Malcolm X once warned of the power of the media, “societal oppression” and its ramifications. Ignominiously, within today's society young people live up to labels handed to them, and wear them as badges of honour, suffer poverty, oppression within the education and penal system, and are constantly fighting for status in a very bigoted society, where the poor get poorer and the rich get richer. The author argues that a chauvinistic society, the lack of culpability, uninspiring media reporting, which remain relentless, and the antagonistic systems which remain aloof to socially excluded young people, have contributed to the rise of the “new aged gangs”, thus creating a “them and us” culture. A culture with the ability to become a social norm. Guns, gangs and the implication for social workers is a must read for all professionals who wish to understand some of the ills of todays, in order to building a better tomorrow.
