The juvenile gang members are obsessively materialistic and are realizing their material goals through organized drug trafficking. The fact that such trafficking is illegal and harms the users does not bother gang members' consciences. They view legitimate businesses, such as alcoholic beverages and cigarettes, as being just as harmful to society as drugs. They perceive law-abiding persons as either hypocrites or fools. To gang members, violence and the risk of imprisonment are just part of doing business. Overall, youths drawn to gangs in the 1980's are attracted by jobs that make big money, group solidarity that provides personal protection, status or belonging, camaraderie among peers, and adventure. The urban gang subculture can only be countered and reformed through a community team effort that involves the family, the school, economic leaders, criminal justice agencies, and the church. Such a team can provide alternative values that emphasize constructive service to society and neighbors, the development of a satisfying career independent of material rewards, and the negative consequences of pursuing a criminal lifestyle. Appended interview protocol and responses.