Presentation Type

Poster

Start Date

5-8-2024 11:00 AM

End Date

5-8-2024 1:00 PM

Subjects

Gangs -- Social conditions, Adaptability (Psychology), Religion, Sociology

Advisor

Aaron Roussell

Student Level

Masters

Abstract

This study is intended to examine the question: could gangs be a form of religion? The study will examine Steven Cureton's ethnographic case study of a street gang as found in his work titled Hoover Crips (2008), where I will then analyze the findings within the sociological framework of Emile Durkheim’s theory of religion as set forth in his classic book titled Elementary Forms of Religious Life (1912).

This exploration faces challenges as the terms “gang” and “religion” are both hotly contested, and discussions on each have largely occurred independently, leaving a significant gap for this research to address. This study seeks to demonstrate that there are many interesting similarities between gangs and religion, and that in these similarities there may be answers that help explain otherwise questionable gang behavior and activity. This research provides an alternative perspective that challenges the contemporary (mis)understanding of urban street gangs.

Creative Commons License or Rights Statement

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/41853

Share

COinS
 
May 8th, 11:00 AM May 8th, 1:00 PM

Gangism: An 'Elementary Form of Religious Life'

This study is intended to examine the question: could gangs be a form of religion? The study will examine Steven Cureton's ethnographic case study of a street gang as found in his work titled Hoover Crips (2008), where I will then analyze the findings within the sociological framework of Emile Durkheim’s theory of religion as set forth in his classic book titled Elementary Forms of Religious Life (1912).

This exploration faces challenges as the terms “gang” and “religion” are both hotly contested, and discussions on each have largely occurred independently, leaving a significant gap for this research to address. This study seeks to demonstrate that there are many interesting similarities between gangs and religion, and that in these similarities there may be answers that help explain otherwise questionable gang behavior and activity. This research provides an alternative perspective that challenges the contemporary (mis)understanding of urban street gangs.