Crips and Bloods: Made in America
Encyclopedia
Crips and Bloods: Made in America is a documentary
by Stacy Peralta
discussing the unique circumstances and factors that led to the creation of Crips
and Bloods
, two of the most violent gangs in all of United States
history. The documentary goes beyond the general background of and discusses the external factors that fueled the African American
youth to turn to gangs. It also raises many questions regarding the government responses/lack thereof to such minority conflict.
Skipp, Nikko and Bow Wow: Former bloods and crips members joing together as a part of UNITY ONE, working to help active gang members to make a better living and make the transformation they need.
Rock Johnson: Former original Compton
crip members, current is a National Chief of Staff, Amer-I-Can and founder of I-Can Youth Foundation.
Vicky D. Lindsey: Founded and operates “Project Cry No More”, a privately- funded organization, which is dedicated to providing therapy to mother who have lost their children to gang violence.
Minister Tony Muhammad: West regional representative for the Nation of Islam
and founder of “Peace Makers
” which is a privately- funded program dedicated to resolving gang conflict.
T. Rodgers: Founder of “Sidewalk University” , authored two books on gang culture and is bringing armistice
to gangs of all color and denominations, nationally and internationally.
Aquil Basheer who is Maximum Force Enterprises and Aqeela Sherrils who is Reverence Project, both currently direct the intervention program specializing in the violence abatement, truce negotiation and youth empowerment.
Terry Goudeau, Naji and James Harris: Original gang members and now working as community recovery and reconciliation counselors.
Jim Brown
: Pro football hall of famer, and founder of the Amer-I-Can foundation and Program, helping provide life management skills and resource to at-risk youth for over 20 years.
Kumasi, Bird, and Ron: Activist, educators and community leaders, all former Slausons, are dedicated to forgoing broader unity between African-Americans and Latino
s.
beaches. It is about five to ten miles from Hollywood. It is about twenty miles from Anaheim
, Disneyland, and the Orange County
. These gangs are “surrounded by the American Dream
,” a dream so far that it cannot even be imagined by the members of these gangs. The documentary states that gang violence between the Crips and Bloods has taken more lives than the 15,000 lives lost in Ireland's sectarian conflict.
or Explorer Scouts of America. He stated that he, like most other young African American males, was constantly shut out of such predominantly white organized activities or organizations. He felt that it was almost like there was nowhere for young African American men to turn. Bird accounts a lack of a sense of identity or acceptance and that is when African American males began forming their own fraternities.
It began with small competition, between neighborhoods and streets, and definitely was not as violent. Groups like the Slausans, Del Vikings, and the Gladiators
formed. (http://articles.latimes.com/2008/may/03/local/me-businessmen3). Often, they fought protected against the white gangs of the area terrorizing the African American neighborhoods (http://www.communitywalk.com/location/the_slausons/info/944937). in these brotherhoods African Americans found acceptance and a sense of identity.
. Therefore, the Los Angeles Police Department
, especially under Chief Officer William Parker
regulated the Los Angeles
area “like a military.” African Americans were to remain in their neighborhoods at all times. Like Kumasi said, you had to be at the “right neighborhood at the right time. You couldn’t go to Alameda
, for example.” That was a predominantly white neighborhood, where African Americans were not wanted. Kumasi further discusses the invisible barriers that African Americans were not allowed to cross. If one was found simply walking through the “wrong neighborhood,” he was questioned and investigated almost like a criminal. There was in essence no freedom to walk to streets of a free country.
Kumasi described the experience of an African American male of Los Angeles as a “walking time bomb
.” They were experiencing so much hatred from the police that sooner or later they would irrupt. “The only question was upon whom,” said Kumasi.
against them. Chief Officer William Parker only fueled the already racialized tension by calling African American “monkeys in a zoo.” The documentary discussed how it was all over the news and media. Let alone the Los Angeles Times
, newspapers all over the nations were covering the Watts Riots of Los Angeles.
Institutional changes occurred afterwards. The documentary discussed the changes that were led by Black Panther Organization
and then the backlash against these organizations. FBI investigations began, claiming that “Black panthers were the biggest threat to internal stability of USA.” Its leaders were killed, murdered, jailed, etc. After those leaders disappeared, the new generation started – Crips and Bloods (see background, membership, and history below).
was different from the South. There were no prior bus laws
or segregation
in public schools. However, there were covenants against black housing. There was neighborhood segregation. Even after outlawing it eventually, neighborhoods stayed that way.
Industrialization hit in Los Angeles in the late 1950s in response to the booming industries of the country. The American economy was changing to an economy with either high end or low end job. African Americans found themselves displaced in the job market. They did not have the prior skills, knowledge, or education to perform the high wage technological jobs, due to the historical discrimination
and lack of opportunities. They also did not feel like they, as U.S. citizens, should have to do the low labor jobs either. After all, they felt that they were above the immigrant low level jobs. In turn, they found themselves totally displaced from the labor market. Eventually, by the latter half of the 1960s, jobs and factories both disappeared from the Los Angeles region. Consequences were enormous. Businesses are empty and there is nowhere to turn. It simply becomes harder and harder to survive as time goes on.
, even the African American families were torn apart. The family institution became dysfunctional as well. There were no male role model
s in the family any longer. Seventy percents of black children are born to single mothers. Twenty eight percent of all black men will be jailed in their lifetime. There is a disproportionate number of black males in prison, making the possibility of a male figure in an African American family even less likely.
Crips were founded by Raymond Washington
and Stanley Williams
in Los Angeles, California in 1969. Washington and Williams decided to unite a few local gangs from different sides of Los Angeles in order to battle against the other neighboring street gangs. Washington and Williams wanted to start the gang to protect their territory in South Central Los Angeles from the other dangerous gangs. Williams said his intent in starting the Crips was to “address all of the so-called neighboring gangs in the area and to put, in a sense—I thought 'I can cleanse the neighborhood of all these, you know, marauding gangs.' But I was totally wrong. And eventually, we morphed into 60's Crips the monster we were addressing." ("A Conversation with Death Row
Prisoner Stanley Tookie Williams from his San Quentin Cell". 2005-11-30. Retrieved 2009-01-31)
Ironically, Washington disliked firearm
s and knives and believed that only hand-to-hand combat demonstrated the real strength of a man. Since his early years, Washington often got into fights and was in trouble with the Los Angeles Police Department. He was always a muscular and athletic man, but was excluded from sports due to his poor grades and his constant expulsions. Washington was murder
ed five days from his 26th birthday on August 9, 1979. His murder still remains unsolved.
s – their cane and their walk caused people in their neighborhoods starting to calling them cripples. It was later cut short to crips.
Crips usually have blue in their clothing, which also came to represent their gang. Williams recalled that one of the Crips leaders Buddha often wore a blue bandana
. Since then, the color blue has been associated with Crips.
, who had first associated themselves with the Crips, separated, forming the biggest, most infamous, rivalry in the United States history, the Bloods.
during the 1970s (5: “War and Peace in Watts”. LA Weekly. July 14, 2005. They joined other smaller gangs and became known as the Bloods, with the primary enemy as the Crips.
Bloods are often known as the MOBs (“Members of Bloods”). Bloods are call themselves the CKs (“Crip Killers). Blood greet each other by saying the word “blood.” They try to avoid any word which starts with or even includes the letter ‘C.’ They also establish UBN (United Blood Nation). By burning three dots with cigarette
s into everyone’s shoulder, indicating their membership to the United Blood Natnlod
Blood members usually are African American and males, but some newer fractions/sets had females and other ethnicities.
The “Associates” were not fully members of the gang yet. They mostly just took part in some or few of the criminal activities. Many times, women were associates because they would help carry the gang members’ guns or hold on to drugs. Women could even prostitute to make money for the gang.
Bloods’ general members were called the “Soldiers.” Soldiers usually consisted of young African American males around the age of 16-22. In general, they were the more dangerous gang member, because they were looking for an opportunity to show their commitment. They were many times willing to do just about anything to get respect
within the gang. By committing the dangerous acts, they would not only make their name within the gang, but also gained respect from the gang’s leaders.
Once a gang was fully joined, there was no turning back or switching.
“Big Homies” were the senior leaders of the Bloods. Leaders were chosen by age and criminal record
. In general, the older the member and the more dangerous the criminal record meant the higher the rank.
By 1996, Bloods had thousands of members. During this period, Bloods were much more violent than any other gangs, but they were still not well-organized.
, due to the color red. Some also wear Dallas Cowboys
, because of their five-pointed logo.
Many blood gang members can be found on Thehoodup.com, which is gathering for other gang members beside blood also. The reason for many of the gang members to use this website is to stay anonymous from the Internet
police and ability to say whatever and not get tracked.
Documentary
A documentary is a creative work of non-fiction, including:* Documentary film, including television* Radio documentary* Documentary photographyRelated terms include:...
by Stacy Peralta
Stacy Peralta
Stacy Peralta is an American director and entrepreneur. Peralta was previously a professional skateboarder and surfer with the professional skateboarding group, the Z-Boys.-Early life:...
discussing the unique circumstances and factors that led to the creation of Crips
Crips
The Crips are a primarily, but not exclusively, African American gang. They were founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1969 mainly by Raymond Washington and Stanley Williams...
and Bloods
Bloods
The Bloods are a street gang founded in Los Angeles, California. The gang is widely known for its rivalry with the Crips. They are identified by the red color worn by their members and by particular gang symbols, including distinctive hand signs...
, two of the most violent gangs in all of United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
history. The documentary goes beyond the general background of and discusses the external factors that fueled the African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
youth to turn to gangs. It also raises many questions regarding the government responses/lack thereof to such minority conflict.
Cast
Bo Taylor: He is former Schoolyard Crip, founder of UNITY ONE, a privately funded organization dedicated to peace making and the transformation of gang members into productive citizens.Skipp, Nikko and Bow Wow: Former bloods and crips members joing together as a part of UNITY ONE, working to help active gang members to make a better living and make the transformation they need.
Rock Johnson: Former original Compton
Compton, California
Compton is a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, southeast of downtown Los Angeles. The city of Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city to incorporate. The city is considered part of the South side by residents of Los...
crip members, current is a National Chief of Staff, Amer-I-Can and founder of I-Can Youth Foundation.
Vicky D. Lindsey: Founded and operates “Project Cry No More”, a privately- funded organization, which is dedicated to providing therapy to mother who have lost their children to gang violence.
Minister Tony Muhammad: West regional representative for the Nation of Islam
Nation of Islam
The Nation of Islam is a mainly African-American new religious movement founded in Detroit, Michigan by Wallace D. Fard Muhammad in July 1930 to improve the spiritual, mental, social, and economic condition of African-Americans in the United States of America. The movement teaches black pride and...
and founder of “Peace Makers
Peace makers
Peace makers are individuals and organisations involved in peacemaking in countries affected by war, violent conflict, and political instability. They engage in processes such as negotiation, mediation, conciliation, and arbitration – drawing on international law and norms...
” which is a privately- funded program dedicated to resolving gang conflict.
T. Rodgers: Founder of “Sidewalk University” , authored two books on gang culture and is bringing armistice
Armistice
An armistice is a situation in a war where the warring parties agree to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, but may be just a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace...
to gangs of all color and denominations, nationally and internationally.
Aquil Basheer who is Maximum Force Enterprises and Aqeela Sherrils who is Reverence Project, both currently direct the intervention program specializing in the violence abatement, truce negotiation and youth empowerment.
Terry Goudeau, Naji and James Harris: Original gang members and now working as community recovery and reconciliation counselors.
Jim Brown
Jim Brown
James Nathaniel "Jim" Brown is an American former professional football player who has also made his mark as an actor. He is best known for his exceptional and record-setting nine-year career as a running back for the NFL Cleveland Browns from 1957 to 1965. In 2002, he was named by Sporting News...
: Pro football hall of famer, and founder of the Amer-I-Can foundation and Program, helping provide life management skills and resource to at-risk youth for over 20 years.
Kumasi, Bird, and Ron: Activist, educators and community leaders, all former Slausons, are dedicated to forgoing broader unity between African-Americans and Latino
Latino
The demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...
s.
Setting
The setting of the movie is South Central Los Angeles. Both gangs of the Crips and the Bloods are only miles away from the richest cities of the richest state in the United States of America. South Central Los Angeles is ten miles away from Pacific Coast Highway and the Santa MonicaSanta Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
beaches. It is about five to ten miles from Hollywood. It is about twenty miles from Anaheim
Anaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...
, Disneyland, and the Orange County
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
. These gangs are “surrounded by the American Dream
American Dream
The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States in which freedom includes a promise of the possibility of prosperity and success. In the definition of the American Dream by James Truslow Adams in 1931, "life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each...
,” a dream so far that it cannot even be imagined by the members of these gangs. The documentary states that gang violence between the Crips and Bloods has taken more lives than the 15,000 lives lost in Ireland's sectarian conflict.
Substance
The documentary discusses the many, unique circumstances of the 1960s that lead to the creation of these violent gangs. Some of the factors that are discussed in the documentary are listed below:Lack of Organizational Acceptance, Identity
Blank Bird, now Blank Blank of Blank, discusses his multiple attempts to join youth organizations, such as the Boy Scouts of AmericaBoy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
or Explorer Scouts of America. He stated that he, like most other young African American males, was constantly shut out of such predominantly white organized activities or organizations. He felt that it was almost like there was nowhere for young African American men to turn. Bird accounts a lack of a sense of identity or acceptance and that is when African American males began forming their own fraternities.
It began with small competition, between neighborhoods and streets, and definitely was not as violent. Groups like the Slausans, Del Vikings, and the Gladiators
Gladiators
Gladiators is a British television series produced by LWT for ITV on Saturdays nights from 10 October 1992 to 1 January 2000. It is an adaptation of the United States game show American Gladiators. An Australian spin-off and a Swedish one followed...
formed. (http://articles.latimes.com/2008/may/03/local/me-businessmen3). Often, they fought protected against the white gangs of the area terrorizing the African American neighborhoods (http://www.communitywalk.com/location/the_slausons/info/944937). in these brotherhoods African Americans found acceptance and a sense of identity.
Regulation by Los Angeles Police Department
First and foremost, the media portrayed and the public perceives African American males as violent criminalsViolent crime
A violent crime or crime of violence is a crime in which the offender uses or threatens to use violent force upon the victim. This entails both crimes in which the violent act is the objective, such as murder, as well as crimes in which violence is the means to an end, such as robbery. Violent...
. Therefore, the Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
, especially under Chief Officer William Parker
William Parker
-Sportsmen:* Tony Parker, William Anthony Parker II, , Belgian basketball player* Smush Parker , American basketball player* Sir William Parker, 3rd Baronet , British rower and Olympic medalist*Will Parker, rugby union player...
regulated the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
area “like a military.” African Americans were to remain in their neighborhoods at all times. Like Kumasi said, you had to be at the “right neighborhood at the right time. You couldn’t go to Alameda
Alameda
Alameda is a Spanish word that means "A place full of poplars", and may refer to:-Colleges and universities:* College of Alameda, a two-year community college located in Alameda, California, in the United States-Music:...
, for example.” That was a predominantly white neighborhood, where African Americans were not wanted. Kumasi further discusses the invisible barriers that African Americans were not allowed to cross. If one was found simply walking through the “wrong neighborhood,” he was questioned and investigated almost like a criminal. There was in essence no freedom to walk to streets of a free country.
Kumasi described the experience of an African American male of Los Angeles as a “walking time bomb
Time bomb
A time bomb is a bomb whose detonation is triggered by a timer. The use time bombs has been for various purposes ranging from insurance fraud to warfare to assassination; however, the most common use has been for politically-motivated terrorism.-Construction:The explosive charge is the main...
.” They were experiencing so much hatred from the police that sooner or later they would irrupt. “The only question was upon whom,” said Kumasi.
Watts Riot
The documentary then goes on and demonstrates how these African American experiences set the stage for the Watts Riot. African Americans were killed for absolutely trivial crimes. After a police encounter leading to the arrest of an intoxicated male, his brother, and mother, African Americans took to the streets against the Los Angeles Police Department, protecting racial injusticesRacism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
against them. Chief Officer William Parker only fueled the already racialized tension by calling African American “monkeys in a zoo.” The documentary discussed how it was all over the news and media. Let alone the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, newspapers all over the nations were covering the Watts Riots of Los Angeles.
Institutional changes occurred afterwards. The documentary discussed the changes that were led by Black Panther Organization
Black Panther Party
The Black Panther Party wasan African-American revolutionary leftist organization. It was active in the United States from 1966 until 1982....
and then the backlash against these organizations. FBI investigations began, claiming that “Black panthers were the biggest threat to internal stability of USA.” Its leaders were killed, murdered, jailed, etc. After those leaders disappeared, the new generation started – Crips and Bloods (see background, membership, and history below).
Backdrop – California
CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
was different from the South. There were no prior bus laws
Jim Crow laws
The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws in the United States enacted between 1876 and 1965. They mandated de jure racial segregation in all public facilities, with a supposedly "separate but equal" status for black Americans...
or segregation
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
in public schools. However, there were covenants against black housing. There was neighborhood segregation. Even after outlawing it eventually, neighborhoods stayed that way.
Industrialization hit in Los Angeles in the late 1950s in response to the booming industries of the country. The American economy was changing to an economy with either high end or low end job. African Americans found themselves displaced in the job market. They did not have the prior skills, knowledge, or education to perform the high wage technological jobs, due to the historical discrimination
Discrimination
Discrimination is the prejudicial treatment of an individual based on their membership in a certain group or category. It involves the actual behaviors towards groups such as excluding or restricting members of one group from opportunities that are available to another group. The term began to be...
and lack of opportunities. They also did not feel like they, as U.S. citizens, should have to do the low labor jobs either. After all, they felt that they were above the immigrant low level jobs. In turn, they found themselves totally displaced from the labor market. Eventually, by the latter half of the 1960s, jobs and factories both disappeared from the Los Angeles region. Consequences were enormous. Businesses are empty and there is nowhere to turn. It simply becomes harder and harder to survive as time goes on.
Drugs
After the introduction of crack cocaineCrack cocaine
Crack cocaine is the freebase form of cocaine that can be smoked. It may also be termed rock, hard, iron, cavvy, base, or just crack; it is the most addictive form of cocaine. Crack rocks offer a short but intense high to smokers...
, even the African American families were torn apart. The family institution became dysfunctional as well. There were no male role model
Role model
The term role model generally means any "person who serves as an example, whose behaviour is emulated by others".The term first appeared in Robert K. Merton's socialization research of medical students...
s in the family any longer. Seventy percents of black children are born to single mothers. Twenty eight percent of all black men will be jailed in their lifetime. There is a disproportionate number of black males in prison, making the possibility of a male figure in an African American family even less likely.
Crips - Founders
Crips are well-known as one of the most violent and largest gang in the United States, with an estimated membership of around 35 to 40 thousand members.Crips were founded by Raymond Washington
Raymond Washington
Raymond Lee Washington was the original founder of the South Central Los Angeles street gang the Crips....
and Stanley Williams
Stanley Williams
Stanley Tookie Williams III was the co-founder of the Crips, a notorious American street gang which had its roots in South Central Los Angeles in 1969. In 1979 he was convicted of four murders committed in the course of robberies, sentenced to death, and eventually executed...
in Los Angeles, California in 1969. Washington and Williams decided to unite a few local gangs from different sides of Los Angeles in order to battle against the other neighboring street gangs. Washington and Williams wanted to start the gang to protect their territory in South Central Los Angeles from the other dangerous gangs. Williams said his intent in starting the Crips was to “address all of the so-called neighboring gangs in the area and to put, in a sense—I thought 'I can cleanse the neighborhood of all these, you know, marauding gangs.' But I was totally wrong. And eventually, we morphed into 60's Crips the monster we were addressing." ("A Conversation with Death Row
Death row
Death row signifies the place, often a section of a prison, that houses individuals awaiting execution. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting execution , even in places where no special facility or separate unit for condemned inmates exists.After individuals are found...
Prisoner Stanley Tookie Williams from his San Quentin Cell". 2005-11-30. Retrieved 2009-01-31)
Ironically, Washington disliked firearm
Firearm
A firearm is a weapon that launches one, or many, projectile at high velocity through confined burning of a propellant. This subsonic burning process is technically known as deflagration, as opposed to supersonic combustion known as a detonation. In older firearms, the propellant was typically...
s and knives and believed that only hand-to-hand combat demonstrated the real strength of a man. Since his early years, Washington often got into fights and was in trouble with the Los Angeles Police Department. He was always a muscular and athletic man, but was excluded from sports due to his poor grades and his constant expulsions. Washington was murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
ed five days from his 26th birthday on August 9, 1979. His murder still remains unsolved.
Crips and Blue
The name “Crips” was chosen after narrowing down to various names. It reflected the young age of majority of the gang members - a large majority of them were only 17 years old. The words crips generated from the young gangers member acting like pimpPimp
A pimp is an agent for prostitutes who collects part of their earnings. The pimp may receive this money in return for advertising services, physical protection, or for providing a location where she may engage clients...
s – their cane and their walk caused people in their neighborhoods starting to calling them cripples. It was later cut short to crips.
Crips usually have blue in their clothing, which also came to represent their gang. Williams recalled that one of the Crips leaders Buddha often wore a blue bandana
Bandana
Bandana can refer to:*Another name for a kerchief*Bandana *Bandana *Bandana, Kentucky, a small town in the United States*Y Bandana, a Welsh alternative rock band.**Y Bandana , their self-titled debut album....
. Since then, the color blue has been associated with Crips.
Crips’ Rivalry
In 1971, Crips’ biggest rivlery formed. The Piru Street Boys from Compton, CaliforniaCompton, California
Compton is a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, southeast of downtown Los Angeles. The city of Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city to incorporate. The city is considered part of the South side by residents of Los...
, who had first associated themselves with the Crips, separated, forming the biggest, most infamous, rivalry in the United States history, the Bloods.
Bloods
Bloods are a street gang, started in Los Angeles, California. Bloods originated from the Pirus Street Gang, which broke up during an internal gang warGang War
Gang War is a 1928 gangster film, best known for being the main feature attached to Steamboat Willie, the debut of Mickey Mouse in sound. The film starred Jack Pickford in his last major role, as "Clyde", a saxophone player whose love for a dancer named Flowers traps him in the middle of a gang war...
during the 1970s (5: “War and Peace in Watts”. LA Weekly. July 14, 2005. They joined other smaller gangs and became known as the Bloods, with the primary enemy as the Crips.
Bloods are often known as the MOBs (“Members of Bloods”). Bloods are call themselves the CKs (“Crip Killers). Blood greet each other by saying the word “blood.” They try to avoid any word which starts with or even includes the letter ‘C.’ They also establish UBN (United Blood Nation). By burning three dots with cigarette
Cigarette
A cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...
s into everyone’s shoulder, indicating their membership to the United Blood Natnlod
Blood members usually are African American and males, but some newer fractions/sets had females and other ethnicities.
The “Associates” were not fully members of the gang yet. They mostly just took part in some or few of the criminal activities. Many times, women were associates because they would help carry the gang members’ guns or hold on to drugs. Women could even prostitute to make money for the gang.
Bloods’ general members were called the “Soldiers.” Soldiers usually consisted of young African American males around the age of 16-22. In general, they were the more dangerous gang member, because they were looking for an opportunity to show their commitment. They were many times willing to do just about anything to get respect
Respect
Respect denotes both a positive feeling of esteem for a person or other entity , and also specific actions and conduct representative of that esteem. Respect can be a specific feeling of regard for the actual qualities of the one respected...
within the gang. By committing the dangerous acts, they would not only make their name within the gang, but also gained respect from the gang’s leaders.
Once a gang was fully joined, there was no turning back or switching.
“Big Homies” were the senior leaders of the Bloods. Leaders were chosen by age and criminal record
Criminal record
A criminal record is a record of a person's criminal history, generally used by potential employers, lenders etc. to assess his or her trustworthiness. The information included in a criminal record varies between countries and even between jurisdictions within a country...
. In general, the older the member and the more dangerous the criminal record meant the higher the rank.
By 1996, Bloods had thousands of members. During this period, Bloods were much more violent than any other gangs, but they were still not well-organized.
Identification
Bloods members usually identified themselves with color red. Everything from their jewelry, clothing, and tattoos had red. Sometime they even affiliated themselves with the sports team such as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and the Chicago BullsChicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
, due to the color red. Some also wear Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
, because of their five-pointed logo.
Bloods’ Rivalry
At the time of their establishment in the 1970s, Crips outnumbered the Bloods almost three to one. The purpose for the Blood was to compete against the Crips in Los Angeles streets.Many blood gang members can be found on Thehoodup.com, which is gathering for other gang members beside blood also. The reason for many of the gang members to use this website is to stay anonymous from the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
police and ability to say whatever and not get tracked.