White Prison Gangs Criminal Behavior Surrounds Us Essay

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White Prison Gangs

Criminal behavior surrounds us each and every day of our lives. There are those who are affected directly and those who are affected indirectly in the society. This means that it should be the business of each person to try and control or to the best stop crime in the society. Therefore, there is an immediate need to understand the source of the criminal behavior in order to be able to control it. However this is not a guarantee of eliminating crime and the attribution of crime and criminal behaviors have been made to various issues including skin color and even the governance system.

It is worth noting that the problem of gang in general have some common causative factors as well as propagating factors. The Economist (2003) indicates that there is a major tie between drugs and the existence of gangs across the U.S.A. And Jamaica as well as Brazil and other parts of the world. The challenge of gangs is not just restricted to the drug peddling and the drug related problems but spread even to robberies, bombing and murder hence making cities like Rio some of the violent cities in the world.

The Economist further blames the problem of gangs on lack of education accompanied by poverty. There can therefore be little progress against gang issues without proper political will. The seriousness of the matter comes into perspective when one considers the 70% murders that are accounted for in Rio to be gang and drug related deaths.

The problem of gangs behind bars therefore is not a new idea but the gangs that are found outside the prisons in cities and towns and streets continue and find their ways into prisons once the members of these gangs are arrested and put behind bars.

There are numerous white gangs across the U.S.A. that have various approaches to issues but the underlying aspect is the quest for influence and drug money. Though some of the gangs claim to be religious gangs, some racist gangs their common factor with those gangs that are outright drug related and crime oriented is the control and influence over a given territory.

Origin of white prison gangs

Of greater interest in this particular paper are the white prison gangs and the way they operate and all the information that may be available about them. According to Derek Dufresne (2010) the white prison gangs actually originated from within the prison walls and not from outside into the prisons. The primary and original aim of these gangs was to protect themselves from other inmate who might have wanted to cause them harm within the prisons especially when the authorities were not within vicinity to protect them.

These gangs are known to be as old as in the 1950s and have since that time developed, in terms of operations, structure, recruitment and the functions that they engage in. Most of these gangs have a peculiar name and sign that they use to identify themselves. It is amazing that they even have areas of jurisdiction within which they operate.

The white prison gangs are known from time in history to be in constant competition with other gangs like the black prison gangs and the Hispanic and such like gangs. This is the only way that they ensure their survival and the completion of the aims and targets that they have. To be able to be self sustaining, the gangs have also gotten into money generating activates which will be looked at later on.

Some of the most renowned white prison gangs are Dead Man Inc. (MNI) which traces its origin from Maryland Department of correction around 1990s. The other gang is the Nazi Low Riders (NLR) which draws its origin from Californian Youth Authority back in 1970s particularly at Preston School of Industry. The other gang is the Texas Syndicate (TS) which originated from the Californian Folsom prison in the early 1970s and has since grown to have around 20,000 members. Yet another is the Aryan Brotherhood (AB) which is basically a white supremacists group which draws its origin from the San Quentin since 1967. These are just some of the most renowned white prison gangs, most of which as mentioned hitherto, have activities extending beyond prison.

The gangs command structure

Having evolved over time, the white prison gangs have developed comprehensive organizational structures through which they function and carry out their activities within the prisons as well as outside the prison walls.

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Firstly, membership into the gangs is by theory voluntary in nature but the long confinement periods and the pressure that comes from external forces on those who are in none of the gangs force one to join the gangs even against their wish. The gangs are known to have very well structured systems that they use which have kin of a quasi-military nature. They have very well-known ranking systems among themselves and a disciplinary code that borders that of the military systems or even harsher than the military system. The different ranks come with different responsibilities that one is to fulfill within the gang system and the promotion to higher ranks will depend on loyalty to the gang and the power structures and a lot on atrocities that one propagates against the members of another gang.

The commands within the gangs are replicated throughout the gangs with a few alterations from one gang to another but generally they have the same command system. Just to serve as an example of the command structure of the white prison gangs we take the Aryan prison gang command structure.

Within the Aryan gang, there is an elected president at the head of the gang with the branches run by senior members at the helm. After these are other officers within the hierarchy including the majors, followed by the captains or the district captains, and there after the ranks that are lower within the gang structure.

As noted, at the top is the Upper Board which has the president, the vice president and the administrative chairman is the top organ in the gang structure. Under this upper board is the middle board which includes in their decisions the entire upper board and the branch directors. It is at this level (the upper and middle boards) that the rules and regulations and at times the punishments for rebels from the group are made.

Since the gangs operate even to the outside free world, there is a gang structure out there as well with the regions divided into districts; these districts are headed by captains. The captains unusually have some specific assignments like carrying out violent attacks on some gangs and even executing hired kill orders from the higher ranks. These captains fall directly under Majors who control a number of districts in a given region. It is at these free world branches of the prison gangs that the finances and the financial records are recorded, updated and safely kept hence the free world branches increasing in their importance and hence the increase in street recruitments (Anti-Defamation League, 2009).

Major figures

Some of the prominent names in the white prison gangs are Barry mills aka the baron, Tyler Davis Bingham aka hulk, Hedger Hevle aka the snail all of Aryan Brotherhood (Charles Montaldo, 2012). Others are Perry Roark of Dead Man Inc., Ty Fowles of Nazi Low Rdires and Arredondo of Texas Syndicate among other names.

Objectives of the prison gangs

There are various reasons why these prison gangs are constituted and keep their operations on. The primary reason why these gangs were formed was to provide protection to the gang members against other gangs or from any external interference. They have however outgrown this purpose and are engaged in various other activities. The white prison gangs are known to promote the trafficking of drugs and selling from one state to another. They also deal drugs within the prisons. These gangs are also engaged in hired murder contracts and homicide, they are as well responsible for jail escapes and violence within jails, some are engaged in rebellion against the government, some are geared towards spreading hate against other races and championing the white race, some run prostitution rings, some are responsible for robberies and yet others are known for hawking gang protection to rich people at a pay (Judith Greene & Kevin Pranis, 2007).

Alliances / Rivalries

As noted by Stop Houston Gangs (2012), once the gangs move from orientation and petty crime which basically referred to as the 'First Generation Gangs' to the money minded and focused on making money no matter what then they are referred to as 'Second Generation Gangs'. At this point the gangs are known to be forming alliances to perpetrate the drug trade and help protect their turfs, and at the same time make enemies with other gangs in order to ensure they get the largest possible share of the drug market.

The white prison gangs are.....

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