Theories about gangs and gang violenceThe emergence of gangs in the United States was initially fueled by immigration and poverty-stricken families who settled in urban areas. Few of them possessing the skills to earn money to achieve society's set goals, such as money or a better lifestyle, or being able to adapt to their new urban life, these citizens lower classes began to band together to form what many considered “gangs.” in certain areas. Although there was no precise meaning of the term "gang" at the time, a recent definition, accepted by over 100 American and European researchers, attempted to define it; “A street gang is any enduring, street-oriented youth group whose involvement in illegal activities is part of its group identity (Klein & Maxson). At first, cities and police departments refused to accept that there even was a gang problem. or recognized that there were even gangs present in their communities; However, it didn't take long before their opinions on the subject began to change, as more and more of these so-called gangs began to appear, the more the general population began to notice how bad they were dangerous. and they became violent. While rural counties had only 6 percent of gangs nationally, small towns had a whopping thirty-three percent (Riedel & Welsh pp. 222). There are five different types of street gangs classified by Klein and Maxson (2006): the traditional gang, which is territorial, has existed for more than twenty years and whose number reaches more than a hundred members; Neotraditional gangs, which resemble traditional gangs in many ways but have not existed since the middle of paper...... transform gangs into legitimate groups or organizations; organizational change and development, which uses the implementation of special gang units; community organizing, which attempts to build community trust with the help of parent and family participation; and opportunity provisions, which refer to increased vocational training, education and employment. This intervention is the lowest ranked (Riedel & Welsh pp. 230-231). One of the most successful forms of intervention was the Boston Gun Project and Operation Ceasefire. What made these forms successful was their delivery methods in which they were used to respond to a delinquent gang rather than an area; also known as “retail deterrence” (Riedel & Welsh pp. 236). Although these forms of intervention have been used and proven in other jurisdictions, only time will tell if they will continue to work..