Introduction
A gang is a group of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collectively, in illegal, and possibly violent, behavior. Some criminal gang members are "jumped in" (by going through a process of initiation), or they have to prove their loyalty and right to belong by committing certain acts, usually theft or violence. A member of a gang may be called a gangster, a gang banger, or, less specifically, a thug.
A number of gangs have gained notoriety throughout history, including the Italian Mafia, the Russian mafia, the Irish mob, the Polish mob, the Jewish mob, the Albanian mafia, the Yakuza in Japan, the Kkangpae in Korea, the Triad in China, the gangs of New England, the Jamaican Shower Posse and Yardies, the African-American Crips and Bloods, Latino gangs such as Latin Kings (gang), MS-13, Sureños, and Trinitarios, white supremacist gangs such as the Aryan Brotherhood, Aryan Nations and biker gangs like Hells Angels.
Selected articles
The Latin Kings are said to be the largest and most organized Hispanic street gang in the United States of America. The Latin Kings first emerged in Chicago, Illinois in the 1940s after several young Puerto Rican males on the north side—and later, Mexican males on the south side—organized into a self-defense group to protect their communities. The initial intention was to unite "all Latinos" into a collective struggle against "oppression" and to help each other overcome the problems of racism and prejudice that newly arriving Latino immigrants were experiencing. Hence, the name "Latin Kings and Queens", which as it denotes, is a reference to members of all Latino heritages. They organized themselves as a vanguard for their communities.
Like the Black Panthers, the Young Lords, and many other groups perceiving social injustices directed at their kind, the Latin Kings were broken as a movement. They lost touch with their roots and grew into one of the largest and most infamous criminal gangs in the United States. The group's members became involved in crimes including murder, drug trafficking, robberies and other organized criminal activities...
Mara Salvatrucha (commonly abbreviated as MS and Mara, and MS-13) is a criminal gang that originated in Los Angeles and has spread to Central America, other parts of the United States, and Canada. MS-13 is one of the most dangerous gangs in the United States. The majority of the gang is ethnically composed of Salvadorans, Hondurans, Guatemalans, and Nicaraguans.
Their activities have caught the eye of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), who in September 2005 initiated wide-scale raids against suspected gang members, netting 660 arrests across United States. ICE efforts were at first directed towards MS-13, in its Operation Community Shield. In May 2005, ICE expanded Operation Community Shield to include all transnational organized crime and prison gangs. ICE's Operation Community Shield has since arrested 7,655 street gang members. In the United States, the gang's strongholds have historically been in the American Southwest and West Coast states. Membership in the U.S was believed to be as many as about 50,000 as of 2005. MS-13 criminal activities include drug smuggling and sales, arms trafficking, auto theft, carjacking, home invasion, assault, aggravated assault, assault on law enforcement officials, drive-by shootings, contract killing and murder.
Did you know...
...although Los Angeles is considered the Gang capital of America, with an estimated 120,000 gang members, Chicago (which has approximately 1 million fewer people than Los Angeles) actually has a higher rate of gang membership per capita than Los Angeles, with an estimated 100,000 gang members. Also, the state of Illinois has a higher rate of gang membership (8–11 gang members per 1,000 population) than California (5–7 gang members per 1,000 population)[1]
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Bonnie and Clyde were notorious bank robbers who, with their gang, traveled the Central United States during the Great Depression.
Subcategories
Gang topics
The following are topics relating to Gangs.
General topics: | Criminal tattoos • Gang signal • Organized crime • Prison gang
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Criminal activities: | Murder • Contract killing • Drive-by shooting • drug trafficking • assault • robbery • auto theft • carjacking • home invasion • weapon trafficking • illegal gambling |
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Articles by class
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- GA-class
- None • •
- B-class
- Gang • Hells Angels • Ku Klux Klan • Russian Mafia • The Purple Gang • Triad (underground societies)
- C-class
- 14K Triad • Crips • Gang colors • Gangs in New Zealand • Gypsy Joker Motorcycle Club
- Start-class
- Latin Kings (gang) • 18th Street gang • Aryan Brotherhood • Aryan Nations • Almighty Vice Lord Nation • Black P. Stones • Bloods • Born to Kill (gang) • Contract killing • Criminal tattoo • Dominicans Don't Play • Dixie Mafia • Folk Nation • Gangs in Australia • Gangs in Canada • Gang signal • Gangster Disciples • Irish Mob • Los Zetas • Mexican Mafia • Mickey Cobras • Organized crime • Pagans Motorcycle Club • People Nation • Prison gang • Popes (gang) • Public Enemy No. 1 • Simon City Royals • Tiny Rascal Gang • Trinitario • Teardrop tattoo
- Future-class
- Mara Salvatrucha • •
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