This academically written compilation of articles explores different aspects of gangs besides their popularized connections to drugs and violence. It addresses topics such as how gangs are based on political consciousness, on identity and cultural preservation, on protection, and provide a way for members to stop social marginalization. Includes pieces about women in gangs, the two well-known ALKQN and Los Solidos gangs, and politics in gangs. The highlight of the book is the section on gangs and photography, which includes real-life pictures of gang members and analyzes the different methods that have been used by scholars to represent the groups. "A Note on Social theory and the American Street Gang" by Sudhir Venkatesh; "Toward a Typology of Contemporary Mexican American Youth Gangs" by Avelardo Valdez; "The Negligible Role of Gangs in Drug Distribution in New York City in the 1990s" by Ric Curtis; "Marginal Youth, Personal Identity, and the Contemporary Gang: Reconstructing the Social World?" by Kevin McDonald; "Gangs and the Contemporary Urban Struggle: An Unappreciated Aspect of Gangs" by Albert DiChiara and Russell Chabot; "Urban Street Activists: Gang and Community Efforts to Bring Peace and Justice to Los Angeles Neighborhoods" by Juan Francisco Esteva Martínez; "The Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation and the Spirituality of Resistance: Agency, Social Cohesion, and Liberating Rituals in the Making of a Street Organization" by Luis Barrios; "Education in the Reform of Street Organizations in New York City" by David Brotherton; "Liberating Yet Limiting: The Paradox of Female Gang Membership" by Dana Nurge; "Amor de Reina! The Pushes and Pulls of Group Membership among the Latin Queens" by David Brotherton and Camila Salazar-Atias; "Gangs and the Law" by Loren Siegel; "The Gang Crackdown in the Prisons of Massachusetts: Arbitrary and Harsh Treatment Can Only Make Matters Worse" by Phillip Kassel; "On the Subject of Gang Photography" by Richard Rodríguez; "From Civil War to Gang War: The Tragedy of Edgar Bolanos" by Donna DeCesare; "Snapshots of a Movement: The New York Latin Kings and Queens 1996-99" by Steve Hart and David Brotherton.
About the Authors
Louis Kontos is an associate professor of sociology at Long Island University, C. W. Post campus.
David C. Brotherton is an associate professor of sociology and criminal justice at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the CUNY Graduate Center.
Luis Barrios is an assistant professor of psychology at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. With David Brotherton, he co-authored Between Black and Gold: The Street Politics of the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation (Columbia 2003).
Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Columbia University, 2003
Height: 9.5 in
Width: 6.5 in
Language: English
Price: $25.95
