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18th Street

Founded	1959
Years active	1959 – present
Territory	Mostly in Los Angeles,Phoenix Arizona the western and southern areas of the United States, and Central America
Ethnicity	Mostly Latino
Membership	30,000 to 50,000 nationwide
Criminal activities	Drug trafficking, assault, robbery, rum running, prostitution, extortion, arms trafficking, murder, contract killing, illegal gambling, vandalism, producing fake ids, and producing fake food stamps
Rivals	Avenues, Black P. Stones, Bloods, Clanton 14, Varrio Los Amigos 13, Culver City Boyz, Longos, MS-13, Norteños, Toonerville Rifa 13 and Venice 13 Surenos

18th Street is considered the largest gang in Los Angeles, California and is a largely Hispanic street gang. It is estimated that there are between 8,000 and 20,000 members of 18th Street gang in Los Angeles County alone. There are approximately 20 separate individual autonomous gangs operating under the same label with separate barrios in the San Fernando Valley, the San Gabriel Valley, the South Bay, South Los Angeles, Downtown Los Angeles, Pico Union, Inglewood, and Cudahy , and Orange County.according to the latest figures from the NDIC. 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.^[1]

Contents 1 Membership and hierarchy 2 Gang markings 3 Culture 4 Criminal activity 5 Location 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Membership and hierarchy

The 18th Street gang was the first Hispanic gang to break the racial membership barrier. Membership was originally open to Mexican-Americans only. Although most members tend to be of Mexican-American descent, membership has opened to other backgrounds, including Central American, African American, Middle Eastern, Asian, Caucasian, and Native American. 18th Street have an organized hierarchy. It is unknown who is at the top. On the streets, there are the Shotcallers, their Lieutenants, and the foot-soldiers beneath them. Although the gang is well networked throughout the nation, Mexico, and Central America, there is no known central leadership nationally or internationally. Cliques generally function independently, but will join forces when combating rival gangs or law enforcement.

[edit] Gang markings

As with most gangs, 18th Street gang members can be easily identified by their tattoos. A common identifier is the number 18 (Spanish: diesiocho), which is usually represented in the Roman numerals (X8) (XVIII) (XV3) and sometimes they also use 666(6+6+6=18). Some use the number 5 meaning the fifth letter of the Alphabet. They also tattoo themselves with the word BEST, which stands for Barrio Eighteen STreet. Members engage in graffiti to mark their territory. some also may have the mayan number system 18 which is three horizontal lines stacked up with 3 dots on top of them in a row.

[edit] Culture

18th Street gang members are required to abide by a strict set of rules. For instance, they are forbidden from using crack cocaine and other hard drugs. Failure to obey the word of a gang leader, or to show proper respect to a fellow gang member, may result in an 18-second beating, or even execution for more serious offenses.^[2]

According to the LAPD, some factions of the 18th Street gang have developed a high level of sophistication and organization. The 18th Street gang is occasionally referred to as the "Children's Army" because of its recruitment of elementary and middle-school aged youth.^[3]

18th Street gang members are most often seen wearing brown or black pants and a white T-shirt. Alternatively, gang members also wear jerseys from professional sports teams. Raiders jerseys are a common favorite.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Criminal activity

18th Street is a well established gang that is involved in all areas of street-crime (as opposed to corporate crime). Some members have even become involved in producing fraudulent Immigration and Customs Enforcement identification cards and food stamps. Several 18th Street gang members have evolved into a higher level of sophistication and organization than other gangs. They also have been linked to occurrences of murder, murder-for-hire, assaults, drug trafficking, extortion, vandalism, drug smuggling, prostitution, robbery, and weapons trafficking, as well as other crimes.

[edit] Location

The majority of 18th Street cliques operating throughout the United States and abroad are the result of Los Angeles members migrating to other areas and establishing cliques under their leadership. Members originally from Los Angeles tend to be more respected than those in other areas. 18th Street cliques have been identified in 42 states and the District of Columbia in the United States, as well as 18 foreign countries. Most cliques are active and are high in membership. These cliques are now individual gangs.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Extensive 18th Street Gang information
• 18th Street Gang in Los Angeles County
• BBC News: Gang life tempts Salvador teens
• BBC News: El Salvador swoops on street gang
• PBS Wide Angle: 18 With a Bullet 18th Street Gang in El Salvador
• Strohm, Chris (August 1, 2005). "DHS touts success of anti-gang operation". GovExec.com. http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0805/080105c1.htm. Retrieved 2006-03-14.