Barrio Gangs is the most comprehensive academic case study of barrio
group dynamics in a major Texas city to date. This is a sociological
work on the history of barrio gangs in San Antonio and other large Texas
cities to the present day. It examines the century-long evolution of
urban barrio subcultures using public archives, oral histories, old
photos, and other forms of qualitative data. The study gives special
attention to the barrio gangs' "heyday," from the 1940s through the
1960s, comparing their attributes to those of modern groups. It
illustrates how social and technological changes have affected barrio
networking processes and the intensity of the street lifestyle over
time. Intergenerational shifts and the tension that accompanies such
changes are also central themes in the book.
Few other places are so conducive to such historical exploration as is
San Antonio. Street ignobility in the barrio no doubt mirrors processes
found in other Chicano communities in Texas and the Southwest. The gang
contexts in major Chicano population centers have lengthy historical
bases rooted in weak opportunity structures, oppression, and
discrimination. This work shows that participation in street violence,
drug selling, and other parts of the informal economy are functional
adaptations to the social structure; the forces propelling the formation
of barrio gangs are not temporary social phenomena.
