Survival Base on Environment

In today’s world violence is portrayed as something humans become accustomed become accustomed to overtime. We see violence in all different mediums; social media, tv, music, and even as we walk out our front doors.  Violence is made out to seem like something we can’t escape.  As much as people hate to acknowledge it, It's inescapable.  At times it appears that people are excited to be involved rather than to stay away. Whether they physically involve themselves, record it, comment about it, its catches the attention of many. With all the negativity spreading around the globe, the youth of the world sees what is going on and they tend to get involved as well. At a young age children are like sponges, they tend to soak up everything around them; good and bad. Therefore a child’s environment is crucial to his/her growth. They haven’t quite developed discernment skills. Therefore sometimes they do things in the moment for temporary enjoyment forgetting their are long term effects. For example, kids who come from broken homes, and struggle in school tend to have have a higher risks of joining a gang. Coming from broken homes deprives children of real love and unity, which forces some to fill the void with whatever and whoever Young kids see gang members receiving respect  from people that are around them and they see the fear they can instill in others. Kids admire this and try to emulate it . They want to be like them and possess  the power and respect that they have. Eventually young ones find a way to get involved, either becoming a member or trying to build their status amongst their peers.

Most youths who are involved with gangs get exposed to drugs and alcohol at a young age.  Overtime what was once curiosity is turned  into a habit.he abuse of drugs and alcohol in many low income communities is common.  It is a coping mechanism and for some kids a way to gain popularity. Getting involved in drugs and alcohol doesn’t  necessarily have to mean that they consume them. Gang members tend to start to sell drug to make a profit and create connections. Selling drugs can lead to criminal offenses, which in the end makes life a whole lot harder.  

There is also the instances where kids or teenagers are not in a gang but he/she was exposed to a gang by just living in the area. Now this person most likely will not be able to travel through rival gang neighborhoods without conflict. Just because someone lives where a gang is from, they are automatically guilty by association and affiliated with whatever gang is in their community. Knowing them becomes a protection or even worse a danger Other gangs could see them and assume that they are way more heavily involved than what it appears to be. Someone who knows someone involved in a gang always can be put in risky situations. For example, they could get in their car one day for a ride, but mistakenly be shot because that gang member was a target.

With all the violence and conflicting issues going on in the world today some think that kids are not watching and listening when actually that is all that they’re doing. Instead of beating the youth’s ears with problems and allowing them to continue,  we should be broadcasting how to fix them.When people are young we tend to follow after the popular things. So, if kids are around violence, and hear about conflict then they are more likely to get involved in it. We want to shift the focus and make ways to fix the problems more popular. In conclusion, acknowledging the negatives and trying to create positivity in communities where youths have nothing but the streets will promote visible progress.

http://oureverydaylife.com/gangs-impact-teenagers-3840.html

http://www.washington.edu/news/2014/03/13/negative-effects-of-joining-a-gang-last-long-after-gang-membership-ends/