Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
1960s Southeast LA: The Formation of Gangs (Symbolic-Interactionist…
1960s Southeast LA: The Formation of Gangs
Symbolic-Interactionist Perspective
The idea that people influence their environments and not the other way around
To the men and women that joined, this meant that people of color would finally be able to participate in an organized activity that they were not otherwise able to.
"...it made one feel like one had some status and you had an identity now. An identity you didn't have anywhere else."- Ron Wilkins
The black pride movement inspired the development of African-American organizations which dedicated themselves to starting change from within.
Conflict Perspective
The idea that inequality and conflict influence social change
From this perspective, racial inequality and unequal power between groups helped contribute to the early formation of "gangs" because not all races had the same privileges and opportunities.
It was a way to wield some power because now they had numbers
Bird wanting to join the Boy Scouts of America but not being able to because some of the parents might not have liked it since it was a white troop.
Within a few years many of America's most iconic and influential black leaders had either been arrested or assassinated.
"When all this was over a new element rose up called 'The Crips'".
Structural Functionalist Perspective
The idea that society is made up of many parts that must work together in order to function correctly
The gangs served as a vital function in African American communities because for once, they finally had a place where they felt they belonged.
There was a sense of family and a sense of acceptance.
Former street fighters worked to fight "the power" instead of fighting other gangs.
The youth were working to rebuild their communities and working toward building their future.
Gang Activity was at an unprecedented low from 1965 until about 1971 because youth were joining organizations like the SNCC and the Panther Party.