174 lines
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Plaintext
174 lines
10 KiB
Plaintext
ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜ
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ÜÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛßÛßßßßßÛÛÜ ÜÜßßßßÜÜÜÜ ÜÛÜ ÜÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜÜÜÜÜÛßß ßÛÛ
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ßÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜ ßÛÛ ÜÛÛÛÜÛÛÜÜÜ ßÛÛÛÛÜ ßÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜÛÛÜÜÜÛÛÝ Ûß
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ßßßÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜ ÞÝ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛßßÛÜÞÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÜ ßßÛÛÛÞß
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Mo.iMP ÜÛÛÜ ßÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÝÛ ÞÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÞÛÛÛÛ ÞÛÛÛÛÛÝ ßÛß
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ÜÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÝ ÞÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÝ ÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛ
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ÜÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÝ ÞÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÞÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ß ÞÛÛÛÛÛÛÜ ÜÛ
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ÜÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÝ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÝ ÞÞÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛß
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ÜÛßÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÜÜ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÝ ÛÛÞÛÛÛÛÛÝ ÞÛÛÛÛÛÛßß
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ÜÛßÛÛÛÛÛÛÜÛÛÛÛÜÞÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÞÛ ßÛÛÛÛÛ Ü ÛÝÛÛÛÛÛ Ü
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ÜÛ ÞÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛß ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ßÛÜ ßÛÛÛÜÜ ÜÜÛÛÛß ÞÛ ÞÛÛÛÝ ÜÜÛÛ
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ÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛß ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜ ßÛÜ ßßÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛß ÜÜÜß ÛÛÛÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛÛÛÛÛß
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ßÛÜ ÜÛÛÛß ßÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜ ßßÜÜ ßßÜÛÛßß ßÛÛÜ ßßßÛßÛÛÛÛÛÛÛßß
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ßßßßß ßßÛÛß ßßßßß ßßßßßßßßßßßßß
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ARRoGANT CoURiERS WiTH ESSaYS
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Grade Level: Type of Work Subject/Topic is on:
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[ ]6-8 [ ]Class Notes [Essays on Gangs in ]
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[ ]9-10 [ ]Cliff Notes [Today's Cities ]
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[x]11-12 [x]Essay/Report [ ]
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[ ]College [ ]Misc [ ]
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Dizzed: 10/94 # of Words:1533 School: ? State: ?
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ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ>ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ>ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ>Chop Here>ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ>ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ>ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ>ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
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Gangs are a violent reality that people have to deal with in today's
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cities. What has made these groups come about? Why do kids feel that being
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in a gang is both an acceptable and prestigious way to live? The long
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range answer to these questions can only be speculated upon, but in the
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short term the answers are much easier to find. On the surface, gangs are
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a direct result of human beings' personal wants and peer pressure. To
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determine how to effectively end gang violence we must find the way that
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these morals are given to the individual. Unfortunately, these can only be
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hypothesized. However, by looking at the way humans are influenced in
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society, I believe there is good evidence to point the blame at several
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institutions. These include the forces of the media, the government,
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theatre, drugs and our economic system.
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On the surface, gangs are caused by peer pressure and greed. Many
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teens in gangs will pressure peers into becoming part of a gang by making
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it all sound glamorous. Money is also an crucial factor. A kid (a 6-10
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year old, who is not yet a member) is shown that s/he could make $200 to
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$400 for small part time gang jobs. Although these are important factors
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they are not strong enough to make kids do things that are strongly against
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their morals.
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One of the ways that kids morals are bent so that gang violence becomes
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more acceptable is the influence of television and movies. The average
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child spends more time at a TV than she/he spends in a classroom. Since
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nobody can completely turn off their minds, kids must be learning something
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while watching the TV. Very few hours of television watched by children
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are educational, so other ideas are being absorbed during this period of
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time. Many shows on television today are extremely violent and are often
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shown this from a gang's perspective. A normal adult can see that this is
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showing how foully that gangs are living. However, to a child this
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portrays a violent gang existance as acceptable. 'The Ends Justifies the
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Means' mentality is also taught through many shows where the "goody guy"
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captures the "bad guy" through violence and is then being commended. A
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young child sees this a perfectly acceptable because he knows that the "bad
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guy" was wrong but has no idea of what acceptable apprehension techniques
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are.
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Gore in television also takes a big part in influencing young minds.
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Children see gory scenes and are fascinated by these things that they have
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not seen before. Older viewers see gore and are not concerned with the
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blood but rather with the pain the victim must feel. A younger mind
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doesn't make this connection. Thus a gore fascination is formed, and has
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been seen in several of my peers. Unfortunately kids raised with this sort
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of television end up growing up with a stronger propensity to becoming a
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violent gang member or 'violent- acceptant' person.
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"Gangs bring the delinquent norms of society into intimate contact
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with the individual."1, (Marshall B Clinard, 1963). So, as you can see if
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TV leads a child to believe that violence is the norm this will manifest
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itself in the actions of the child quite, often in a gang situation. This
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is especially the case when parents don't spend a lot of time with their
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kids at the TV explaining what is right and what is wrong. Quite often
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newer books and some types of music will enforce this type of thought and
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ideas.
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Once this mentality is installed in youngsters they become increasingly
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prone to being easily pushed into a gang situation by any problem at home
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or elsewhere. For instance, in poor families with many children or
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upper-middle class families where parents are always working, the children
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will often feel deprived of love. Parents can often feel that putting food
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on the table is enough love. Children of these families may often go to
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the gang firstly out of boredom and to belong somewhere. As time goes on,
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a form of love or kinship develops between the gang members and the child.
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It is then that the bond between the kid and the gang is completed because
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the gang has effectively taken the place of the family.
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The new anti social structure of cities also effects the ease in which
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a boy/girl can join a gang. " The formation of gangs in cities, and most
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recently in suburbs, is facilitated by the same lack of community among
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parents. The parents do not know what their children are doing for two
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reasons: First, much of the parents' lives is outside the local community,
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while the children's lives are lived almost totally within it. Second, in
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a fully developed community, the network of relations gives every parent,
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in a sense, a community of sentries who can keep him informed of his
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child's activities. In modern living-places (city or suburban), where such
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a network is attenuated, he no longer has such sentries."2, (Merton Nisbet,
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1971).
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In male gangs problems occur as each is the members tries to be the
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most manly. This often leads to all members participating in
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"one-up-manship". Quite often this will then lead to each member trying to
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commit a bigger and more violent crime or simply more crimes than the
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others. With all members participating in this sort of activity it makes
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for a never ending unorganized violence spree (A sort of Clockwork Orange
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mentality). In gangs with more intellegent members these feelings end up
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making each member want to be the star when the groups commit a crime.
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This makes the gang much more organized and improves the morale of members
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which in turn makes them more dangerous and very hard for the police to
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deal with and catch (There is nothing harder to find and deal with than
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organized teens that are dedicated to the group). This sort of gang is
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usually common of middle or upper class people although it can happen in
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gangs in the projects and other low rent districts too.
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This "one-up-manship" is often the reason between rival gangs fighting.
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All gangs feel powerful and they want to be feared. To do this they try to
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establish themselves as the only gang in a certain neighborhood. After a
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few gang fights hatred forms and gang murders and drive-by's begin to take
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place. When two gangs are at war it makes life very dangerous for citizens
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in the area. Less that 40% of drive-by's kill their intended victim yet
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over 60% do kill someone. This gang application is one of the many reasons
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that sexual sterotypes and pressure to conform to the same must be stopped.
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Lastly one of the great factors in joining a gang is for protection.
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Although from an objective point of view, we can see joining a gang brings
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more danger than it saves you from, this is not always the way it is seen
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by kids. In slums such as the Bronx or the very worst case, Compton,
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children will no doubt be beaten and robbed if they do not join a gang. Of
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course they can probably get the same treatment from rivals when in a gang.
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The gang also provides some money for these children who quite often need
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to feed their families. The reason kids think that the gang will keep them
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safe is from propoganda from the gangs. Gang members will say that no one
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will get hurt and make a public show of revenge if a member is hurt or
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killed.
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People in low rent areas are most often being repressed due to poverty
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and most importantly, race. This often results in an attitude that
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motivates the person to base his/her life on doing what the system that
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oppresses them doesn't want. Although this accomplishes little it is a big
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factor in gang enrollment.
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So, as you have seen gangs are a product of the environment we have
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created for ourselves. Some of these factors include: oppression, the
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media, greed, violence and other gangs. There seems to be no way to end
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the problem of gangs without totally restructuring the modern economy and
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value system. Since the chance of this happening is minimal, we must learn
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to cope with gangs and try to keep their following to a minimum.
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Unfortunately there is no real organized force to help fight gangs. Of
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course the police are supposed to do this but this situation quite often
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deals with racial issues also and the police forces regularly display their
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increasing inability to deal fairly with these issues. What we need are
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more people to form organizations like the "Guardian Angels" a gang-like
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group that makes life very tough for street gangs that are breaking laws.
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Bibliography
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Margot Webb, Coping with Street Gangs. Rosen Publishing Group,
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New York, 1990.
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William Foote Whyte, Street Corner Society. University of
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Chicago, Chicago, 1955.
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Peter Carroll, South-Central. Hoyte and Williams, L. A., 1987.
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1 Marshall B. Clinard, Sociology of Deviant Behavior. University
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of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, 1963, Page 179.
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2 Merton Nisbet, Contempory Social Problems. Harcourt, Brace &
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World, New York, 1971, Page 588.
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