Girls and Delinquency
... One of the most looked upon topics is that of criminal activity and delinquency. Relatively little attention has been paid to female experiences with crime and delinquency because it has been generally associated with boys. ... However, recently it is more commonly seen that economic and family pressures motivate many girls to join gangs. ... Many, but not all, female gang members are involved in some other kind of criminality or delinquency besides prostitution. Delinquency rates of female gang members are lower than male gang members, but interestingly enough are higher then those females and males who are not in gangs. ... The most prevalent property crime among girls is shoplifting. Boys are more likely to shoplift then girls, however girls are more likely to be caught by shop owners. They believe that girls are more inclined to shoplift because they are seen as consumers or shoppers. Boys are more likely to be arrested for these offenses than girls, but these arrests make up 23 percent of female arrests all together, compared with only 10 percent of males, Some argue that female gang members are not violent enough for there to be a concern. ... When girls do commit violent crimes, they differ significantly from boys. For example, girls are more likely to use knives than guns. ... Girls are more likely to murder family members then boys are. ... Young gang girls reveal that they were brought up by their drug addict parents. ... Interestingly enough, the gang girls in these Latina families are often stigmatized. ... That is why these girls lose themselves in the midst of their identities. ... Those Latina girls who arent associated with cholos are most likely confronted with gender issues in their homes. Boys are always treated more leniently than girls, and fathers are not always a huge part of their lives. Many girls become fed up with the things expected of them such as the cooking, the sewing, the cleaning.