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Introduction

Gang violence has become one of the most urgent social problems not only in Canada, but also in other Western countries. Usually, the decision to join a gang is made by a personal choice or the encouragement from the environment. The rise of gang violence in Canada is a crucial social issue. Gang members are considered economic burden to the society. However, it should be taken into consideration that it is complicated for the individuals involved to give up this way of life. Gang members need help and support from their social environment, namely families and friends, though it is usually the social environment that affects person’s choice of lifestyle and gives examples of typical behavior.

A lot of measures are undertaken to reduce gang violence in Canada. Nevertheless, there is still a lot to be done further. To diminish this social problem, the public should clearly understand the factors which stimulate gang emergence. Hieu Ngo, associate professor of the University of Calgary, has chosen preventative actions in order to decrease gang violence, and this method is widely known to be the best suitable option (Ngo, 2010) and is written in abstracts for research papers.

My paper will begin by discussing the problem of gang violence, the factors influencing the rise of gang involvement and violence within these groups, as well as the characteristics of gang members. Then I will move on to the concept of gang violence, its impact on the society, and the importance of the society to be a part of preventative programs against gang violence. I will then explore the existing preventative programs established in Canada, their results in details. Here I will focus on the NCPC’s programs implemented in 2006, Dr. Ngo’s research performed in 2010 and recent LINK program of 2014. I will conclude with the prevention to be claimed the best way of decreasing gang violence in Canada.

The Rise of Gang Violence in Canada

The public has always been involved in the social problems which occur on the daily basis and influence the life of every citizen. There are many issues that are needed to be solved, gang violence being of them. Canadian authorities have undertaken certain measures in attempts to reduce this phenomenon. Nevertheless, this problem continues to escalate despite of the society’s efforts to solve it. Thus, preventive measures are considered one of the most effective ways to reduce gang violence.

When speaking about gang violence, it should be noticed that people usually enter gangs influenced by their social environment or personal preferences. There are many factors that could impact this choice. According to Royal Canadian Mounted Police, they can be divided into individual and socio-economic factors. This classification corresponds to the reasons of gang involvement which were mentioned above.

Individual factors include personal problems influencing gang involvement. They include domestic issues, parental neglect, and even family gang engagement. Other individual factors involve problems at educational institutions, low academic achievements, and social detachment. Antisocial behavior and early substance abuse can also cause frequent gang involvement. One of the most spread problems is unemployment which usually results in the further social and economic problems.

Socio-economic factors leading to gang involvement include income inequality, low wages, poverty, social upheaval, racism, and the overall proliferation of gang culture.

A lot of other reasons could be applied to this problem. Nevertheless, this awareness does not add to the reducing of the problem. The reasons of engagement can be ethnic, geographic, demographic, economic, and social (Royal Canadian Mounted Police, 2006). It is important to emphasize the fact that social environment plays a huge role in the gang violence. The gangs could be compared with weeds in the garden of society. The public should identify the problems connected with gangs and solve them in time. Otherwise, the weeds could expand and flourish, and the state of the society will worsen. The roots of the gang engagement should also be carefully examined. The reasons may be hidden not only in the social environment. Gang violence is a sort of domain expansion of the general social problem of violence (Martinez-Edison, 2012).

Dr. Hieu Ngo has used one of above mentioned factors in his study. According to the theory proposed by him, the problem of gang rising lies in integration of immigrants into the new society. People seeking for social belonging can find it difficult to realize themselves in the environment recently introduced to them. Thus, sometimes they look for the attachment, excitement, and protection in the gangs.

Speaking about economic reasons, it should be noticed that Canada is a fast growing country. Market economy demands high qualifications, proper education, and relevant behavior. Unsurprisingly, not every person could adjust to these requirements. Higher education could not be afforded by all the members of society. Besides, the country needs qualified professional workers with preliminary specification. This division leads to social stratification, and rising of social problems which result in separation of social classes and emergence of underground gangs, drug addicts, etc. Thus, it becomes evident that these phenomena are interdependent.

Gang members and the rise of gang violence is overall economic burden of the society. There are many medical and financial consequences of this phenomenon. That is why preventative strategies should be undertaken on the permanent basis. Canadian authorities have established different programs which are aimed at gang violence reduction. People become aware that this issue cannot be eliminated without understanding the reasons of joining gangs.

According to Royal Canadian Mounted Police report, the features of a gang member could be different from the general characteristics of other members of society. These distinctive features include striving to be respected by the mates, general inclination to disrespect rivals and take revenge for insults; honoring of rites of passages which usually lead to negative outcomes; contempt to the people unrelated to the given gang (Royal Canadian Mounted Police, 2006).

Understanding of the characteristic features of gang members should be considered very important. When joining gangs, these people are seeking family, friends, respect, personal affiliation, protection, money, sense of belonging, and certain pleasures. To reject gangs, they need an alternative that could provide them with similar things. It is essential for the public to be aware of this problem as gang members need their strong support. Moreover, gang violence is a social problem which is presented in all communities throughout the country. The survey was conducted by the Canadian Police in order to identify the quantity of gangs in Canada. According to the statistics, there are more than 400 gangs comprising about 7,000 people around the country. The largest number of these groups is located in Ontario where there are more than 200 youth gangs involving about 3,000 members. The second city with the highest percentage of these groups is Saskatchewan with 28 gangs and more than 1,000 members. The third is known to be British Columbia with 102 gangs and 1,027 people engaged. Canadian gangs mostly comprise of male members which account for 94% of all the groups. 48% of the people engaged in gangs are the individuals under the age of 18. The majority of them are from 16 to 18 years old. Speaking about ethnicities, the largest number of gang members is African Canadian who account for 25%. The second most frequent ethnical group is the First Nations with 21%. The third is known to be the Caucasian (18%). Western territories of Canada witness increasing number of females joining gangs. They include British Columbia, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan (Public Safety Canada, 2007).

The statistics shows that different people from various social classes and ethnicities are engaged in gangs. Thus, it is becoming a national problem where the society should play a principal role in solving it and helping those who need assistance. Speaking about programs aimed at reducing gang violence, it should be mentioned that there are a lot of them established in Canada. This study analyzes the National Crime Prevention Centre (NCPC) programs, implemented in 2006, Dr. Ngo’s research (2010), and recent LINK program (2014).

Within the frames of gang violence prevention programs established in 2006, the Canadian NCPC took into consideration three US-based programs as those potential for implementing in Canada, as the United States was the first to start fighting against gang violence: the Gang Prevention through Targeted Outreach, the Comprehensive Gang Model, and Wraparound Milwaukee.

This study will not focus on the description of each program, as the key point is to find out whether prevention programs could be considered effective tools against gang violence. According to the NCPC findings, there were a lot of favorable changes in many aspects of gang members’ lives. First of all, they developed their knowledge and awareness about crimes and risks they take while being engaged in gangs. Moreover, almost 86% of the participants changed their attitudes towards the society, becoming more pro-social. They realized the importance of laws and norms. Besides, the researchers revealed decrease in attitudes related to violence, crime, and aggression. Findings have also shown the decline in acceptance of gang way of life.

Nevertheless, gang members need an alternative while rejecting their previous gang environment. .The programs, conducted by NCPC, were aimed to create family atmosphere for gang members in order to make them feel like at home. It could further help to prevent and save some of the participants from the gang involvement. The researchers were aware of the reasons of gang involvement, as well as the conditions under which people had made the choice to join gangs and the consequences of gang violence not only for the society, but also for the members themselves. To illustrate the outstanding results, the example of a participant of the Regina Anti-Gang Services Project will be provided.

The participant, a 24-year-old man, had a complicated family situation. His mother had died one month before the start of the program, and his father was a prisoner with the status of dangerous offender. The participant was brought up by his grandmother and was often neglected. He was thrown upon his own resources being only an inexperienced child. The participant stopped attending the school regularly, claiming that he was going to be a gangster. Such lifestyle implied different “adult” pleasures, mostly connected with drugs. He started to smoke marijuana, and then displaced it with harder substances, such as coke. He found people with similar interests and they became his friends. After the ninth grade they sold drugs, multiply went to jails, dealt with constant violence. The participant was a part of the gang, for which he committed various crimes. According to him, almost every drug dealer was engaged in armed attacks, and he was not an exception. He spent 12 years as a member of a gang – almost half of his life. Currently he has three children and reports to have rejected this way of life, mainly because of his family life. Young man also states that he has improved his attitude to life and made decent friends.

Abandoning his gang was a complicated decision for this person, as he considered them their family. The temptation to come back and continue his criminal way of life was very big. Nevertheless, his gang friends proved to be unreliable and this discovery helped him to make the right step. RAGS staff, on the contrary, tried to render him any possible psychological assistance. They have demonstrated him the positive side of the life which he has never seen before. Today he understands the importance of being listened to and is ready to take responsibilities for his actions. The story of this research participant demonstrates how alternatives to gangs can make positive changes both for the society and gang members.

Similar approach was taken while conducting LINKing Refugee Youth and Families to Positive Social Supports program (LINK). This program is a perfect example of timely preventative measures. It was aimed at people between 12 and 18 years old who were selected by certain factors that could increase the possibility of their gang involvement. These factors included those which were already discussed in the paper. First of all, all the participants had underwent psychological traumas or violence, for instance the children who did not attend school, were in contact with gang members though family, neighbors, friends etc, as well as those who were neglected by their parents or had poor parental control. Judging by the studies, these factors are usually the main reasons of joining gangs. What is more, the majority of the participants of this program were foreigners. This approach is similar to Dr. Ngo’s research, as he also worked with immigrants. Thus, the main aim of the program was to make those people acquainted with the Canadian society in order to give them a feeling of belonging.

The LINK programs provided main components aimed at preventing gang involvement and violence. These components included education within the Canadian society, mentorship, educational support, recreational activities, family mentorship, and referrals. Each of these components was created to help people reduce their isolation from the society. It also assisted them in further familiarization with Canadian people. Educational components were designed to increase the academic achievements and the overall engagement in the school life. Moreover, staff created proper conditions for such children at schools. As it was already mentioned, the youth at-risk needs special support from the society. That is why school teachers were also involved in this program for the children to be able to receive support, advice, and necessary information to feel at home. Other measures were undertaken to create friendly environment at home, as it is the basic place for a person to start their development. Besides, participants were given the possibility to visit recreational and health-care institutions if needed.

To my mind, these components are essential for the prevention of gang violence. Moreover, not only the special groups are involved in conducting these programs, but also ordinary members of the society at-risk. This program clearly shows that the Canadian people are aware of the gang problems and are inclined to prevent cases of gang involvement and further violence.

In this research, I also examined Dr. Ngo’s study. His findings have shown that the people need to be provided alternative for the gangs. The immigrants from different counties were the target audience in his investigations. He used one of the most effective methods to prevent and/or reduce gang violence. Apart from conducting face-to-face interviews, he provided the participants with his own example of how people could affect their lives making certain choices. He gained surprising results. The participants were happy to get the sense of belonging and realized that there were a lot of alternatives to gang groups. The researcher made former gang members understand that they needed their own place in the society to be useful for other people.

The problem of gang violence depends on other social issues. A lot of them were mentioned above. Others include drug addiction, proliferation of weapons, and the impact of social media. The Canadian society conducts many programs in order to reduce those problems as well. One of the issues connected with social media and art is a setting of wrong examples and patterns of behavior. Famous movies, such as The Godfather, American Gangster, and Scarface affect immature minds of the youth, resulting into high levels of violence. That is why it is important for parents to control the preferences of their children, offering them more suitable options.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it should be said that the rising of gang violence is becoming an issue of crucial importance in Canada. The society could create different ways in order to fight this problem. Nevertheless, the most effective measure is prevention. In case of gang violence, it should be widely noted that the reasons of this phenomenon are hidden deeply in the person’s experiences, beliefs, and social conditions. That is why the most efficient way to eliminate the rise of gang violence is to conduct different preventative programs which will be aimed at reducing the initial reason of gang involvement, as well as dealing with existing problems in the country. The consequences of these programs have demonstrated that gang members need to be involved in the social life to feel a part of the society. They need to be shown that there are various alternatives to the gang engagement. These people are to be respected and taken care of, regardless of their social status. Such preventative programs will decrease gang violence and improve the state of the society in Canada.