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Abstract: 

Today, urban centers around the globe continue to face significant challenges with gangs and gang-related violence in their communities. Emerging research suggests that a number of marginalized communities in North America are becoming urban warzones, where children, youth, and adults are being exposed to traumatic events similar to those found in global conflicts. Although a significant amount of research exists on the root cause(s) of gangs and gang violence, little is known about the psychological impact of urban warfare and/or the code of the streets. To address this gap, this article integrates the psychiatric and psychological knowledge on trauma, posttraumatic stress syndrome, and dissociation into a broader discussion on gangs and gang violence. More specifically, drawing on a case study approach, including a first-person narrative, the article argues that (1) young people growing up in marginalized communities may adopt an alternative value system known as “the code of the streets,” which promotes violence as a means to mitigate interpersonal and community conflicts, (2) children and youth who are exposed to the code of the streets are at increased risk of developing significant mental health issues, including posttraumatic stress and dissociative symptoms that are conducive to negative coping strategies such as avoidance, psychic numbing, hypervigilance/hyperarousal, and aggression, and (3) children and youth may be drawn to a gang lifestyle as a way to “fix” or control the traumatic memories of the past and the constant threat of danger that they perceive to exist in the future.

Keywords: Gangs, urban violence, PTSD and gang members, marginalized communities

Affiliations:  1: University of Toronto.