When one thinks of Portland, gang violence is not often the first image to come to mind.
Though people may be unaware, there have been several gang-related deaths in recent years. In 2011 alone, there were eight gang-related deaths. The young people that have been found dead should serve as a wake up call and remind people of what is really going on in one of Oregon’s most beloved cities.
When one thinks of Portland, gang violence is not often the first image to come to mind.
Though people may be unaware, there have been several gang-related deaths in recent years. In 2011 alone, there were eight gang-related deaths. The young people that have been found dead should serve as a wake up call and remind people of what is really going on in one of Oregon’s most beloved cities.
On Nov. 7, the body of thirteen-year-old Julio Cesar Marquez was found in an alley in Northeast Portland. Though the death of this boy, the youngest victim of gang-related homicide in at least a decade, is shocking enough, there have been others since then.
The danger of gang-related activity is not merely to the gang members themselves but also to passersby. The bullets that go flying during gang conflicts have been bursting into homes and are a danger to everyone on the streets.
Northwest street gangs have been around since the ’70s and ’80s. There are currently five gangs located in Yamhill County and 27 in Clackamas County, two of which are female gangs.
The Portland-Gresham area, however, is home to at least 100 gangs, with estimates reaching as many as 2,000 gang members altogether. Gangs can be found in nearly every neighborhood, particularly those in the east side of the city.
The Bloods and Crips, with whom you may be somewhat familiar, are both street gangs that were originally made up of blacks but now include people of all cultures and ethnicities. The Surenos and Nortenos are also street gangs that are rivals to one another, though they started with members of Mexican descent.
All four of these widespread street gangs originated in Southern California but have migrated to many areas all over the United States. These gangs wear the colors red or blue to identify themselves. Now, they have made their presence known in Oregon and Washington, too.
Though it may seem as if gang members are predominantly minorities from low-income families, gangs do not always differentiate according to race or income level. Anyone can be influenced to join a gang or be affected by gang violence.
What many young people do not take into account when they join is how likely it is for gang members to be killed or to go to jail for killing another gang member or even an innocent bystander. Drug arrests in gangs are common too.
The eight gang-related deaths made up 35 percent of all homicide victims in the Portland area in 2011. The overall homicide rate has dropped, yet the number of gang-related deaths has risen in recent years, leading to the deaths of many more young men and women.
The Portland Police works to restrict the gang violence by having parole and probation officers work closely with law enforcement. Law enforcement officers are meeting with gang members on court-ordered supervision, as well as making other gang outreach efforts.
As a result, more arrests of gang members are being made. Now law enforcement is reaching out to gang members despite federal budget cuts, but are these adequate solutions to the gang violence problem in the long term?
The best solution would be one that prevents people from joining gangs in the first place. If gangs were not portrayed so glamorously in the media, fewer young people would be so eager to join up. Gangs have “advertised” online using social media and have posted videos on the internet of their own gangs trash-talking other gangs, further enhancing the “glamorous” image of gang life. This image of gangs, along with cuts to social programs that prevent gang violence, is in part responsible for the violence that has occurred in the Portland area.
Young people join gangs in order to deal with problems in their environment, such as feeling like an outcast among peers or being a victim of family problems. It is in order to be part of something from which they can gain friendship and respect from peers that young people get involved in gangs.
Even the people who associate with gangs but are not a member are in danger, because other gangs may think that they are members, having seen them with members of their rival gang.
Unfortunately, many are unaware of the gang-related activity that goes on all around us. The movies certainly do a good job of desensitizing the general public to gang violence, and many people do not know the signs a gang is near.
Parents need to gate their children involved in activities so that they feel like they belong. For children without parents, the city needs to provide activities for them, so that all children know that they belong, and never feel the need to join something that could get them killed.
It may seem far-fetched to assume that young people join gangs and get themselves killed or that what your 10-year-old who is still in school is doing with his or her life right now could lead to gang-related activity. But the proof is right there.
A boy not even of high school age was killed this past November, and other people in Oregon and Washington have died due to gang violence since then. The numbers are higher than they’ve been in a decade for gang-related deaths in Oregon.
Do the whole city a favor and give your children no reason to join gangs, and stay safe yourself. Depending on the area you live in, there may be gangs all around you.
