NCJ Number
173282
Date Published
1995
Length
7 pages
Annotation
Chinese youth gangs in New York City are discussed in terms of their close ties to the social and economic organization of their communities, their involvement in the extortion of community businesses, and their similarities and differences with street gangs of other ethnic groups.
Abstract
Information was collected from ethnographic interviews, field notes, official reports and documents, and newspapers and magazines. Results revealed that most members of Chinese gangs are males in their late teens or early 20s. Most speak the Cantonese dialect. Each gang has about 20-50 hard-core members, a few inactive members, and some peripheral members. These gangs differ from other ethnic gangs in several ways, including their close association and control by powerful community organizations, their investment of money and time in legitimate business, their national or international networks, and their influence by Chinese secret societies and the Triad subculture. The communities in which Chinese gangs evolve tend to be prosperous. The booming economy and the gambling industry in the Chinese community have provided Chinese gangs with ample criminal opportunities. Gangs use both explicit and implicit forms of extortion. The four types of extortion are extortion for monetary gain, symbolic extortion as a display of power, extortion for revenge, and instrumental extortion used to intimidate the victim in business or personal conflicts. Thus, these gangs are deeply enmeshed in both the legitimate and illegitimate enterprises in their communities. Notes and 40 references