Gangs have crept into people’s lives like unseen monsters, taking hold and never letting victims out of its grasp. The MS-13 (Mara Salvatrucha) has stolen, hurt and killed, therefore it is our duty as a nation to permanently stop them. Not only is the U.S not taking these gangs seriously but we are letting them spread slowly, hurting and destroying lives in its path. Working together with different countries has been proven to be effective in taking down members of this ruthless gang. Even something as simple as cutting off some of their connections would be useful to their ultimate demise.  Educating young generations on the dangers of MS-13’s terrorist gang activity, working together internationally, and learning about their system will not only help take down this menace, but prevent other terrorist groups from emerging in the U.S and Central America.

Our nation overall has not done its best to prevent gang growth. Over the years, gangs like MS-13 have spread to around 8 countries, including the United States and have left a series of dreadful crime behind them. Many deportation laws have been set up to help move the threat away, sending countless delinquents over to Central American countries. This has become a major problem for these countries, over-crowding their jails and allowing violent acts to increase. Sending problems away does not mean the problem has been solved. Working together, the U.S and Central American countries would stand a chance against MS-13. 

Since MS-13 has begun to spread in the U.S, being able to communicate with teenagers of today has never been more important. They face many dangers around their age and letting them know the threat that the MS-13 gang poses could help them lead a path away from criminal records. Based on a survey conducted by myself in 2017, around 20% of teens in middle school have considered joining a gang, depending on the circumstances. This is frightening to know, since the majority of gang members in MS-13 are around the ages 12-20. Most don't finish high school, end up in jail or are very poor and live a life of misery. Helping healthy teens understand how self-destructive joining a gang could be, could possibly decline and weaken MS13 and other gang systems for future recruiting. According to the research from the University of Pittsburgh, such young generations need guidance and should be warned of how manipulative and complex gangs are to try to make teenagers join.
Something all people could make an effort to learn is how the gang, MS-13, works in hierarchy terms, even through its international status. The few groups that have infiltrated MS-13 are experts in these matters and have found valuable information, including territories, hideouts, strategies, even connections with the government. Leaders in jail still communicate with their gang members and plan criminal activities through smuggled cellphones and informants.  Many groups are connected and organized loosely, giving people a way to take down small subgroups. As many as 8,000 to 10,000 members exist, and any possibility to decrease that number should be considered.

If MS-13 is weakened enough, most of the other major gangs would feel threatened, even scared. Hal Marcovitz, publisher of “Gangs”,has stated that many groups view MS-13 as the largest international group and take after them in certain ways. They’re leaders, and if a leader is brought down, others will be brought down with them. The fall of MS-13 would be followed by many more, and communities would be safer. Gangs have become a serious problem to our communities, and if capturing MS-13 and putting an end to their criminal ways will help stop gangs overall, people must start taking action.

Countries have been greatly affected by MS-13, but if we could possibly be informed better, found a way to work together with other governments and taught the targeted age group of this gang about its detailed system and criminal ways, the chances of putting a stop to this gang would be noticeably higher. Being able to know how something works means you can break it apart, and the same theory applies to MS-13. This gang runs internationally and has a large number of members, therefore informing and helping the age group of people chosen to become members would lead to a decrease of numbers. Indeed, MS-13 is a large international terrorist gang, but Instead of being blissfully ignorant, we should work together to bring down this group once and for all.