BLood Gang MEMBERSHIP

Bloods refer to a loosely structured group of street gangs smaller, known as "games", which adopted a common gang culture. Each set has its own and generally work independently of others. Most members are Bloods African American men, although some games are recruited female members and members of other racial and ethnic backgrounds. Members are aged from early teens to twenties, but few held leadership positions in their twenties and thirties by then.

No known national leader of the Bloods, but individual Bloods sets have a hierarchical structure with levels of proven leadership skills of membership. These levels of membership to indicate the status of a gang. A leader, usually an older member with a criminal past wider raced every series. A set of leader is not elected, but is developing and managing the gang's criminal enterprises by its reputation for violence and brutality and by his personal charisma. The majority of these members are "soldiers" who are mostly aged between 16 and 22. Soldiers get a strong sense of their game and are extremely dangerous because of their willingness to use force both to comply with gang members to obtain and respond to a person who "does not comply "whole." Associates "are not full members, but they identify with the group and participates in various criminal activities. To the extent that women are part of the band, they usually associate members and tend to be used by their male counterparts of these weapons, drug possession, transport or prostitutes to earn money for their set.

Recruitment is often influenced by the environment a recruitee's. Bloods recruit heavily among school age children in an American community largely very poor in Africa. Gang membership offers young people a sense of belonging and protection. It also offers instant gratification for economically disadvantaged youth who see the pitfalls of gang life: gold jewelry, cash, expensive sportswear