This is a brief introduction to criminal gangs and gang culture. It is important to understand gangs as a potential threat that your retreat group could face. I have not intended this to be comprehensive. It would be a very daunting task to list and detail every gang or disruptive group occurring in the U.S. What I intending to do is make you aware of something you may have overlooked I would like to enlighten the blog readers about another aspect of their situational awareness, namely gang recognition. This could be very important information for many people not just in a WTSHTF situation, but in everyday life in normal times. Many people do not live at their retreat, but may live or perhaps work in a gangland area.