People who lack the power of understanding often get into something unusual or violent that they feel will protect them wherever they go. Unfortunately, the world is full of such individuals.
Los Angeles was the home for such destructive minds during the 1960s and 1970s. It goes back to the time when black youth of South Central LA was looked down upon by their other neighbouring LA citizens. They were tortured, harassed and even arrested without any crime as such. In simpler terms, they were dominated and were devoid of many rights. All of this filled them with rage, and this is when the words like “Crips” and “Bloods” came into existence. Groups were divided, alliances were formed along with illegal activities going on.
Basically, the rivalry began when two students of Centennial High School were attacked by the Crip members in the 1960s. Since then there has always been some bad blood between the Crips and the Bloods. Both the gangs are responsible for a substantial portion of the criminal activities in Los Angeles.
Crips vs Bloods
The main difference between the Crips and the Bloods is that the Crips gang was formed by two individuals in order to come into power. The Bloods gang was formed by small street gangs coming together to voice against the growing influence of the Crips.
Comparison Table Between Crips and Bloods
| Parameter of Comparison | Crips | Bloods |
| Origin | The gang was formed in 1969 in South Los Angeles, California. | It was formed in the mid-1972 in Los Angeles, California. |
| Founders | Raymond Washington and Stanley Williams were the founders. | The founders were other street gangs headed by the Piru street boys. |
| Gang colour | They wear blue colour as their identification. | Whereas, they wear red colour. |
| Membership | It is estimated to be around 30,000 to 35,000. | It is around 20,000 to 25,000. |
| Territory | It prevails over the United States only. | Primarily, the United States but also in Canada. |
| Ethnicity | The members are mainly African Americans. | The members are mainly African Americans but many Latinos, whites and Asian Americans are with them too. |
Who are Crips?
The Crips gang was born in southern California in 1969. It was founded by Raymond Washington and Stanley Williams. It generally includes people of African American heritage with the United States as its territory. Blue is the colour of their dress code.
The Crips are believed to be one of the most dangerous street gangs present in the US today. With a huge membership, i.e., 30,000 to 35,000 approximately, they are involved in all types of criminal activities such as robberies, murders, drug dealing, gambling and many more.
The gang created by Raymond Washington initially worked for protecting its neighbourhood from external power and danger. But with time, this motto started to fade and the gang began to deal with criminal activities more often. Then came the time when Washington united his gang with that of Williams that belonged to the eastern and western LA. They together allied for protecting their areas of control.
Initially, the fights were without guns. But as local gangs joined making Crips bigger and more powerful, the fights shifted more towards the gunshots.
Who are Bloods?
The Bloods, otherwise known as the Original Blood Family (OBF) are a street gang in Los Angeles, California. The gang was founded by the Piru Street boys in the mid-1972 after their rivalry with the Crips began. The members of the gang wear red as their identification. They also have some hand signs as their gang symbols.
With an estimated membership of 20,000 to 25,000, they are involved vigorously in activities such as murders, robberies etc. just like the Crips. The members are mainly African Americans, but also have Latinos, whites and Asian Americans with them. The members are generally teenagers or in their early twenties. But some are also in their late twenties or even thirties.
When the Crips started to grow in size, they also started targeting other gangs. This is when some non-Crip gangs came together and established an alliance of their own in order to fight against the rising influence of the Crips. The gang that emerged from it got to be known as the Bloods.
The Bloods do not have a known official leader. It is therefore divided into sets that have a leadership structure based on hierarchy.
Main Differences Between Crips and Bloods
- The Crips gang was formed to rise to power, whereas the Bloods gang, was formed to fight against the rising influence of the Crips.
- The Crips gang was founded by Raymond Washington and Stanley Williams in 1969. The Bloods gang was founded when small street gangs got together, headed by the Piru street boys in the mid-1972.
- The Crips wear blue, while the Bloods wear red as their identification.
- The membership of the Crips is about 30,000 to 35,000, while that of the Bloods is about 20,000 to 25,000.
- The area of control of the Crips is the United States, but the area of control of the Bloods is the US and also Canada.
- The members of the Crips are African Americans. The members of the Bloods are mainly African Americans, but there are also many Latinos, whites and Asian Americans present.
Conclusion
The rivalry of the Crips and the Bloods is still the same. They occasionally fight each other and engage in illegal and criminal activities rest of the time.
Specifically in the US, these gangs have occupied a permanent place of their own. Both have territories where they continue with their crimes. Even gang homicides are very common among them. Many are killed in fights with their gang members only.
The politics worsened the crack between the Crips and the Bloods during the South Central riots which began in the poor Latino neighbourhoods. Over time, the Latinos came to realise how to exercise real power. This, in turn, resulted in the birth of Mexican Mafia which has added up to the criminal activities today.
References
- https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-010-0882-2_9
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0047235202001344