CHINATOWN'S IMMIGRANT GANGS

Abstract The rise of Chinese youth gangs in urban centers in North America is a social phenomenon that has gained prominence in the past decade and a half. This study examines the characteristics and processes of four gangs operating in the Chinatown of Vancouver, Canada, over a three‐year period (1975‐1978). The gangs were composed entirely of teenaged immigrants recently arrived from Hong Kong who were engaged in a wide variety of antisocial and criminal behaviors. Three sociocultural antecendents are identified as important in the development of Chinese youth gangs: (1) the weakening among many Hong Kong immigrants of the traditional Chinese pattern of close parental guidance and supervision; (2) the resultant emergence of youth peer‐groups who challenge parental authority and Chinese values; (3) the strong attraction of North American success symbols for gang members, and their perceived inability to achieve success through legitimate means because of difficulties in learning English.