What Is Gang Stalking?

Last Updated on September 1, 2022 by Fair Punishment Team

Gang stalking is any kind of behavior whereby a larger group of people target an individual and use intimidation tactics to harass them.

It can happen for a numerous amount of reasons, but the individual is usually targeted as a result of religious beliefs, racial prejudice, or social reasons. 

What Is Gang Stalking

Gang stalking is considered to be a civil offense, so why is it so prevalent? Even in society today gang stalking proves to be an issue.

If you want to find out more about gang stalking in general, including the different types of behaviors demonstrated by the perpetrators, keep reading, as we take a deeper look into the topic below. 

What Exactly Does Gang Stalking Mean? 

Gang stalking refers to any situation where a person is being victimized by a group of people, and is the subject of harassment.

As mentioned above, it usually happens as a result of religious beliefs held by the individual, racial prejudices, or any differences in the core beliefs of the victim. 

Gang stalking is actually far more prevalent than people first think, as studies show that 0.17 percent of men feel as though they’ve been gang stalked.

Women are even more prevalent victims of gang stalking, with 0.66 reporting that they have been made the target of such behaviors. 

This means that it’s a real issue in the world that we’re living in today, and needs to be properly addressed by authorities if and when it occurs. 

The Definition Of ‘Gang’

First of all, in order to break down the properly defined meaning of gang stalking, let’s take a closer look at the lexicology.

The Oxford dictionary defines the word ‘gang’, as ‘an organized group of criminals’. 

This demonstrates clearly that a gang consists of an unruly group of people who are working together in an organized fashion, in order to commit unlawful acts. 

The Definition Of ‘Stalking’

Now, let’s move on to the definition of ‘stalking’, which makes up the second portion of our ultimate definition. ‘Stalking’, according to the Oxford dictionary, has been defined as ‘the crime of following and watching somebody over a long period of time in a way that is annoying or frightening’. 

As we can see from this description, stalking refers to monitoring somebody very closely to the point where it borders on obsessiveness, subsequently frightening the person or causing them extreme annoyance. 

The Definition of ‘Gang Stalking’

Now that we’ve looked at the individual definition of both of these words, we can now put them together in order to derive their meaning. ‘Gang stalking’, therefore, is an act whereby an organized group of people follow or watch somebody for a long period of time, which is frightening in nature. 

Is Gang Stalking Real? 

As we touched on before, gang stalking is a real issue that is experienced by both men and women in the world today.

As we can see from the definition of gang stalking though, it doesn’t actually refer to being stalked by an actual street gang, but instead, a group of people who are intent on causing psychological or physical harm. 

It is essentially a heighted form of bullying, usually towards one person, by a larger group of people who all have the same intention of causing distress.

Unfortunately, this kind of harassment is most common amongst school children, who are targeted by their peers. 

It usually happens if the victim is different in some way, sometimes because of race and religion, and other times, simply because they do not behave in a way that is deemed acceptable by their peers. 

It is possible that gang stalking may also occur when an individual is older, for example, when they’re in college and become the victim of gang stalking by their fellow students.

It can also happen in the workplace with a group of adults who have targeted their workmate. 

Who Is The Victim Of Gang Stalking? 

As we touched on before, most anybody can be the victim of gang stalking, provided they stand out in some way that is not deemed acceptable by their peers. 

Things that can make somebody the victim involve being of a different ethnicity to their peers, and experiencing racialized prejudice, having a different religious belief system from their peers, and also being of a different sexual orientation and the subject of homophobia. 

Most of the time though, it is far more complicated and is not always due to the issues mentioned above. Most cases are individual, and the prejudices held by the stalkers are more personal, and due to the characteristics of the victim themselves. 

It can often be due to jealousy too, and somebody who is deemed to be smart and intelligent may be the subject of harassment by a group of people who are trying to make them feel unworthy in order to raise their own self esteem. 

Ostracizing and intimidation are also strong motivations for gang stalking, as the perpetrators might feel weak themselves, and intimidating others may give them a false sense of power.

Revenge can also be a source of motivation, when the perpetrators believe that the victim has wronged them in some way and they need to be punished.

This behavior can be observed in the animal kingdom with mammals. According to biologists many mammals will gather together and engage in a tactic called ‘mobbing’, in order to overwhelm the victim.  

How Many People Are Involved In Gang Stalking? 

The number of people stalking an individual varies greatly depending on the specific situation. It can even happen where a group of people who don’t really know each other band together to target the victim over mutual dislike. 

On the other hand, many times, gang stalking can be highly orchestrated, and the group of people will strategically discuss the ways in which they will act in order to make the victim feel as uncomfortable as possible.

It usually happens in the real life world, where the gang has direct contact with the victim in order to make them feel uncomfortable.

In today’s world, however, gang stalking can also happen online over social media platforms.

Because of the accessibility of finding information about victims online, and the ability to contact people directly over email and messages, it is easy for people to be bullied over the computer screen, without ever directly meeting the person harassing them. 

Social media bullying is often one of the most toxic kinds of gang stalking, because thousands of people can get involved in order to make a person feel afraid or distressed. 

There can often be threats to physically harm the victim posted online, but with the anonymity of social media, the perpetrators may feel safe that their identity won’t be discovered, causing them to engage in more threatening behaviors.

It is also possible that the victim may receive telephone calls from their stalkers, relentlessly threatening them in a verbal manner. 

What Is Gang Stalking

What Are The Consequences Of Gang Stalking? 

You may be wondering, given the seriousness of the act of gang stalking, if it is actually recognized as a criminal offense. Unfortunately, it is not considered to be an actual criminal offense, but rather a misdemeanor. 

It can, however, be considered a felony, depending on the jurisdiction and the individual acts that have been committed within the period of gang stalking. For example, if the stalkers were to set fire to the person’s car or other personal property, they would be persecuted on account of this. 

The reason behind the gang stalking itself is also another thing which will determine if the stalkers are convicted or not.

For example, if the person who is being harassed is victimized on account of their ethnicity or their religious background, this could constitute a hate crime, which the stalkers could be persecuted for. 

Some of the severe consequences that could happen to those who are engaging in gang stalking include: 

  • Community service
  • Rehabilitation attendance
  • Probation
  • Fines
  • Serving time in jail

If the person who has been engaging in gang stalking is a past offender with previous criminal convictions, then this may mean that they will receive a harsher sentence than those who do not. 

Gaslighting Used By Gang Stalkers

One of the main forms of tactics that those who are engaging in gang stalking use is gaslighting. Gaslighting is a technique used to make the victim feel as though they are exaggerating or simply imagining the abuse that they’re suffering. 

The way in which the abusers achieve this is by making the victim doubt their own reality by denying facts, denying any memories that the victim may have regarding the abuse, bullying them into believing the perpetrators version of events, and simply by undermining the victims judgment. 

The term ‘gaslighting’ actually dates back to the 1930’s, where it first appeared in a movie where the primary character is trying to make their spouse believe that they are going insane, through dimming the gas lights in their home, then denying that it’s any darker, slowly convincing her that she’s losing her mind. 

The spouse is so convincing in making her believe their version of reality, that the lights aren’t getting any dimmer, that the victim truly thinks that she’s lost touch with reality.

The wife then becomes heavily dependent on the husband, because she doesn’t believe that she is of sound judgment anymore. 

After this happens, she relies on him to separate fact from fiction, thereby granting him ultimate control and power over her life. 

This may sound familiar to those who have experienced gang stalking, as it’s an incredibly common tactic used by those doing the bullying.

The perpetrators may change the narrative to make it sound as if this victim is the one to blame, or that they are suffering from delusion or a mental disorder where they’re not of sound mind. 

How Can We Prevent Gang Stalking From Happening? 

The first thing that victims of gang stalking need to do is to believe their own narrative, and not give in to the claims made by the stalkers undervaluing their claims. There needs to be a level of trust within the victim themselves that what they are experiencing is valid and true. 

The best way to do this is to keep a journal, where they are able to document everything that happens to them along the way. They can take note of all of the tactics used by the bullies, as well as some of the actions they’ve taken to victimize them. 

If the situation is safe enough to do so, the victim can also record the harassment itself on a mobile device, so that there is evidence of what is going on. 

The best thing that the victim can do is to simply surround themselves with loved ones. Being the victim of gang stalking can make the individual feel incredibly isolated and detached from the world, but this simply isn’t the reality.

There are many people out there willing to support and help them through this difficult time. 

It is also important that if a person becomes the victim of gang stalking, and they have been subject to violence, or they suspect that things could be headed in that direction, that they take the proper measures to protect themselves. 

This means wearing protective clothing, such as a helmet if they’re planning on cycling, as well as an alarm to press if things go awry. If it is legal in the victim’s state, they may also carry pepper spray in order to protect themselves from harassment. 

The victim should always make sure that they walk in crowded areas, where there are lots of other people who can bear witness to what is going on, so that they can’t be targeted by the gang individually. 

What Should The Victim Do About Gang Stalking? 

If you are somebody who is experiencing gang stalking yourself, then it would be incredibly beneficial to see a mental health professional such as a therapist so that you can talk about what’s going on. Your mental health is the most important thing. 

If you are being targeted as a result of your religious background, race, or sexual orientation, know that you have plenty of support out there. If you are African American and experiencing racial abuse, for example, there are many organizations out there who can help you, such as the ACLU, or NAACP.

Some other resources for victims include:

  • Anti defamation league
  • Black lives matter
  • Las Americas immigrant advocacy center
  • Council on American Islamic relations 

Final Thoughts

Although gang stalking may sometimes seem like the product of televised programs, it is a real threat for many people in modern society today.

One of the main tactics used by gang stalkers is gaslighting, so it is important that the victim takes notes of everything that has been happening to use as evidence later. There are resources out there that victims can reach out to for help if they are the subject of gang stalking.