The racism and oppression thesis holds that various forms of social injustices, such as ethnic conflict and competition in America, the social structure and institutionalized patterns of race relations, the accommodation of poor and minority group members to an affluent society, and the individual experiences, and perceptions of racism and oppression, are important causal determinants and reinforcements of gang delinquency and gang crime. An examination of gang literature demonstrated that racism has played an important role in the onset and persistence of American gangs. It also suggests that the gangs will exist as long as ethnic or racial oppression exists. This situation is particularly predictive in the correctional setting. Research on juvenile correctional institutions demonstrates that the presence of gang problems as manifested in terms of damage to government property is concurrent with the problem of racial conflict. From a corrections standpoint, a strategy to deal with the gang problem would be to improve race relations within that environment. 2 figures, 45 references, and 23 endnotes