Bloods: Encyclopedia - Bloods

Bloods

For the Native American nation, please see Kainai.

The Bloods are an American street gang originating from Los Angeles, California. They have an intense rivalry with the Crips. Group members are identified by the red attire such as red bandanas. Various cliques known as "sets" form the organization, which is sometimes internally split by enmity and difference.

Bloods - History

The Bloods were formed when several members of the Pirus gang were being killed by the Crips. The Pirus then called on a meeting with other smaller gangs in Los Angeles, whose members were also being killed by the Crips, to form an alliance called the Bloods. Knowing that the Crips used the color blue to identify each other, the Bloods decided to use an opposing color, red, to identify each other.There has also been a set by the name of the Lime Street Pirus who wear the color green.

During the 1990s, there have been many alleged Bloods gang members in New York City. It has been said that they were formed on Rikers Island, New York City's largest jail facility. While in New York, they have become infamous for various slashings [1].

Following several months of gang violence that killed 40 people, the Tookie Protocol For Peace was negotiated between the Bloods and the Crips in May of 2004. Former Crips member and founder, the late Stanley Tookie Williams helped negotiate the "perpetual peace treaty". [2]

Bloods - Bloods and hip-hop

A number of popular West Coast rappers are affiliated with Bloods gangs. Ex- G-Unit rapper The Game is a member of the Cedar Block Piru Bloods in Compton, and rapper/producer DJ Quik, also a Compton native, is a known member of the Tree Top Piru Bloods. Death Row Records CEO Suge Knight is from the Mob Piru Bloods in Compton, and also has a close affiliation with the Bounty Hunter Bloods in South Los Angeles. The Boo-Yaa TRIBE are members of a Samoan Bloods gang in Carson City [3], and Westside Connection rapper Mack 10 is from the Queen Street Bloods in Inglewood. In 1995, Los Angeles producer Ron "Ronnie Ron" Phillips produced the self-titled debut album of the Damu Ridaz, a rap group consisting of gang members from the Denver Lane Bloods.

It is important to keep in mind that there are many rappers who claim to be Bloods because they hope to establish street credibility, yet they are unable to prove any ties to Blood gangs. The members of Camron's group The Diplomats (Dipset) often claim to be Bloods, even though they are often mocked by actual Los Angeles Bloods for being fake. Cash Money Records rapper Lil Wayne often dresses as a Blood, carrying a red bandana in his right pocket, yet he has no proven Blood affiliation. At the end of a freestyle over the beat of Snoop Dogg's "Drop It Like It's Hot, Lil Wayne claims he is a Blood, and disrespects the Crips. There is also a common misconception that Tupac Shakur, like Suge Knight, was a member of the Mob Piru Bloods because he often wore a red bandana while he was signed to Death Row Records. Although Tupac may have hired Bloods for security, there is no evidence to suggest he ever became an active member of this gang.

Bloods - Trivia

According to a Los Angeles Weekly profile, the Bloods generally refuse to use the letter C in names, especially when names start with a C, replacing it with the letter K. The Bloods refer to crips in disrespect as "crabs". The Bloods are notorious for their gang initiation, which traditionally involves the gang bang of a local girl.

Bloods - Entertainers with Blood affiliations

• Boo-Yaa TRIBE
• B-Real (of Cypress Hill)
• Damu Ridaz
• DJ Quik
• The Game
• Suge Knight
• Mack 10
• Mitchy Slick
• D.L. Hughley

See also

• List of Los Angeles street gangs
• Banging on Wax (CD)
• Gang signals
• Stanley Tookie Williams

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Bloods", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki