The gangs are a constant thorn in the side of law enforcement, with unending scuffles over territory, protection rackets and drugs often escalating quickly to all out street warfare.
Of course the problem’s a lot worse than that.
The many vagrants that society now breeds in its youth, the loss of individuality and search for a place of belonging are what drives the creation of and turnover in the street gangs.
In some parts of the New Pacific City, the gangs control the streets in a very literal way. They are the law, they take rent from the property, they run illegal operations around and through the lives of innocents.
But a rare few gangs actually manage to do all of that to the benefit of the community. A that’s why the Department of Justice have such a difficult to time dealing with them.
People get out of course. They grow up, or find somewhere else to belong. Some of them find a benefactor who helps them, some enlist, some become celebrities and their criminal notoriety feeds into their star image.
But most of those that get out do so damaged.
Some of the street gangs get so big they virtually become franchises, or terrorist cells.
Gangs of note:
The Dead Presidents – one of the few famous gangs, members all undergo or have previously undergone facial cyberisation or reconstruction, and all bear a resemblance to dead political figures. There’s a handful of Honest Abes, few Lenins, a Maggie Thatcher, even a Julie’s Caesar.
The Ronin – a mercenarial bunch who work deals and contracts with plenty of bidders, as long as they get a place to stay and a steady supply of cash.
South Street Templars – named for the rundown religious building they operate out of, the Templars have a small empire in drugs, celebrity endorsements, vidstream content and protection rackets.
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