ABSTRACT
Simply living in an environment places young people at special risk of falling victim to aggressive behavior. Although there are often forces in the community which can counteract the negative influences, by far the most powerful being a strong, loving, “decent” family committed to middle-class values that of “the streets,” whose norms are often consciously opposed to those of mainstream society. Although everyone in poor inner-city neighborhoods is struggling financially and therefore feels a certain distance from the rest of America, the decent and the street family in a real sense represent two poles of value orientation, two contrasting conceptual categories. The labels “decent” and “street,” which the residents themselves use, amount to evaluative judgments that confer status on local residents. At an early age, often even before they start school, children from street-oriented homes gravitate to the streets, where they “hang”—socialize with their peers.
