Reviews: Gangs, Marginalised Youth and Social Capital
| Author | Emmeline Taylor |
| DOI | 10.1177/02645505100570030902 |
| Published date | 01 September 2010 |
| Date | 01 September 2010 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Gangs, Marginalised Youth and Social
Capital
Ross Deuchar
Trentham Books; 2009; pp 168; £19.99, pbk
ISBN: 978–1–85856–444–9
It is widely accepted that there has been a growing crim-
inalization of youth in the United Kingdom stimulated by
the media portrayal of young people as inherently deviant
and by the delinquent stereotypes often peddled by politicians. In this book, Dr Ross
Deuchar, a Senior Lecturer in Education at the University of Strathclyde, presents the
findings from his research with young people growing up in socially deprived areas
of Glasgow. He seeks to explore the views of fifty young people who have become
disenfranchised by educational failure, unemployment and poverty.
The initial chapter very briefly identifies the motivation for the research in a
perceived increase in gang membership in urban communities, before providing
a succinct synopsis of each of the proceeding chapters.
Chapter 1 further elucidates the growing negativity towards young people.
Deuchar identifies that it has become ‘a national sport’ (p. 3) in some parts of the
world such as the USA to demonize young men, noting that in Britain negative
political statements about young people pepper the national media. Consideration
is given to the extent of gang culture and organized crime in Glasgow. In the second
chapter we are introduced to the fifty young people whose narratives populate
Chapters 3–6. The young people’s voices are used extensively, allowing the reader
to build a picture of their lives. Chapter 3 focuses on how young people interpret
and understand their reality. It explores their perception of their rights and identities,
and to what extent they feel that these might be encroached by zero tolerance
policing, public attitudes to youth and the existence of gang culture in their commu-
nity. The focus on gang culture is then further expanded in Chapter 4.
Published in the same year as Barack Obama’s inauguration as US president, it is
interesting that in Chapter 5 Deuchar finds that ‘racial discrimination is as prevalent
in modern society as it ever was’ (p. 69) and although some of his participants from
ethnic minority groups ‘felt there was a growing commitment to multicultural commu-
nities in Glasgow, incidence of verbal abuse, psychological bullying and physical
violence was high’ (p. 79). This discrimination is further analysed within the broader
scope of intolerance in Chapter 6. In particular, the links between contemporary
street gangs and enduring traditions of sectarianism are explored. In Glasgow, this
often manifests itself through football bigotry associated with the fans of competing
clubs. Social capital theory is drawn upon in Chapter 7, providing a theoretical lens
through which to analyse the views presented in previous chapters.
What is refreshing about this book is that it manages to sidestep the well-trodden
path to urban dystopia depicted as being a product of the interactions between sup-
posedly degenerate youth and an unresponsive and impotent government. Some of
Deuchar’s young people are disaffected, disengaged and heavily involved in gangs
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