Gang Phenomenon in U.S. Prisons: A Rapid Spread Across America - Research Paper

Introduction

In recent years, the U.S cities and counties have experienced increased gang phenomenon, which seems to spread rapidly. The significant parallel growth and spread of gangs have been experienced in America's prisons. Though the number of prison gang members cannot be ascertained, one can safely say that these gangs are prevalent in multiple prisons not just in the United States but in other countries. The difficulty that comes with this is that gathering accurate information on the number of prisoners who get involved in gang activity is almost impossible. The current research looks into the prison gangs such as Bloods and Crips, and the Mexican Mafia, their rise, some of their activities, and the impacts they have to the society in which they exist.

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Prison gangs are identified as criminal groups that exist within the penal system and undertake their operations within the facilities of the prisons in the United States. For these gang groups, they have a corporate entity, have perpetual existence, and their members are restricted, mutually exclusive and required to make a commitment over their lifetime. The prison gangs are defined in a special way where each of them has ways and symbols that have been established to guide how members are identified with their gangs (Skarbek, 2011). It all started various decades ago when prison gangs began to be established at different prisons and whose existence is still recognized till date. The prison gangs tend to have organizational characteristics that are almost similar in various ways. In their structural formation, they normally have a person who is given the leadership position and is mandated to oversee a group of members whose work is to make final decisions for the entire gang (Arana, 2005). Similarly, they follow the ways of their street counterparts to formulate motto and come up with the constitution that guides the ways members behave. Prison gangs are known to dominate in all manner of evil things, which include but not limited to the drug business. Multiple kinds of research have also found out that prison gangs have been alleged to be responsible for most violence that happens in prison settings.

Massive reports which tend to examine prison gangs identify the membership of these gangs as people who were already members even before they were incarcerated. After their arrest and incarceration, they tend to continue recruiting and building on their gangs while in prison. Other, on the other hand, who were never affiliated to the gangs get an opportunity to join the existing prison gangs (Camp, & Camp, 2005). The formation of these gangs is easy due to the fact that they have counterparts on the street, though, in cities like Texas and California, the formed prison gangs have no counterpart on the street.

Prior research discussed prison gangs intensively and helped to disclose the idea that it is not a new phenomenon. The first-ever prison gangs identified are said to have existed since the 1950s in various prisons across the country. Today, more than six major prisons have been widely discussed. Among these popular prison, gangs include Bloods and Crips, and the Mexican Mafia which has existed over a long period. The Mexican Mafia started in Tracy California at the Deuel Vocational Center, which was known as a center for troubled youth as early as the 1950s (Camp, & Camp, 2005). It was then identified as the first-ever prison gang in California formed by the youths who were already members of another gang in Los Angeles. Even though the name indicates Mexican, the gang did not originate in Mexico, but entirely it is a criminal prison organization based in the United States. It is said to be the most powerful prison gang that exist within the prison system of California. From the official reports, it is all indicative that Mexican Mafia has about 400 official members supported by around 900 associates who are yet to become members but their activities align with the ideology of the gang (Rafael, 2007). The composition for the Mexican Mafia included Mexican Americans, Hispanics or Chicanos most of them being male members.

Mexican Mafia-like any other gang groups had its defined way of carrying out its operations. For one to make an entrance into this gang, it requires a member to sponsor where a recruit is supposed to go through a blood oath to ensure that he pledges loyalty to the group. The members of the Mexican Mafia are considered to be very violent though they value their wives and girlfriends. Despite being a violent group, Mexican Mafia does not prescribe to killing the members who go astray and fail to follow the instructions of the gang (Rafael, 2007). However, its members are known for using murder for them to earn respect and sometimes it can be used when there is a need to discipline members who have violated the rules of the gang group. The Mexican Mafia as well has the mandate of providing protection to other gangs which they consider as allies even those that are not popular such as La Costa Nostra and AB.

The Mexican Mafia gang involves itself in various criminal activities that include trafficking of drugs which is undertaken by female members who are also in charge of financial transactions of the Mexican Mafia gang. They also take part in common criminal activities such as having a conflict with other prison gangs such as the Aryan Brotherhood, the Texas Syndicate, and the Mexikanemi. The Mexican Mafia gang as well has established symbols that include the Mexican flag that has a snake or an eagle tattooed near or in the flag. Members also show their affiliation with the gang by having a black handprint tattoo or some other body tattoos with the letters "EME."

The Crips and Bloods is another popularly known prison gang that was traditionally part of the Los Angeles street gangs. The Crips and Bloods seem to have gained a lot of strength in the prison system and forms part of the 415s which is a San Francisco area group that is identified with the area code of San Francisco. The Crips which was part of the Los Angeles gangs fell into place in South Central Los Angeles after its foundation in the 1960s as a prison gang that was thoroughly armed, more consolidated with various forms of violence (Phillips, 2012). The origin of the activities of the group was largely in high-school campuses that stretched across Los Angeles. They came into all war with one another, and this led to the formation of the Bloods in the 1970s with the intention to protect themselves against attacks from the Crip gang. Unlike other Los Angeles gangs, the Bloods engaged in more violence and criminal activities establishing itself in Compton along West Piru Street. The gang is mostly associated with red color since members are encouraged to wear red.

The existence of prison gangs tends to have significant effects not just on the lives of the prisoners but on other parties of the prison system. The immediate effect is on the well-being and the lives of the prisoners, which may be measured based on the level of violence that occurs in prison settings. Though prison gangs, to some extent, stabilize the inmate environment, they highly contribute to the violence that occurs in the prisons. Similarly, the impact of prison gangs is also felt by prison administrators and the staff as well as the neighborhoods of those who are the residents of the prison since they move around these neighborhoods once released (Phillips, 2012). When these prison gangs are around, then special attention is required of the prison authorities. The community is also affected, considering that these gangs may continue with their criminal activities that may harm the involved victims.

Therefore, in conclusion, there are indeed various prison gangs such as Bloods and Crips, and the Mexican Mafia in the United States. The rise of these gangs has attracted multiple studies which reveal some of their activities and helps to define the impacts they have on the society in which they exist. As the established gangs within the penal system, prison gangs tend to carry out most of their operations within the prison but go a long way, affecting the outside community. They tend to have similar features such as perpetual existence and corporate entity as well as having special ways and symbols guide membership behavior. The impacts that these gangs have to the society are fierce, and there is a need to develop measures to manage these prison gangs not just in the United States but globally.

References

Arana, A. (2005). How the street gangs took Central America. Foreign Affairs, 98-110.

Camp, G. M., & Camp, C. G. (2005). Prison gangs: Their extent, nature, and impact on prisons. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice, Office of Legal Policy, Federal Justice Research Program.

Phillips, C. (2012). 'It ain't nothing like America with the Bloods and the Crips': Gang narratives inside two English prisons. Punishment & Society, 14(1), 51-68.

Valdez, A. (2009). Gangs: A guide to understanding street gangs. Law Tech Publishing.

Rafael, T. (2007). The Mexican Mafia. Encounter Books.

Skarbek, D. (2011). Governance and prison gangs. American Political Science Review, 105(4), 702-716.