Includes bibliographical references and index.

Juvenile Offenders and Guns explores how and why twenty-five incarcerated young men of color acquired and used guns, how guns made them feel, and how they felt about the violence in which they participated as well as the violence to which they were exposed as victims and witnesses. Through their narratives, patterns emerge of boys attempting to become men in homes headed by mothers who struggled financially, the multiple attractions of the street that exceeded those of school, and the risks of the street lifestyle that prompted these youth to arm themselves. Guns, long a part of both American history and myth, arise here as having multiple meanings and serving many symbolic and practical purposes for these youth, from protection to constructing a capable masculinity adapted to their lifestyle in the streets.

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