Detroit's gangs: Who they are and how to stop them.

[DetroitDad]

There are no real gangs in Detroit.

I didn't think we had gangs in Detroit, unless you count the small groups of people trying to sell drugs or prostitutes. The big guys all know Detroit isn't a market worth entering. It's the Walmart and chain culture; people don't care what they get, so long as they get the cheapest price imaginable. I would bet there is higher demand for street marjoram, pure baking soda, and 40 year old transvestites than there is for marijuana, cocaine, or 19 year old female prostitutes. Our residents also aren't of mixed incomes, and don't usually carry more than what the most desperate would steal.

The other issue is combined age and density. There aren't enough young people in a concentrated area in the city limits for them to get big enough. You have the starts of some grass roots gangs in the suburbs, or a few members moving to Southwest Detroit, but not enough to really make them much of a sizable gang.

Police also take gang activity very seriously in Metro Detroit.