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My experience being in a gang

Ilisrum

Active Member
I could never understand the allure of gang life. People talk about how they feel secure with the crew but then they forfeit their lives to it. Your life belongs to the gang and you lose your sense of individuality. I can understand some people being young and foolish, but you got mature people in their 20s, 30s, and even 40s still caught up in this life, spending most of their adult lives in jail and never giving a minute of their time up for their children.

My brother was involved in that lifestyle for a while, but luckily turned away from it. Unfortunately, my younger cousin's heading down that path also and he's not quite as headstrong. Fortunately there are people who have experienced that life and can maybe deter the younger generation from it. It's a shame that some kids (like my cousin) think that being black means you must be "thug".
 

RitalinO.D.

Well-Known Member
Wow great argument! Maybe you should give this a read. No Escape: Male Rape in U.S. Prisons

Gang members in prison are the main perpetrators of prison rape. I wanted to ask him if he'd ever taken part himself, but of course he'd never reveal it. It wouldn't surprise me given that he's already shot at and possibly killed people.

Pointing out a problem in prison and making obvious snide comments are two different things. You should probably reread what you wrote and see how it comes off to other people.
 

Shahzad

Transhumanist
Pointing out a problem in prison and making obvious snide comments are two different things. You should probably reread what you wrote and see how it comes off to other people.
My comment was addressed to the OP, I don't give a damn how it comes across to others, especially to him.
 

Vendetta

"Oscar the grouch"
Did you see death?

Can you be more specific? You mean at funerals or in front of me? I have seen guys killed in front of me (not navy personnel). Its traumatic to see a friend being riddled with bullets
I have also been to many funerals. I still struggle whether I should get counseling for those experiences. I say struggle because I feel partly responsible for my traumatic experiences. I put myself there
 

Vendetta

"Oscar the grouch"
"flaggin" or even "flying colors" can be very dangerous.
One night, in Little Rock, my husband and I were washing clothes in the local laundry mat. Don't know how true" they were but there was a couple, man and woman, in there flashing blood. Right down to the car and the tats
We didn't think anything of it, cuz we keep to ourselves.
Then two guys came in wearing blue, with gang tats.
They came in to do their laundry and were soon followed by some MS-13. They were more covert in their flashing. Just a green wrist band and a few tats. They at one point started eyeing our pick-up(true redneck style) because it was red. I think they were making sure we weren't bloods, as well. Don't know what truly made them realize we weren't but when yosi looked to see what they were doing, the one threw up his hands in apology.
The tension in that small room was so high. The stare downs were impossible to miss. And I think, though can't be positive, that if the first couple were flying so loud, which Little Rock apparently has a thing about, things might not have been so tense.
When we were done, which was well before any of the other three groups, we left and didn't look back. In the morning, we found out that the cops got called out there shortly after we left due to shots fired.
This was before the Katrina refugees tried to take over LR.

That was probably a scary situation for you guys. Luckily, you two were not hurt. Its always knuckle heads out there trying to prove something. They're the most dangerous.
 

Rakhel

Well-Known Member
That was probably a scary situation for you guys. Luckily, you two were not hurt.
Not so much scary as it was concerning. I didn't see too many gangs until I moved to Little Rock. But I am a quick study in human behavior. I knew what to look for, what to see and what to ignore.
From what I had been told by others who had lived there longer than myself, gang activity had calmed down since the HBO doc, The Rock came out. It was starting to rev back up when we left.



Its always knuckle heads out there trying to prove something. They're the most dangerous.
this is ever so true.
 

Vendetta

"Oscar the grouch"
I guess moderators took Shahzad's comments out, but I would gladly answer it.

First off, I never went to prison, I went to jail there is a difference. If I did go to prison I would most likely have a felony which most likely would not allow me to serve in the Navy. As far as what goes on in jail I've never conducted any homosexual acts nor had the desire to do stuff of that nature.
 

Father Heathen

Veteran Member
I guess moderators took Shahzad's comments out, but I would gladly answer it.

First off, I never went to prison, I went to jail there is a difference. If I did go to prison I would most likely have a felony which most likely would not allow me to serve in the Navy. As far as what goes on in jail I've never conducted any homosexual acts nor had the desire to do stuff of that nature.

Rape in prison has everything to do with domination and humiliation and nothing to do with homosexuality.
 

Vendetta

"Oscar the grouch"
I could never understand the allure of gang life. People talk about how they feel secure with the crew but then they forfeit their lives to it. Your life belongs to the gang and you lose your sense of individuality. I can understand some people being young and foolish, but you got mature people in their 20s, 30s, and even 40s still caught up in this life, spending most of their adult lives in jail and never giving a minute of their time up for their children.

My brother was involved in that lifestyle for a while, but luckily turned away from it. Unfortunately, my younger cousin's heading down that path also and he's not quite as headstrong. Fortunately there are people who have experienced that life and can maybe deter the younger generation from it. It's a shame that some kids (like my cousin) think that being black means you must be "thug".

I want to address the last sentence you made. Unfortunately the stereotype of young black males is that there is a common thought that black males are incapable of getting "out of the ghetto" or choose not to get out of the ghetto. I am living proof. I really like to advocate Judge Mathis because he too, being a former criminal himself and now a judge dispells the myth.
 

Vendetta

"Oscar the grouch"
Rape in prison has everything to do with domination and humiliation and nothing to do with homosexuality.

Eh, partly right. Most men go in prison as heterosexuals but none of the guys I was hang banging with that went to prison raped other men. You're right, it is about domination and humiliation however if you're raped you can be "turned out" and develops an affinity for other men. In LA County jail they separated us in colors: blue for "gen pop" or general population, guys serving two weeks to a year, powder blue for sex offenders such as rapier, child molestors etc, and orange for high profile inmates such as killers, assault and battery inmates etc.

Aryan Brotherhood from what I heard is predominantly the ones that are doing the most raping but that is probably biased information from my source however the rape is due to prison politics.
 

darkendless

Guardian of Asgaard
I wish gangs would kill each other only and leave innocents alone. It seems that gangs are now just a part of life which is sad.

There are so many excuses for gangs but nothing is ever done to stop them.
 
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