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- Title
Aboriginal Gangs and Their (Dis)placement: Contextualizing Recruitment, Membership, and Status.
- Authors
Grekul, Jana; LaBoucane-Benson, Patti
- Abstract
Interviews with ex-gang members, police officers, and correctional service personnel suggest that the risk factors for involvement in gangs are abundant for Aboriginal youth and young adults. Aboriginal ex-gang members report the burden of discrimination and labelling based on race, in addition to the structural inequality and lack of opportunity reported as causal factors to gang involvement by gang researchers. Disadvantaged and disillusioned, encouraged by gang-involved family and friends, Aboriginal youth turn to gangs for a sense of identity and purpose. Interestingly, decades after their formation, groups such as the Indian Posse, Manitoba Warriors, Alberta Warriors, and Native Syndicate may not only be relegated to the outskirts of legitimate society but are also marginalized within the criminal world, in their organization and behind bars. Understanding Aboriginal gangs requires consideration of contextual factors, including the presence and interaction of precursors to gang involvement. These factors contribute to their pronounced presence in prisons and the suggestion that despite decades of existence they are relegated to street gang status.
- Subjects
GANG members; SOCIAL groups; JUVENILE delinquency; RACE discrimination; CRIMINAL justice system; CORRECTIONAL institutions; JUVENILE offenders
- Publication
Canadian Journal of Criminology & Criminal Justice, 2008, Vol 50, Issue 1, p59
- ISSN
1707-7753
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3138/cjccj.50.1.59