Читать книгу Transnational Organized Crime and Gangs - Robert M. Brzenchek - Страница 15

We learned in this chapter most gang members are recruited between the ages of six and fifteen. Recruiters seek out vulnerable youth from challenged neighborhoods whose parents are not present. There is a period of the recruiting process where at-risk youth are courted. During the courting period, the recruiter treats the recruit like family and offers them money, drugs, and security. The need for family ties and security in rough neighborhoods makes recruiting easy. The recruit is increasingly placed in risky situations and assessed for certain skills until the official approach to join. By this time the approach is only a formality and the youth don’t have an actual choice. Hearing these details is shocking on how calculated gangs are. Finally, the goal of gangs is to make money; there are millions of dollars at stake.

If children were counseled to develop goals and intentionally pursue them, would it be as easy for gang recruiters to manipulate their subconscious need for family and belonging? If children were taught to recognize and embrace their need for family and belonging through acceptable outlets like sports and youth clubs, would they continue to be preyed upon by gang recruiters? Would it empower children to learn that choosing not to choose is why the adults in their immediate impoverished surroundings have little to no control over their own lives?