Part III Thematic Chapters, B Protection, 10 Youth as main victims and perpetrators of violence: are the mechanisms behind joining ‘criminal’ gangs similar to those for joining violent extremist groups?

Subject(s):

NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) — Military assistance — Armed conflict, international — Armed conflict, non-international — Humanitarian intervention — Armed forces

This chapter starts by asking: why discuss youth and violence in a book dedicated to the study of war? Young people are not only at the core of urban violence. They are also linked to organized armed violence and armed conflict, including civil conflict. Youth, as members of gangs and main victims and perpetrators of violence are therefore a core component of the dynamics of urban violence. They are also at the center of movements seeking the radical transformation of societies, often as positive agents of social and political change. Yet they can also be caught up in ideological movements that prone extreme forms of violence. This chapter focuses on what humanitarian and development organizations can do, as well as local and international Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), along with grassroots associations and civil society, to design projects with and for young people at risk of joining gangs or violent extremist organizations.