Organized Crime as a Social Institution
Because the groups created have leaders and a common illegal aim to earn money and recognition in undesirable ways, organized crime is considered a social institution. Their activities are motivated by a desire for power and a desire to be powerful. Despite law enforcement agencies implementing laws and attempting to identify the best solutions to eliminate the threat of organized crime, these illegal activities continue to exist. Coordinated criminal operations are illegal, and they use legitimate businesses as a legal front to conceal their illegal actions. Organized crime is referred to as a social institution since it possesses all of the necessary components. Ruble, and Turner, (2000)states that the system has a hierarchy of leadership following a chain of command within the different members.The article also suggests that the standard desire for power among people led them to crave for wealth and social status within the community, leading to engagement in the life of crime. However, various Empirical and Speculative theories are available to assist the police and law enforcement agencies in determining how Organized Crime units are structured and how they operate, hence dealing with their existence.
Formation of Street Gangs
The article notes that the gangs are majorly formed base on different demographic statistics. It is evident that street gangs are built with the age, gender, ethical and racial considerations. Moreover, the location of people engaging in the guns is also essential. It is imperative to note that the different age groups formed with these gangs have different levels of accountability and practice. Moreover, the article denotes that these groups have different hierarchies that have operations based on the overall age and gender of people.
Interventions to Address Gang Involvement
It is imperative that there be interventions towards advocating for the proper development of children while reducing the impact of the groups in the community. Also, it is essential to consider these therapies for improved outcomes on eradicating these groups. The article suggests that the dysfunction of families has been a key factor identified to correlate the involvement of gang members and their operations. Families that are known to have high rates of violence, neglect, and abuse should be selected and educated on the best approach towards raising their children. The goal of such practices is to ensure that families bring up their children in the best way possible to help in reducing the overall shifting of these family members into gangs. The article, therefore, suggests the use of family therapy interventions in educating and intervening for the kids for proper outcomes.
Teaching Cultural Awareness and Prevention
The approach will help to develop the best ways towards considering the feelings of people and their family members for improved outcomes, hence preventing the chances of engaging in gangs. The sessions will also discuss the needs of the teenagers, the young community, peer pressure and the overall impact of politics and social media in developing the gangs. The teachings will involve social-cultural instructions to educate the learners about the history of their culture, the development of practices within the culture, impacts, and meaning of gangs as perceived in the cultural mirrors. Also, they will learn why bands are considered illegal, the effect the same has on their lives, possible negative influences and effects such as death and imprisonment, and reasons why to think a healthy lifestyle.
References
Ruble, N. M., & Turner, W. L. (2000). A systemic analysis of the dynamics and organization of urban street gangs. American Journal of Family Therapy, 28(2), 117-132. From https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/0038/8d0b7e8246b5e900ac2741d701b130d8318d.pdf