed to the negative. I started to think I had no future
because of the gang mentality. The self-prophesy came to pass. So, to
answer your question, joining a gang changed my life as a whole by ending
it - with the chance to live only to feel it.
Luis B.
New Jersey
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I am 14 years old and live in the Chicago area. I am from Mexico and I
came to the United States in the year 2000. When I came to Chicago the
first thing I saw was a lot of gangsters and I would like to ask you this
question: What is the purpose of being a gang member? I hope to hear from
you soon.
Thank you. Salvador.
Salvador,
There is no purpose in joining a gang. It's just a lot of lonely people
looking for a place to belong and feel wanted. Stay away from them and be
someone who can help them get out.
Respectfully - Oscar
California
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Salvador,
I like that your first sight of gangsters made you ask yourself, “What’s
up with that?” rather than getting caught up in the falsehoods. People
join for many reasons. Here are a couple:
Feeling the only ones who will accept them is a gang showing interest
(This interest generally means, “How can this kid be an asset to us?”);
Fear of standing on their own feet (This gang offers up at a huge
price of you turning your life over to them to use at their will until you
are a risk to their freedom or your serving a life sentence and of no more
use to them.)
Brian H.
California
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As for your question, "Why do people join gangs," well, nowadays, just to
fit in - you know, to say they're from a gang. in the '80's people
who joined a gang was cause of being rejected at home, not getting
attention they need, so they became rebellious and joined the gang. It
wasn't like now, when they get in to get their parents upset or to impress
a girl.
Sincerely - R.S.
California
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Salvador,
You wanted to know what’s the purpose of being in a gang. I don’t think
there’s a single one. My own personal one was that I was having some
problems with my parents with the role they wanted to play in my life. I
was about 15 years old at the time and I used to think that it was either
my way, or no other way. I didn’t trust them, nor did I know how to
communicate with them.
Unfortunately, things got way out of hand and I ended up in prison. You
know, when I was that age, I used to think I had all the answers to my
problems. Believe me; that was the worst mistake of my life as you can
see. I am still paying for that mistake.
I imagine you’re having some crazy thoughts of joining a gang. Well, if
you are think about it for awhile. Being involved in that type of life is
no joke. Bad things do happen. There’s always the fear that some rival
gang will hurt you, or worse kill you. This is serious.
And of course, there’s also the possibility of spending your life in
prison. That is another tragedy in itself.
It is no walk in the park. Many people you know probably are not going to
want to have anything to do with you, and sometimes even your own family
won’t either.
So I guess there is a sole purpose of joining a gang after all: that is,
to ruin your life.
I hope I answered your question.
With lots of respect - G. Alvarado
California
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Gang Answers To Question5
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