How Media Influences Street Gang Reputation and How My Opinion About Them Has Changed

My worldview of a gang is set from what I have seen in movies. For example, the show Sons of Anarchy by Kurt Sutter is where all my ideas come from. Therefore when I think of the Crips my first thought is violence, drugs, rivalry, and of course the color blue. However, once I started doing research I realized that all my preconceived ideas of the Crips were almost completely wrong.

The crips are a street gang based out of Los Angeles, California. They are known to be one of the largest and most violent gangs in the United States. Their members were estimated in 2008 to be around 30,000. When it comes to violence, the Crips are known to have been involved in murders, robberies, and of course drug dealing. Now no one is sure how the Crips truly came to be. However, there are many theories. I always believed the Crips and the Bloods (their biggest rival) were once a part of the same gang but somewhere along the line they separated. After researching, I realize my theory is part of another bigger theory. “

The first theory is that both the Bloods and the Crips were once a part of the Black Panther Party in the 1970s” (powerpoint, slide 3).

The second theory is “ Tanley (“Tookie”) Williams and Raymond Washington, both high schoolers in Los Angeles founded the Crips in 1971 for protection from gang violence” ( Encyclopedia Britannica, 2017). The third theory is the name Crip is a combination of the words crib and RIP. The combination stands for the members being a part of the gang from birth until death. The final theory is Crip is short for cripple. This theory is believed to be true because some of the earliest members were often seen using a cane.

I always considered the crips to be a purely Hispanic gang. However, they are mainly African American. Turns out, the crips decided to form an alliance with the Mexican cartels when the gang decided to turn their focus onto crack cocaine. During the 1980s, the crips became extremely interested in drugs. This interest helped them to expand nationwide.

When it comes to joining the crips, I always believed you were either born into it or had to commit an extremely violent act on their behalf. According to Vice, there are many ways one can be initiated. For women, they usually get jumped by members of the gang; then they usually have to commit a violent act towards the Bloods.

However, when it comes to women there is another way for them to be considered a Crip. Women may get “sexed” which means they may have to have sex with multiple gang members. The only difference is if a woman gets into the crip by sexed rather than violently they are often looked down upon and considered more of a groupie than an actual member.

Men getting initiated is more common than women. However, their requirements are generally a little harder. Yes, they are jumped same as for women but their violent act usually includes killing a rival. It is possible for one to be born into a gang. Although, for one to be considered a legacy their direct family must be an active member and must raise them in the gang.

When it comes to getting out of the Crips, I always believed it was nearly impossible. If one wanted to leave, I believed the other members would often attempt to kill them. After tons of research, I noticed there is not much information about leaving a gang. According to one website, if one wants to leave their gang, one must do it in complete secrecy.

The first thing they must do is cover all gang-related tattoos and then completely change their clothing choices. There are multiple tattoo artists that donate their time and abilities to cover gang tattoos. The best way to leave a gang is to do it as soon as one is released from prison by cutting all ties to the gang. According to an interview of a known Crip member (Jon), there is no way to leave the gang other than by death.

In conclusion, I learned a lot from this assignment. My views on gangs, in general, are not at all how they actually work. This just shows that one can not learn about gangs from just media. Yes, television shows and movies do give the right impression via drugs, violence, sex, rivals, initiation, and death however when it comes to details they are wrong. Although there is not a lot of information on the Crips, one thing is for sure; one does not want to get on their bad side.