[File] This undated image shows ISIS fighters marching through Raqqa, Syria.
- Young ISIS recruits are searching for same protection and respect as gang members
- ISIS can deliver the myths of gang life, giving access to guns, power and money
- Gangs and terrorists share a tension between personnel needs and infiltration risks
- To tackle gangs and ISIS, underlying social and political grievances must be addressed
Editor's note: James Densley is Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at Metropolitan State University and the author of How Gangs Work: An Ethnography of Youth Violence. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his.
(CNN) -- As we well know, ISIS is recruiting angry young men as far afield as Minneapolis and London. The allure is much like the allure of a street gang -- in part, because ISIS looks an awful lot like a street gang.
Gangs have long been understood as a collective response or "solution" to the strains encountered by their respective members. For some youth, ISIS has become the "solution." They are searching for the same protection and respect that pull people into gangs. The difference is they are pushed by feelings of marginalization, victimization, and vulnerability that stem from the state's purported failure to protect Muslim interests.
READ: Why is ISIS so successful at luring Westerners?
"Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate," Yoda once said. Anger also incites people to action, lowers inhibitions, and fashions a desire for revenge.
There are legitimate concerns about radicalization among existing gang members, because they typically live out the same sociocultural and racial exclusion. Gang members already hold more anti-authority attitudes than the rest of us. Add to this the fact many of them go to prison each year, where they come into contact with radicalized individuals and are subject to influence, and the die has been cast.
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Alleged ISIS militants stand next to an ISIS flag atop a hill in the Syrian city of Kobani, which is near the Turkish border, on Monday, October 6. After pounding Kobani with tanks and heavy artillery, ISIS appears to be close to capturing the city. Civil war has destabilized Syria and created an opening for the militant group, which is also advancing in Iraq as it seeks to create an Islamic caliphate in the region. 
Turkish tanks are lined up at the Turkey-Syria border in Sanliurfa, Turkey, on October 6. 
Syrian Kurds fleeing ISIS militants wait behind a fence in Suruc, Turkey, on Sunday, September 21. As many as 200,000 people have left the area surrounding the Syrian city of Kobani, also known as Ayn al-Arab, as ISIS advances, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Monday, September 22. 
A elderly man is carried after crossing the Syria-Turkey border near Suruc on Saturday, September 20. 
Syrian Kurds carry belongings as they cross the border between Syria and Turkey on September 20. 
Syrian pro-government forces inspect the ground near a damaged building on the outskirts of Hama, Syria, on September 20. The United Nations estimates more than 190,000 people have been killed in Syria since an uprising in March 2011 spiraled into civil war. 
People in Raqqa, Syria, stand where a Syrian government aircraft was shot down by ISIS militants on Tuesday, September 16. 
Syrian government forces walk down a street in Halfaya, Syria, after taking the city from rebel forces on Friday, September 12. 
Al-Qaeda-linked rebels from Syria gather around vehicles carrying U.N. peacekeepers from Fiji before releasing them Thursday, September 11, in the Golan Heights. The 45 peacekeepers were captured in the Golan Heights after rebels seized control of a border crossing between Syria and the Israeli-occupied territory. 
Syrian opposition fighters take position behind sandbags in Aleppo, Syria, on Thursday, September 11. 
Syrians fleeing the violence stand next to their belongings as they attempt to cross into Turkey on Sunday, September 7. 
A boy looks at bodies lying outside a hospital after a barrel-bomb attack in Aleppo on Friday, September 5. 
A U.N. convoy moves in the buffer zone near the Golan Heights as they are escorted by Syrian rebel fighters near the Syrian village of Jubata Al Khashab on Tuesday, September 2. 
Residents of Aleppo remove a body from debris on Friday, August 29, after what activists claim was shelling by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. 
Druze men watch from the Golan Heights side of the Quneitra border with Syria as smoke rises during fighting between forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and rebels on Wednesday, August 27. 
This image was taken during a government guided tour in Mleiha, Syria, one day after Syrian government forces retook the town after a months-long battle with rebels, according to a military source and state television on Friday, August 15. 
Residents inspect the rubble of destroyed buildings in Aleppo after Syrian regime helicopters allegedly dropped barrel bombs there on Wednesday, August 13. 
Smoke trails over Aleppo following barrel bombs that were allegedly dropped by the Syrian regime on an opposition-controlled area on Monday, August 11. 
Photographs of victims of the Bashar al-Assad regime are displayed as a Syrian Army defector known as "Caesar," center, appears in disguise to speak before the House Foreign Affairs Committee in Washington. The briefing on Thursday, July 31, was called "Assad's Killing Machine Exposed: Implications for U.S. Policy." Caesar was apparently a witness to al-Assad's brutality and has smuggled more than 50,000 photographs depicting the torture and execution of more than 10,000 dissidents. 
Syrian rebel fighters take up positions behind sandbags in Aleppo on Wednesday, July 30. 
People carry an injured man away from the site of an airstrike, reportedly carried out by Syrian government forces, in Aleppo on Sunday, July 27. 
Rebel fighters execute two men Friday, July 25, in Binnish, Syria. The men reportedly were charged by an Islamic religious court with detonating several car bombs. 
A rebel fighter stands on a dust-covered street in Aleppo on Monday, July 21. 
A man clears debris at the site of an alleged barrel-bomb attack in Aleppo on Tuesday, July 15. 
A woman walks amid debris after an airstrike by government forces July 15 in Aleppo. 
People walk on a dust-filled street after a reported barrel-bomb attack in Aleppo on Monday, July 7. 
Apartments and other buildings lie in ruins on Tuesday, June 3, in Aleppo, a city that "has had the life bombed out of it," according to CNN's Nick Paton Walsh. 
A man carries a girl injured in a reported barrel-bomb attack by government forces June 3 in Aleppo. 
A rebel fighter loads an anti-tank cannon outside Latakia, Syria, on Sunday, June 1. 
A rescue worker pulls a girl from rubble in Aleppo on June 1 after reported bombing by government forces. 
A giant poster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is seen in Damascus, Syria, on Saturday, May 31, as the capital prepares for presidential elections. 
Portraits of al-Assad dominate the cityscape in central Damascus on Tuesday, May 27. Al-Assad is firmly in power three years into the civil war, while the opposition remains weak and fragmented and extremists grow in numbers and influence. 
The father of a 3-month-old girl weeps Monday, May 26, after she was pulled from rubble following a barrel-bomb strike in Aleppo. 
A woman stands in a heavily damaged building in Aleppo on May 26. 
An injured man lies in a hospital bed after alleged airstrikes by government forces in Aleppo on Sunday, May 18. 
Buildings in Homs, Syria, lie in ruins Saturday, May 10, days after an evacuation truce went into effect. Thousands of displaced residents returned to the city. 
Rescuers carry a man wounded by a mine in the Bustan al-Diwan neighborhood of Homs on May 10. 
A Syrian woman carries a suitcase along a street in the Juret al-Shayah district of Homs on May 10. 
Residents carry their belongings in the al-Hamidieh neighborhood of Homs on May 10. 
A woman injured when a mine went off is carried in Homs on May 10. 
Residents return to damaged dwellings in Homs on May 10. 
Debris lies on a deserted street in Homs on Thursday, May 8. 
A mosque is seen through shattered glass in Homs, where an evacuation truce went into effect on Wednesday, May 7. 
A wounded man is treated at a makeshift hospital in Aleppo on Sunday, May 4. 
Debris rises in what Free Syrian Army fighters said was an operation to strike a checkpoint and remove government forces in Maarat al-Numan, Syria, on Monday, May 5. 
A man helps a woman through debris after reported airstrikes by government forces on Thursday, May 1, in the Halak neighborhood of Aleppo. 
Syrians gather at the site of reported airstrikes in Aleppo on May 1. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, at least 33 civilians were killed in the attack. 
A woman runs after two barrel bombs were thrown, reportedly by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo on May 1. 
A boy runs in Aleppo on Sunday, April 27, after what activists said were explosive barrels thrown by forces loyal to al-Assad. 
Security and emergency medical personnel work at the site of a car bomb explosion Monday, April 14, in the Ekremah neighborhood of Homs. 
In this photo released by the state-run SANA news agency, Syrian forces take positions during clashes with rebels near the town of Rankous, Syria, on Sunday, April 13. 
Flames engulf a vehicle following a car bomb Wednesday, April 9, in the Karm al-Loz neighborhood of Homs. 
A man carries a child who was found in the rubble of an Aleppo building after it was reportedly bombed by government forces on Monday, March 18. 
An elderly man and a child walk among debris in a residential block of Aleppo on March 18. 
A woman with blood on her face carries a child following a reported airstrike by government forces Saturday, March 15, in Aleppo. 
People attempt to comfort a man in Aleppo after a reported airstrike by government forces on Sunday, March 9. 
Buildings in Homs lay in ruins on March 9. 
Syrian forces fire a cannon and a heavy machine gun loaded on a truck as they fight rebels in the Syrian town of Zara on Saturday, March 8. 
A handout photo released by SANA shows Syrian President Bashar al-Assad speaking March 8 during a meeting in Damascus to mark the 51st anniversary of the 1963 revolution, when Baath Party supporters in the Syrian army seized power. Al-Assad said the country will go on with reconciliation efforts along with its fight against terrorism. 
Syrians inspect the rubble of destroyed buildings in Aleppo following a reported airstrike by Syrian government forces on Friday, March 7. 
People dig through the rubble of a building in Damascus that was allegedly hit by government airstrikes on Thursday, February 27. 
A boy walks ahead of men carrying the body of his mother in Aleppo on Saturday, February 22. According to activists, the woman was killed when explosive barrels were thrown by forces loyal to al-Assad. 
A man holds a baby who survived what activists say was an airstrike by al-Assad loyalists Friday, February 14, in Aleppo. 
In this photo provided by the anti-government activist group Aleppo Media Center, Syrian men help survivors out of a building in Aleppo after it was bombed, allegedly by a Syrian regime warplane on Saturday, February 8. 
Syrians gather at a site hit by barrel bombs, allegedly dropped by a regime helicopter on the opposition-controlled Mesekin Hananu district of Aleppo on February 8. 
In this handout photo released by the state-run SANA news agency on February 8, civilians wave national flags in Damascus as they take part in a rally in support of President al-Assad. 
A man stands next to debris in the road following a reported airstrike by Syrian government forces in Aleppo on February 8. 
Medical personnel look for survivors after a reported airstrike in Aleppo on Saturday, February 1. 
Syrians carry a dead body following an airstrike on February 1. 
A man walks amid debris and dust on January 31. 
An injured man is covered in dust after an airstrike on January 29. 
A man tries to fix electrical wires in Aleppo on January 27. 
Rebels and civilians check out a crater that activists say resulted from a Syrian government airstrike on an Aleppo bus station on Tuesday, January 21. 
Men rush to a site that Syrian government forces reportedly hit in Aleppo on January 21. 
Buildings lie in ruins in Aleppo on Sunday, January 19, after reported air raids by Syrian government planes. 
A child collects items from a garbage pile in Douma, Syria, northeast of the capital, on Saturday, January 18. 
A piece of exploded mortar lies in a street in Daraya, a Syrian city southwest of Damascus, on Friday, January 17. Photos: Syrian civil war in 2014 For some gang members, joining ISIS could even make real the mythologized gang life that made gang membership originally so appealing. Real gang life -- where gang members stand around in the rain waiting for something to happen, or beg, borrow, and steal converted imitation firearms to make good on their threats -- rarely lives up to the hype. Hence, many real gang members still live at home with their mothers.
ISIS, by contrast, lives up to the myth. ISIS is armed to the teeth with samurai swords and Kalashnikovs. ISIS governs vast territories and shapes futures. ISIS, flush with oil money, pays far better than minimum wage. ISIS is the street gang on steroids.
Like many gangs, ISIS grew out of another group (al Qaeda in Iraq,) evolved under charismatic authority (Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi,) made some territorial gains (Syria and Iraq,) changed its name a few times (IS, ISIS, ISIL,) and, eventually, provoked a militarized response. In no way does this diminish the threat ISIS poses. In gang colors, dissing a rival gang in a self-produced YouTube video earns you five minutes of fame at best. Under ISIS's black flag, beheading an aid worker guarantees life in 24-hour news in perpetuity.
Having studied how gangs work, I know first-hand some gang members are Islamists. Others are attracted by the concept of terrorism. When gang members identify with Islam, however, it is only on a superficial level. Above all, gang members desire to be feared, thus, as in the Muslim Boys case in London, they strategically pose as jihadists and trade on powerful false perceptions about links to al Qaeda.
READ: Will ISIS and al-Nusra team up?
When gang members identify with Islam, however, it is only on a superficial level
James Densley
Both groups also look for all possible ways to enhance their reputation for violence because violence has a property that other commodities lack: A reputation for violence reduces the need for actual violence. To this end, just as Internet-based forms of communication play a key role in the cultural transmission of gang symbols and practice, technology also "advances the motives and accelerates the methods of radicalization." Contrary to popular belief, however, neither gangs nor terrorist groups formally "recruit" via the Internet because "cheap talk" online cannot be trusted.
Another thing gangs and terrorists group share, is a deep tension between personnel needs and infiltration risks. As a result, many are called to both groups but few are chosen. Material incentives attract opportunists, so groups screen for commitment. Illegal activity attracts law enforcement, so they also screen for trustworthiness.
Terrorists recruit in mosques for the same reasons gangs recruit in neighborhoods -- racial and ethnic homogeneity and residential stability inherently promote trust and, in the context of repeated interaction, reputations are acquired and authenticated.
But radicalization, like gang membership, lives on a spectrum. Radicalization, like gang membership, is also a gradual process. It begins with personal relationships. Lost men congregate at mosques, in neighborhoods, and online, finding others like them. They build friendships around their faith and its obligations or along the lines of shared identities and social networks. Eventually, this "bunch of guys" comes to constitute a closed society that provides a sense of meaning that otherwise does not exist in the larger world.
Terror intervention, like gang intervention, needs an emphasis not on the traditional "hot spots" for radicalization, but rather the "hot people" most deeply embedded in extremist networks. This is important. The old "hot spot" approach to gang suppression alienated communities of color by reinforcing the "us versus them" mentality that forced many people into gangs in the first place.
Our current version of "shock and awe" in response to ISIS risks prompting retaliation for the same reason: It gives legitimacy to the extremist argument that the West is complicit in the death of Muslims around the world.
As they say in the gang, if you live by the gun, you die by the gun. To bring peace, both on the streets and in Syria, underlying social and political grievances must be addressed.
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The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of James Densley.
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