ABSTRACT
Cities were attractive to newcomers to the USA, since most of the jobs at the time were industrial, manufacturing jobs. As immigrants settled into the city and found work, the city began to diversify, with individuals from all parts of the globe practicing their own customs and values. In the Chicago tradition, Frederick Thrasher highlighted the structure of the city and how it influenced the emergence and development of gangs and the violence in which their members partake. While specific theories and orientations have waxed and waned, a fascination with inner-city crime is a mainstay in the field of criminology. Social disorganization theories consider, remember, places and not necessarily people. The theoretical approach seeks to explain why crime rates are higher in some places over others. The first and most obvious program based on social disorganization theory was the Chicago Area Project.
