A History of California's
Hispanic Gangs
by Al Valdez
Investigator, Orange County District Attorney's Office
The Origins of Hispanic Street Gangs
Most people believe that Los Angeles' Hispanic street gangs
can be traced to the early 1900s, but Hispanic street gangs
of the early 1900's developed as a result of incidents that
occurred more than 50 years earlier. In 1718, the Mission
of San Antonio Balera was established on the banks of the
San Antonio River in south central Texas. This mission later
became known as the Alamo. The southwestern portion of the
United States belonged to Mexico, but many Americans had
settled in these areas. By 1835, the revolt by Texans against
Mexican control of this area was in full swing. In February
1836, Colonel William Travis and 180 men took control of
the Alamo from the Mexicans.
On March 6 of that year, Mexican president
Santa Ana and approximately 3,000 Mexican soldiers attacked
the Alamo in an effort to regain control. The Americans
in the Alamo killed more than 400 Mexican soldiers during
the battle. The Mexican army prevailed, and the few U.S.
survivors surrendered to General Santa Ana who, to their
surprise, ordered their executions. Those orders were carried
out immediately. Word of this quickly spread throughout
the resistance movement, and the rallying cry for the Texas
forces became "Remember the Alamo." Anti-Mexican
sentiment had begun, and continued to grow during the conflict.
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed
in 1848, marked the end of the war between the United States
and Mexico. The United States paid Mexico $15 million plus
$3 million in compensation for the northwest portion of
Mexico. Today, that area is known as Nevada, California,
Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Texas and Colorado. Many Hispanic
street gang members felt (and still feel) that the United
States stole this part of Mexico from their ancestors. In
reality, Mexico lost less than 1% of its population. The
United States offered a naturalization program to those
Mexican citizens affected by the treaty. All but about 2,000
Mexican nationals residing in the area became naturalized
citizens of the U.S. Nevertheless, there was still a high
degree of resentment by many U.S. citizens against any Mexican
because of the memory of the Alamo. The California Gold
Rush of 1849 immediately followed this treaty. These events
set the attitude, social and economic conditions in Los
Angeles during the early 1900's. Those conditions, along
with the rapid growth of Los Angeles and other historical
events, helped to shape and direct the actions of L.A.'s
street gangs.
In the early 1900's, Los Angeles experienced
the birth of the first Hispanic street gangs. Mexican-Americans
who lived in the "pueblo" of Los Angeles still
felt displaced, even as naturalized citizens. Many of these
new Americans were treated like second-class citizens by
white Angelenos, and were told to go back to their home,
Mexico. In the minds of Hispanics in Los Angeles, they were
already home, but their home was now part of the United
States because of the annexation. They now lived in a country
that didn't want them, but they could not return to Mexico
because they were U.S. citizens.
The Mexican immigrants also tended to live
in the same areas, with family or other Mexicans who migrated
from the same geographical areas of Mexico. These neighborhoods
were often some of the poorest areas in rapidly growing
Los Angeles. These conditions aided in the development of
rivalries between various immigrant groups. A modern class
distinction was also developing. Sgt. Joe Guzman, Los Angeles
County Sheriff Department, an expert on Hispanic street
gangs, correctly points out that Mexican street gangs formed
in part due to economic conditions, prejudice and racism.
Irish street gangs formed in the 1800s in New York as a
result of these social conditions. In the early 1900s, similar
social and economic factors were present in Los Angeles,
giving rise to Hispanic street gangs.
The Los Angeles and El Paso Connection
During the early years of the 20th century, an underground
drug and prostitution market developed between Los Angeles
and El Paso, Texas. Early L.A. gang members started to mimic
the dress style, mannerisms and language of the Mexican
drug dealers and pimps that operated in these areas. During
this time, the Mexican youths also became interested in
swing music and started to use "Calo," a slang
blending Spanish and English.
By the 1920s, El Paso, Texas had become
a center for many immigrant Mexicans, much like Los Angeles.
In fact, an underground travel route developed between the
two cities. This route allowed El Paso trends to directly
influence the L.A. street gangs. In El Paso, Texas, many
of the Mexicans who went to prison were incarcerated in
Huntsville. While in the Huntsville prison, they formed
a prison gang called the El Paso Tip. El Paso Tip took it's
name from the area of Texas where the prison was located.
Fellow gang members would greet each other by saying: "are
you tipped up?" or "are you tipped?" According
to Sgt. Richard Valdemar (a prison gang expert with the
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department), this phrase meant:
"Are you from the El Paso area?" which referred
to the location of the Huntsville prison. El Paso Tip would
later become very influential in the Los Angeles street
gang culture.
The Depression Era and World War
II
The late 1920's saw the beginning of the Depression in the
United States. Most Americans today do not identify with
the term "Black Tuesday," which referred to October
24, 1929, the day the stock market crashed and brought the
American economy down with it. The depression, while influential
in the lives of America's Hispanic population, was less
influential to the growth of street gangs than the subsequent
economic recovery during the 1940s. The growth of the aircraft
industry and other industrial jobs created a "work
rush" which resembled California's Gold Rush in the
1800's, and brought many people to California, including
Mexican immigrants.
Also in the 1940's, according to Sgt. Joe
Guzman, Mickey Garcia, a young boy from Pachuca, Hidalgo,
Mexico migrated north and relocated in El Paso, Texas. He
immediately joined a local Mexican street gang called the
Secundo Barrio. Garcia also brought with him a unique style
of dress, initially thought to have originated in Mexico.
Garcia's dress style became an instant hit with all the
young people, especially the local gang members. His fashion
included a felt hat with a long feather in it, called a
tapa or tanda. The pants were pleated and baggy, and referred
to as tramas. The shirt was creased and called a lisa. A
carlango, a long, loose-fitting coat, was worn over the
ensemble. The shoes, called calcos, were French-toe style
or Stacy Adams brand and were always shined. To complete
the style, one had to have a long chain attached to the
belt loop that hung past the knee, and into the side pocket
of the pants. This outfit became known as the zoot suit,
and was later referred to as the pachuco look. In the past,
many angry parents would use the term pachuco to describe
this popular dress style. The word, Pachuco, was derived
from the town that Mickey Garcia's hometown: Pachuca, in
the state of Hidalgo, Mexico. Garcia was not the first to
wear the zoot suit in California or Texas. However, he may
have been one of the first Mexican street gangsters to adopt
this popular style of dress. Garcia's appearance certainly
helped to spread the popularity of the zoot suit within
the El Paso Mexican street gang population.
Remember the well-traveled route between
Los Angeles and El Paso? Via that route, the pachuco style
of dress was most likely re-introduced to the Los Angeles-based
Mexican street gangs. It did not take long for the pachuco
clothing to become popular with gang members. The zoot suit
was already present in the L.A. area in the late 1930s,
however, it was not adopted as a style of dress by the street
gangs until the early to mid 1940s.
The Maravilla gangs started to form during
the mid-to-late 1940s, and continued to grow well into the
1950s. The concept of protecting turf was expanded within
the housing projects known as Maravilla, where the Maravilla
gangs got their start. Competition for jobs, women and turf
became issues for the youth that lived in this area, according
to Sgt. Joe Guzman. Eventually, rivalries began to exist
between people living in different housing projects. If
conflicts arose, however, they were handled within the community,
not by outsiders (law enforcement).
This mentality developed into an early form
of claiming turf. When you claim turf, the next step is
protecting it. These concepts were then adopted by the other
Mexican street gangs and were rapidly accepted and put into
practice. These housing projects evolved into some of the
neighborhoods or barrios whose names are still familiar
within the street gang culture. The origin of Mexican street
gang turf wars can be traced back to those original housing
projects. These behaviors also helped to create the current
gang customs and practices.
On December 7, 1941, the Japanese bombed
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, forcing the United States into World
War II. These war years also played a role in the historical
formation of Mexican street gangs. On August 2, 1942, a
young Mexican was beaten up and subsequently died from a
fractured skull received in the attack. The killing of this
young man, Jose Diaz, occurred near a popular swimming hole
known as "Sleepy Lagoon," located on William's
Ranch, which is now the city of Montebello, California.
Police officers who investigated the crime blamed Diaz's
death on a gang fight. The Los Angeles Police Department
literally rounded up all of the usual suspects and arrested
24 members of the 38th Street gang. The Los Angeles Grand
Jury indicted 22 of the 24 suspects for the murder. The
criminal trial was considered by the community to be a "kangaroo
court." On January 13, 1943, 3 gang members were convicted
of first degree murder, 9 members were convicted of second
degree murder, 5 members were convicted of assault with
a deadly weapon, and 5 members were found not guilty. The
Mexican community responded with outrage, feeling that the
trial was fixed and the convictions were based on race.
However, the 17 convicted members of 38th Street were sent
to state prison. Hispanic street gangs in Los Angeles changed
forever as a result of those convictions. The jail sentences
also acted like glue to unite the Hispanic community in
a common cause, to fight against class distinction based
on prejudice and racism, along with a fight against the
establishment, including the police.
While in prison, the convicted 38th Street
gang members never complained. They were given the worst
jobs and treated unfairly because at that time, the prison
population was mostly Caucasian. The 38th Street inmates
kept themselves clean and shined their shoes. They cleaned
and pressed their clothes, even though they were issued
garments that were several sizes too large. The 38th Street
members held tough and maintained their dignity while in
prison. This behavior set a new standard for Hispanic gang
members who were subsequently sent to jail. They demonstrated
a type of gang pride and resolve that had never been seen
before. These behaviors also elevated the incarcerated 38th
Street members to the level of folk hero status within the
Hispanic community. The street gang members especially held
them in high regard.
The trial also caused the Hispanic community
to develop an anti-white sentiment and created distrust
for the government, especially the police. Anti-Hispanic
sentiment also grew within the wider community because of
this community response. The class distinction only became
more prevalent because racially motivated abuse continued
to be directed at Hispanics for many years. It did not matter
whether they were U.S. citizens or undocumented immigrants.
To many whites, they were simply "Mexican."
As the nation became more involved in the
war effort, Los Angeles and San Diego became major deployment
points for the U.S. military who were involved in the Pacific
campaign. As a result, the military population in both cities
increased dramatically almost overnight. During June 1943,
the Zoot Suit Riots of Los Angeles began. The non-Hispanic
community, especially the military personnel, felt that
the Hispanic community was not contributing to the war effort.
Their dissatisfaction was specifically directed at the young
Hispanics and Hispanic street gang members who wore the
zoot suit. The large, oversized suit only wasted valuable
fabric which could be used in the war effort. In fact, the
zoot suit was considered contraband because the War Production
Board did not sanction it. The War Production Board took
the stance that it was the clothing designers' patriotic
duty to design fashions that would use a minimal amount
of fabric. This would conserve a valuable resource which
was needed for the war.
In addition, many undocumented Mexicans
never registered for the draft, nor did they enlist in the
military. Lastly, the visiting military were very popular
with the local women. The women were attracted to men in
uniform. The gang members felt there was additional competition
between these two groups (military men and local men) for
the women. These factors only caused the anti-White sentiments
and corresponding anti-Hispanic sentiments to increase.
In reality, the perception that Hispanics were not supporting
the war was inaccurate. Many thousands of U.S.-born Hispanics,
some first and second generation, volunteered for service
in the military. Many saw front-line action, and many sacrificed
their lives for the people back home.
These attitudes on both sides, however,
became the fuel necessary to spark conflicts between the
military personnel and the Hispanic street gang members.
There were major assaults on Hispanics who wore the zoot
suit, including gang members, by military personnel, who
were almost never arrested. The police would routinely only
arrest the gang members who were involved in these confrontations.
These conflicts forced the Hispanic street gangs to unite
against a common enemy and to develop a uniform of their
own.
One additional incident occurred during
1943 which impacted Los Angeles' Hispanic street gangs.
On October 4, 1943, the California Appeals Court overturned
the convictions of the 38th Street gang members for the
murder of Jose Diaz. The appellate court found that the
criminal trial's findings were in error because the defense
attorneys were not allowed to present a defense for the
accused. The appellate court also found that evidence had
been falsified. The appellate court's findings only validated
the community's concerns about the trial, and solidified
the opinions of community members that the convictions were
based on prejudice and racism. The incarcerated 38th Street
gang members were welcomed back into the Hispanic community
as heroes.
By the late 1940's, the number of Hispanic
street gangs and gang members had increased. Hispanic youth
found a certain solidarity in street gangs, believing their
cause was just. Sgt. Joe Guzman points out in his research
in this area that some gang members adopted heroes of the
Mexican revolution, such as Emilio Zapata, as their heroes
at the time. They identified with the phrase: "it is
better to die on my feet than to live on my knees."
The gangs were fighting against the establishment and the
military. There were very few fights between Hispanic street
gangs.
The Formation of the Mexican Mafia
The postwar era brought more change to Hispanic street gangs
in Los Angeles. After the war, with no common enemy, the
frustration and aggression of the gang members was aimed
at each other. The Maravilla gangs that formed in East Los
Angeles developed the most notorious reputation for being
violent and ruthless.
As the number of street gangs grew, so did
the tendency of these gangs to claim turf, and to settle
their problems with action. Insults against a gang were
not tolerated, and intense rivalries formed between gangs.
Violence began to increase as gang members began to use
guns more often. A new word entered the gang vocabulary:
drive-by. The 1950s were to be a decade of rapid growth
for Los Angeles. The suburbs became a popular place to live
for many Angelinos. Man-made structures, like freeways and
major interstate highways helped to define new geographical
turf boundaries for many gangs. The new man-made boundaries
also subdivided existing gang territories and created new
gang clickas (cliques) or subsets of the original gangs.
To further compound the issue, many families were moving
away from Los Angeles to the smaller surrounding cities
to avoid the ever-increasing inner-city gang violence. The
1950s urbanization also added to the street gang growth.
This flight from gang violence became one of the first identified
gang migration mechanisms. Families would move to prevent
their children from joining street gangs or to save them
from further involvement. For some families, it was too
late. The relocated children moved away physically, but
brought the gang mentality and philosophy with them. They
joined local gangs in their new communities or created new
cliques of the gang they were associated with in Los Angeles.
Throughout the 1950s, the number of gang-related
violent crimes increased dramatically, as did the size and
number of Hispanic street gangs. Law enforcement agencies
increased their response to gangs, and many Hispanic gang
members were sent to prison. This caused the demographics
within the correctional system to change. Between 1956 and
1957, several Eslos, short for East Los Angeles, were doing
hard time together at the Duel Vocational Institute in California.
They formed the Hispanic prison gang known as La Eme, the
Mexican Mafia, the first prison gang in California. Initially,
the gang was formed for protection against other inmates
and the prison staff.
In 1968 at San Quentin, a state prison in
Northern California, an incident occurred which would forever
change California's Hispanic street and prison gangs. There
are at least two versions of this incident. Sgt. Joe Valdemar
reports that an Eme member, " Pieface," shared
a cell with Hector Padilla, a Hispanic from Northern California.
Padilla's most prized possession was a pair of shoes which
he shined and cared for every day. One day, while Padilla
was out of the cell, Pieface stole his shoes. Pieface discovered
that the shoes were too small to fit him. In an effort to
win some points with La Eme, he decided to give the shoes
to a higher-ranking member of the prison gang. Surprisingly,
he chose Robert "Robot" Salas. The shoes fit the
Eme gang member, and Pieface walked back to the cell area,
only to find Padilla frantically looking for the shoes.
Padilla recognized that Salas was wearing his shoes. An
argument ensued, and Padilla, the real owner of the shoes,
accused Salas of stealing them. This statement, of course,
insulted the Eme gang member, and the fight started. Padilla
was stabbed several times during the argument and died.
Word of this spread quickly through the prison system, especially
among the Hispanic inmates.
Another version of the incident says that
"Robot" Salas was the roommate of Padilla, rather
than Pieface. In this version, Salas received the shoes
as a gift and returns to his cell, which is of course shared
with Padilla, and the fight occurs in the cell. However
it occurred, the murder solidified the rivalry between northern
and southern Hispanics, both in the prison system and on
the street. The Hispanics from northern California formed
Nuestra Familia (NF), another prison gang, in response to
the conflict. NF was formed to protect the northern Californians
from La Eme, whose membership was made up primarily of southern
Californians.
Street and prison gang members from northern
California began to use the number 14 as an identifier.
It represented the 14th letter of the alphabet, the letter
"N." The letter stood for Norteno, the Spanish
word for northerner. The term norte was used to show that
a person was from the north. Individuals from southern California
were automatically considered rivals, both inside the prison
system and on the streets.
Southern California gang members began using
the number 13 as an identifier. The 13th letter of the alphabet
is the letter "M," and the word for this letter
in Spanish is " Eme." Southern California gang
members started using words like Sureno, which means "southerner."
Often, this term was abbreviated as sur/SUR. Gang members
also started to tattoo themselves with the number 13 and
with the terms Sureno or sur along with the name of their
gang, to signify their origin in southern California.
Inmates in the state prison system were
given bandannas in a railroad print, and could select from
two colors: red or blue. Hispanic street and prison gangs
from northern California claimed the color red to identify
themselves. They used this color because most of the southern
California Hispanics in state prison had chosen to wear
a blue-colored railroad handkerchief. The Crips and Bloods
were not the first gangs to use red or blue to identify.
Rival southern California Hispanic street
gangs had one thing in common: they were enemies with anyone
from northern California. This rivalry united them in jail
and in state prisons. The same was true for northern Hispanic
gang members, except their common enemy was any gang member
from the south. Somewhere, while the dust was settling between
these two groups, they began to visualize an imaginary line
which divided the northern gangs from the southern gangs.
This line turned out to be a gray area, rather than a clear
line, in central California. However, gang members usually
agreed that the division was located somewhere between the
cities of Bakersfield and Delano.
The separation caused individual street
gang rivalries between Hispanic gang members to be set aside
while in jail. All southern California street gang members
inherited a common enemy: any gang member from northern
California. This separation united all the street gangs
from the north against all street gangs from the south,
while they were incarcerated, at least.
By this time, a common street code of conduct
for Hispanic gang members had become:
- Do not cooperate with the police.
- Take care of business yourself (handle
your own problems).
- Never snitch or inform on gang activity
(be a rata/rat).
- No insult, no matter how small, goes
unanswered.
Hispanic gang members also developed a set
of customs and practices that became the rules of engagement
for the street:
- Never commit crimes in your own neighborhood.
- Never involve innocent people, like
women and children.
- Schools, as well as churches, stores
and movie theaters, are neutral ground.
The penalty for violating these rules was
to have all other gangs turned against the violating gang.
The 1970s and 1980s
By 1970, the firearm had become the weapon of choice for
many Hispanic gang members. Many gangs added more members
to become stronger and more formidable. The traditional
jump-in ritual had started to become more violent. A few
gangs also required a prospective member to commit a crime
to earn membership. Hispanic street gang members now considered
themselves the policemen of their neighborhoods. They felt
(and still feel) they had a duty and sacred obligation to
protect their turf. Most Hispanic gangs battled over turf
violations. Incarceration became a status symbol for many
gang members.
There was also a concerted effort among
law enforcement, community members, and the judicial system,
to curb gang violence. As a result, many gang leaders were
sent to prison. The prison life mentality was taken to the
streets by parolees, and taught to the younger street gang
members. The philosophy became: "Only the strong survive
to prey on the weak." The parolees were considered
veteranos or veterans. They were given the utmost respect
and given a position of high honor by the street gang members.
The veteranos tutored the street gang members on the prison
philosophy, the new code of conduct for the streets. This
standardized the expected behaviors for street and prison
gang members. These behaviors included the proper ways to
dress, talk, act and conduct business.
The continued criminal justice attack on
gang violence had an unforeseen result on the street gangs.
The gang leaders that were sent to prison were the same
people that kept the younger gang members in check. The
veteranos were the mentors, and enforced the gang rules.
When they were incarcerated, the veteranos lost their direct
leadership of the gang. Their training and mentoring was
stopped. The "old ways" began to lose impact with
the younger gang members, who could basically do what they
wanted when the leaders were incarcerated. In many gangs,
the younger members were basically bringing themselves up,
maturing without any formal guidance.
By the mid to late 1980s, the traditional
ways of the Hispanic street gangs had all but been abandoned.
Hispanic street gang members had begun to commit crimes
in their own neighborhoods. Non-gang members, particularly
undocumented immigrants, had become a new class of prey
for the Hispanic street gangs. The immigrants started to
form their own gangs for protection against the established
street gangs. This only increased inter-gang conflicts.
Gang violence became commonplace on school grounds, and
at malls, theaters, and churches. Innocent women and children
were victimized by Hispanic gangs. There were no rules for
the gangs, aside from "only the strong survive."
Many citizens in the gang-controlled neighborhoods became
reluctant to assist law enforcement with gang-related investigations
because they feared gang retaliation as a real and constant
threat.
In 1984, another type of Hispanic gang developed
as an alternative to street gangs. The Stoner gangs formed,
and much of the membership of these gangs was Hispanic.
Based on heavy metal music and drug use, these gangs gained
a quick, but not long-lasting, popularity. Stoner gangs
shared many behaviors with more traditional Hispanic street
gangs. Therefore, Stoner gangs were not immune to the violence
associated with gang life. They just directed their violent
tendencies toward other Stoner gangs and among themselves.
By the late 1980s, Hispanic gangs such as
18th Street, 38th Street, and Big Hazard began to sell drugs
for profit. As a result, gang-related violence in the area
dramatically increased, as did gang membership. In 1988,
Los Angeles County reported 452 gang-related homicides and
approximately 50,000 gang members in 450 different gangs.
The gang violence became so common that many young Hispanics
began to seek out an alternative to street gang membership.
In the late 1980s, Los Angeles County experienced the rapid
growth of Tagger Crews. The majority of members were young
Hispanics who did not want to join a street gang, or those
who had left a street gang. The taggers' focus was on graffiti
vandalism. Initially, most of the crew members advocated
non-violence.
The Tagger Crews grew quickly and began
to infringe on Hispanic gang turf. This violated the codes
of the street, and taggers became targets for gang retaliation.
After being assaulted by street gang members, many taggers
began to arm themselves with weapons for protection against
future attacks. Tagger Crews were also heavily influenced
by the street gang culture, and began to seek revenge for
assaults. This attitude put the crews in an offensive position.
Some Tagger Crews began to assault other tagger crews with
their new firepower. A subset of the Tagger subculture evolved
into Tag Banging, aggressively protecting their graffiti
turf and maintaining ongoing rivalries. The Tag Bangers
had become just another type of street gang, and were just
as prone to violence as many of the Hispanic street gangs.
The 1990s and Beyond
By the early part of 1990, gang violence had escalated to
another all-time high. Los Angeles was considered by many
as the "gang capital" of the country. By now,
there were two major ethnic gangs prevalent in the United
States: Hispanic gangs and African-American street gangs.
These two races had co-existed for years, tolerating each
other's presence on the streets of Los Angeles. Another
alternative to street gangs also developed: Party Crews.
These groups broke both racial and gender barriers for membership.
However, the majority of members were young Hispanic males
and females. Just like the Tagger Crews, the Party Crews
tried to steer away from the violent nature of street gangs.
However, because they existed side by side with street gangs,
and because they were heavily influenced by the street gang
culture, it did not take long before violent conflicts between
these groups arose.
Although there was an attempt to educate
community members on gang dangers, Hispanic gangs continued
to grow in size and violence. In 1990, Los Angeles County
reported approximately 690 gangs operating within the county.
By 1991, there were an estimated 100,000 gang members and
750 different street gangs in L.A. County alone. Hispanic
street gangs continued to account for a majority of the
street gangs.
In 1992, the "Eme Edict" was passed
down to the streets. Joe Morgan, the leader of the Mexican
Mafia, issued orders to the Hispanic street gangs of Southern
California. Gang members were told to stop committing drive-by
shootings. Publicly, the order was issued to stop the gang
violence. This was a service to the community by a prison
gang to decrease gang violence, according to several Mexican
Mafia members and associates. This edict resulted in a "gang
truce" between Hispanic street gangs in Southern California.
However, in later years, the ulterior motive of the edict,
hidden within the cry to stop the gang violence, became
more clear. The Mexican Mafia was attempting to extend it's
controlling influence on the street gangs. The edict was
also an effort to coordinate drug sales by Hispanic gangs
in Los Angeles and other surrounding communities.
There were some additional adaptations to
Hispanic street gangs during the 1990s, as well. During
the late 1980s and early 1990s, law enforcement agencies
around the United States began to identify Surenos-affiliated
gangs which were appearing as far away as Colorado, Utah,
Arizona, Oregon, Washington, and even the Midwest. Some
of these Hispanic gangs were multi-racial, and had broken
the gender membership barrier. Many were not connected or
related to Southern California street gangs, nevertheless,
they claimed that status ( Sureno).
By the mid 1990s, law enforcement agencies
also began to document a change in the concept of gang respect.
Respect no longer seemed to be based on age, experience,
or knowledge. Respect, in the street code, was increasingly
based on fear. This change was due to several factors. First,
the decreasing role of adult leadership within the street
gangs, dating back to the 1970s and 1980s contributed to
the change in street values. It also was connected to the
gun violence which was used by the street gangs as their
primary method of solving disputes. The rapid increases
during the late 1980s and early 1990s in the size of the
individual street gangs, which now could count hundreds
or even thousands of members, also impacted this issue,
as well as the increasing role of drug use and sales in
the street gang culture. By the mid 1990s, the gang ethic
of the 1950s and 1960s was almost totally gone, and new
rules prevailed for street gangs.
For most Hispanic gang members, guns were
(and still are) used to settle any dispute. The gun had
become the instrument or tool used to get respect. This
respect was sought by committing violent crimes and assaults
with firearms. This behavior intimidated the victims, surrounding
community, and gang populations. The most violence-prone
gang members and gangs were the most feared, and therefore,
the most respected.
The peak year for gang-related murders in
Los Angeles County was 1995. Gang populations also reached
an all-time high, approximately 150,000. Some estimates
indicated there were over 1,500 different street gangs within
the county. Fortunately, 1996 brought unexpected declines
in the number of gang-related murders. For the first time
in several years, gang violence seemed to be decreasing.
Nationally, violent crime had also started a downward trend.
The Mexican Mafia began to require Hispanic street gangs
to pay them a tax on the sale of drugs. The imposed tax
was supposed to help their comrades when they were in prison.
Some gangs did not pay the tax. These gang
members felt that the drug money they earned was theirs,
and would not be shared with the Mexican Mafia. This stance
forced the Mexican Mafia, in order to maintain their status
on the streets, to put the non-taxpaying gangs on a green
light list. This simply meant that it was "open season"
on any non-taxpaying gang. Previously, the Hispanic gangs
had, under the truce conditions, been forbidden from retaliating
against their traditional Hispanic gang rivals, Hispanic
street gang members could now attack and kill a green light
listed member.
Street gang members were also increasingly
being used as muscle for the Mexican Mafia. The opposition
to paying the Mexican Mafia tax grew so great that some
Hispanic gangs started referring to themselves as green
lighters. They became proud of the fact that their gangs
were tax-free, and advertised it. In fact, some of these
gangs started to use tattoos that said "tax free"
and "green light." Occasionally, the gangs' graffiti
also included the words "tax free neighborhood."
A few gangs even referred to themselves as the "Green
Light Gangs."
In 1997, gang-related murders in Southern
California continued to decrease. Los Angeles County only
had 452 deaths, and gang murders were decreasing throughout
the entire state. Violence between Hispanic gangs was also
decreasing. Overall, gang membership figures for Los Angeles
county had also decreased slightly. Some Hispanic gangs
established access to a "gang gun." These weapons
could be shared by the entire membership. The gun would
be hidden in a location well-known members, and retrieved
easily. Also, by this time, some Hispanic gang members were
also involved in arsons and bombings. Pipe bombs and molotov
cocktails were commonly used.
By 1998, street gangs were reported to be
present in every state across the U.S., and on Native American
lands. Street gangs, as a whole, had established a hold
in rural American and in small to mid-sized towns around
the country. Hispanic gangs could be found in almost every
state. The Norteno-Sureno rivalry still continued to be
a major cause for violent acts between the two types of
gangs, and this rivalry was played out in cities across
the western United States.
In the late 1990s, many members from the
same street gang lived in different cities, and some lived
in different countries. They would meet at a certain location
within the city in which they operated. Traveling gang members
that belonged to Hispanic gangs were not uncommon. Historically,
Hispanic gang members had remained loyal to their original
gang, no matter where they resided, and whether they were
incarcerated or on the street. By the 1990s, this sentiment
no longer held true for some Hispanic gang members. This
type of gang member might belong to one gang in the city
of residence, belong to another gang where he/she socialized,
and might even pledge affiliation to a third gang while
incarcerated.
By the end of 1999, Hispanic street gangs
had become the fastest growing type of gang in the country.
Many Hispanic gangs had established a multi-racial membership.
There continued to be traditional, turf-oriented Hispanic
gangs located in regions of the United States, but the concept
of turf for some gangs had changed. For some Hispanic gangs,
the concept of turf had become fluid. These gangs operated
in an entire city, not just one neighborhood. These gangs
also did not always use graffiti, to mark their turf's boundaries,
in the same manner of traditional Hispanic gangs. There
was no need to, since there were no turf boundaries to identify.
Hispanic street gangs were reported to be active in every
state.
Copyright © 1998 Al Valdez. All Rights
Reserved.
Al Valdez is currently employed as a
District Attorney Investigator for Orange County, California.
Valdez has a total of 21 years of experience with a special
emphasis on narcotic and gang investigations and prosecutions.
Currently, he is assigned to the North County T.A.R.G.E.T.
(Tri-Agency Resource Gang Enforcement Team) Gang Unit for
Orange County.
