How did immigration policies and patterns affect the formation and expansion of gangs in each of the country’s four regions? Compare and contrast the implications of these distinct immigration patterns on the modern landscape of gang activity today.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Students should first define the four different regions discussed in the chapter (North, Midwest, West, and South) and then review each of the regions’ periods of gang development, being mindful to link stages to immigration patterns (three for the Northeast, two for Midwest, three for West, and two for South). For each stage, the main immigrant group or groups should be discussed in historical and policy context. For example, students should mention the importance of immigration by Italians, Jews, Poles, and Irish for early gang development in the Northeast and Midwest, while Mexican immigration and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo should be highlighted when discussing the West, and the later influence of newer immigrants in the South. Students should then assess the consequences of immigration on gang development, indicating that permissive immigration policies would be expected to result in more varied gang activity as newly arriving groups struggle to assimilate, but that the degree of isolation and inequality experienced by these groups would likely influence gang formation patterns.