Street gangs are becoming more of a problem across the country. In the Central Valley, gang-related crimes are common to hear about. Each day, news of a shooting is plastered over the news channels. Our youths fall into the trap and into a lifestyle in which jail or death seem to be the only options.

Gangs corrupt our streets with illegal activities and deadly crimes. Violence knows no age, and it is a life like this that puts children in danger by simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. With so many influences and distractions, our youth is the main group joining gang life. How can we stop the growth of these dangerous groups? Better yet, how can we prevent gangs from taking our youth?

Violence in the Central Valley is deemed to be one of the most serious problems for the residents. Unfortunately, this type of violence stems from one’s environment and mainly affects the children ages 8-16. According to the questionnaire results, 40 percent of the participants stated that single parent homes in a more poverty stricken location are a cause of children joining a gang. Based on the information received, single parents have the same responsibilities as a household of two parents. This means working more jobs or longer hours, and less time spent with their children. Children need to be given attention, or a sense of belonging. When the necessary attention is missing from the home, the child seeks it elsewhere. Gangs can provide the facade of family and give a sense of belonging, which makes it easier to join and stay. I do feel that the results that I received from the questionnaire are very true.

My environment growing up gave me a lot of insight. A lot of my friends lacked a father figure and their mothers worked at all times of the day to support them. They had no other kind of support to rely on. More than half of the kids I grew up with joined a gang, some of them still are alive and others were killed. If these kids had stronger parental figures or a strong support, then maybe they wouldn’t have felt the need to join a gang. One participant of the questionnaire made a point and wrote “there are many children that join gangs as a way to support their family.” This is a valid point of view and one that we do not think of as much. The idea of having a lot of money in a short amount of time sounds very appealing, especially to a child. Unfortunately, fast money is not always good money. A lot of the gangs involve themselves in illegal activities like selling drugs, stealing cars, or robbery. Activities like these can ruin a child’s life if caught by law enforcement.

In addition to the single parent home, 35 percent of the participants believe that our children join gangs due to peer pressure. Unfortunately, peer pressure can come in different forms such as: intimidation, harassment, persuasion from friends, or simply constantly being asked to join. A more common type of peer pressure is the persuasion from friends. Friends in a gang showcase what seem to be the ‘benefits’ of being involved, like clothes, cars, women and weed, so a lot of children join to be cool and fit in, or to reap what they think are the benefits. The media and entertainment also have roles in pressuring the youth. The media glorifies anyone that is a gangster and makes it seem like being involved in a gang is the ideal lifestyle. Our youths are influenced by rappers who attribute their success to being a gangster and selling drugs or stealing. If our youths are surrounded by the adoration of the gang lifestyle, how can they know that it is truly a bad thing?

To add to the previous results, 25 percent of the participants believed that children joined for protection and power. In some poverty-stricken areas, young people may join gangs as a survival method. It is a lot easier to join a gang rather than being alone and vulnerable. Being in a gang does provide the protection since they are seen as a family. It also provides power and respect. To be in a gang means you're "hard," which translates to being tough and fearless. Gang members are to fear nothing and defend their territory and members by any means necessary, which can result in death. So if a member is known to be fearless and tough, they are given street respect.

Based on the results of the questionnaire, our children are extremely vulnerable to joining gangs and need our help as a community to give the attention they need, show them how to avoid the peer pressure and to protect them from a life that leads to either jail or death. Not only do gangs pose as a threat to our children, they also cause so much violence. According to the 2010 Organized Crime in California Annual Report, there were 397 gangs reported in Fresno County, along with 12,650 gang members total. This amount of gangs and members causes friction which then turns into violence. On July 8, 2015, a 14-year-old gang member was arrested for shooting a 15-year-old teen. Also during that time, there were a reported 183 shootings in the city of Fresno. That number has definitely increased since then; a majority is attributed to gang members. With numbers like this, how can we put a stop to the violence that we are surrounded by? I had a chance to converse with Mary G., the mother of a local gang member, about her thoughts on how to stop the violence plaguing Fresno. Without a moment’s hesitation, she stated, “Offer more opportunities for the ones that want to do better. Put the others in the prison system and never let them out. That includes my son.” In her mind, many of the gang members made a mistake and became misguided and can make changes if they were given the opportunity to do so.

I agree completely with Mary’s thoughts on how to stop the violence. More employment opportunities or second-chances may help lower the number of gang members. Providing an alternative to the life they have grown accustomed to may not only improve lives, but save them. In another interview, I spoke with Richard, who lost his brother due to a gang rivalry. Being in the wrong place at the wrong time could cost a life. Richard’s brother was not involved or affiliated with a gang; however his life was taken during a drive-by shooting. “The level of violence is ridiculous. The killings are senseless. Innocent lives are taken each day over problems other people have with each other,” he said. I asked Richard on how to stop the violence and he made it clear that he did not believe that the violence could be erased from our society without causing more death.

The effects of gangs and gang-related crimes are devastating to the youth that join and the people of our society. Our children join these gangs looking for something in specific but find nothing at all. If we give the youth the attention, motivation and protection that they need to feel secure, we can then stop them from joining street gangs. Offering second chances and better opportunities can help get existing members out of their gangs, which will then help lower the possibility of more gang related violence.