The New York Times reports that gangs are becoming a big problem for several reservations, partly because there's less money for law enforcement and there aren't many programs trying to help young people. (The suicide rate for Indian teens is three times the national rate.) So a lot of young men are getting involved in gangs. Some of the groups are modeled off what they learn from music and movies.
“We’re trying to give an identity back to our youth,” said Melvyn Young Bear, the tribe’s appointed cultural liaison. “They’re into the subculture of African-Americans and Latinos. But they are Lakota, and they have a lot to be proud of.”
