The author addresses reported changes in the structure and crime patterns of gangs, their age, ethnic and gender characteristics, and their spread into every region of the Nation. He also reviews and updates the gang situation in other countries to determine whether the American gang is unique. Based on decades of research and the personal experience of the author, the book contradicts many popular and professional beliefs about street gangs. The early chapters identify four issues that are the key to understanding the gang problem; these issues permeate the entire book. The first issue is the definition of a gang. This is examined by describing street gangs and separating them from other forms of gangs, such as skinheads, peer groups that occasionally engage in delinquency, drug-distribution gangs, and motorcycle gangs. The author views the street gang as qualitatively different from these other groups, although having many structural variations. The second issue involves recent changes in gangs, including their violent behavior and their spread to 800 towns and cities in the Nation. The third issue is street gangs' involvement in drug distribution. The author uses data to undermine the common view that gangs are primarily engaged in drug sales. The fourth issue pertains to gang- prevention and suppression programs. The author suggests that most have been either ineffective or have increased the cohesion of gangs. He holds little hope that the factors that have motivated youth to form and join gangs will disappear in the near future. Gang prevention requires a long-term commitment to changing the family and community conditions that cause youth to believe that gang life is their only realistic lifestyle option. Chapter notes and a subject index