Oscar De La Huerte answered
I'll be honest with you, confronting your boyfriend about his gang membership is going to be really difficult. There are a number of reasons why guys join gangs, and usually very few incentives to leave them.
Gangs like SUR 13 instill both fear and respect in the Latino Here's a couple of ideas for getting your boyfriend out of the gangster lifestyle:
My boyfriend is in a gang, help!
Gangs like SUR 13 are a big deal all over the US. Although their home territory is Southern California, members are spread across the country. Getting out of a gang as widespread at that can be difficult.
Gang membership is based on loyalty and allegiance, and walking away from a gang can be very risky. It's possible that he'll be seen as betraying his brethren if he decides to walk away.
Talking to your boyfriend is important. Whilst the risks of being in a gang should be obvious to your man, maybe you need to really bring it home to him. Perhaps you could arrange for your boyfriend to sit down and speak to family members of victims of gang violence. Realising the human cost of gang activity might be the kick up the butt he needs.
Ultimately, getting your boyfriend out of a gang is going to be really difficult. You're asking him to leave his friends, income, sense of pride, security, and lifestyle behind - so the incentive needs to be major.
Gangs like SUR 13 instill both fear and respect in the Latino Here's a couple of ideas for getting your boyfriend out of the gangster lifestyle:
- Encourage him to get involved in some other activity- being involved in a music scene or a sports team might be a good distraction for him
- Getting him to face up to the possible consequences - there are many programs run by police and ex-cons which are geared towards getting young men out of gangs.
- Help him find a job - If he's making money legitimately doing something they he is interested in, he'll have less reason to be involved in a gang.
My boyfriend is in a gang, help!
Gangs like SUR 13 are a big deal all over the US. Although their home territory is Southern California, members are spread across the country. Getting out of a gang as widespread at that can be difficult.
Gang membership is based on loyalty and allegiance, and walking away from a gang can be very risky. It's possible that he'll be seen as betraying his brethren if he decides to walk away.
Talking to your boyfriend is important. Whilst the risks of being in a gang should be obvious to your man, maybe you need to really bring it home to him. Perhaps you could arrange for your boyfriend to sit down and speak to family members of victims of gang violence. Realising the human cost of gang activity might be the kick up the butt he needs.
Ultimately, getting your boyfriend out of a gang is going to be really difficult. You're asking him to leave his friends, income, sense of pride, security, and lifestyle behind - so the incentive needs to be major.
