ABSTRACT
Thoughtful transgressions and conscious attempts at direct action characterize many gang ideologies. Opposition, resistance and transgressions serve to inform the gang’s sense of agency. Acts of resistance by a street gang known as the Solids in the city of Hartford, Connecticut, attempted meaningful opposition to authority both politically and culturally. They used crime and intimidating transgressive public displays as their principal forms of resistance, but in the end, this was unproductive. The precarious life of the Solids made realizing their transformational collective activities an organizational impossibility. The leadership’s response created a dualism in the gang, a violent drug faction and a reintegration faction with each group working toward the Solido Achievement Plan. The experience in this city offers insights into gang development, organization and functions in smaller cities with established neighborhoods. The overbearing role of community patrons was a significant factor in Hartford’s response to the Solids. There was a synergy between the strategies of liberal inclusion and the group’s efforts to realize their achievement plan. The different relationships between gangs, radicalized residents and social service professionals stands out as an important aspect of the Hartford gang experience.
