Gang Leader for a day

Gang Leader for a Day by Sudhir Venkatesh was a very unique piece of literature that I have come across so far. I got introduced to the concept of Ethnography for the first time in the HCI course and I found this book to be a wonderful source of knowledge about Ethnography. I had difficulty not drifting off into taking this entire information piece as a fiction story, while reading the book.

The reason this booked appealed to me in the very beginning was the author's dedication and passion for his work. After reading the chapter where the author just goes into the African American restricted community and starts interviewing the residents there, I kept getting more and more curious about how he managed to escape from the situations. This book was a very good eye-opener as it shows how the most "dangerous" people have a good side somewhere within them. I always had a mindset that actions form habits and habits in-turn form people, and that there is no way to change people if they don't have the right habits. After reading this book, I noticed how J.T. , being the leader of the Black Kings, showed signs of liking for the life that was completely opposite of his.

The most vital and interesting thing I learned from this book was the fact how there was the concept of a community organization within the Black King gang, and how people worked together for survival, even in the most adverse conditions.