1. Chicago, Illinois
First, lets address the current state of gang activity in Chicago. The city is on pace to have over 500 murders in 2014, and 80% of all murders in Chicago are gang related. The police force is incredibly thin and the large majority of this activity takes place on the city’s west-side.
In my opinion this a result of long-term neglect on different levels. By cutting off the heads of the major gangs in the city, Larry Hoover who founded the GD’s (Gangster Disciples), and ‘Lord Gino,’ a leader of the Latin Kings in 1995 and 1997 respectively, Chicago thought it had rid itself of its gang problem. However, this actually just made things harder to contain. The two gangs split into various sects that now fight among themselves. So not only has the violence increased, but the ability to identify people as gang members has also gotten harder.
Moreover, the west-side of the city is treated like a separate entity altogether. If someone gets shot there, the closest hospital that might treat them is 45 minutes away. There are housing projects that are outdated and built in the early 90’s that still stand. To make matters even worse, it’s very easy to acquire guns in this region. Wisconsin is an hour and a half from Chicago, and buying a gun in Wisconsin is not unlike buying a gun in Texas, and they’re both pretty similar to buying a bottle of vodka.
There have been over 2,215 total people shot in Chicago this year, which is absolutely insane, as the number will most likely creep above 3,000, setting a new record. Something needs to be done about Chicago soon, or it will only remain the most gang infested city in the America.
