The Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation is one of the largest Caribbean and Latino street and prison gangs worldwide. The gang was founded by Puerto Ricans in Chicago, Illinois, in 1954.
The Gangster Disciple Nation, also known as Growth & Development, is an African American street and prison gang founded by former rivals David Barksdale and Larry Hoover; in 1968, the two came together to form the Black Gangster Disciple Nation (BGDN).
The Almighty Vice Lord Nation is the second-largest and one of the oldest street and prison gangs in Chicago, Illinois. Its total membership is estimated to be between 30,000 and 35,000. It is also one of the founding members of the People Nation multi-gang alliance.
Larry Hoover is an American former gangster and street gang kingpin. He is the founder of the Chicago street gang, the Gangster Disciples.
The Almighty Black P. Stone Nation is an American street gang founded in Chicago. The gang was originally formed in the late 1950s as the Blackstone Rangers. The organization was co-founded by Eugene Hairston and Jeff Fort. In later years, under Fort's leadership, an Islamic faction of the gang emerged, naming themselves the "El Rukn tribe of the Moorish Science Temple of America" . They eventually started describing themselves as Orthodox Sunni Muslims. Jeff Fort changed their fort name from El Rukn Moorish Science Mosque, to El Rukn Sunni Masjid al-Malik.
The Almighty Latin Eagles Nation (ALEN) originated in the area of Halsted and Addison in Chicago during the mid 1960s. Famous for spawning a strong Latino political organization in the late 1960’s, by the 1970s it had transformed into a nefarious criminal street gang.
The Black Disciples is a large street gang based in Chicago, Illinois.
The Simon City Royals, also known as the Almighty Simon City Royal Nation, are a street and prison gang which began in Chicago during 1952 as Simon City, a greaser gang. They named themselves for Simons Park, which is located on the corner of Drake and Wabansia in the Humboldt Park neighborhood where they originally formed. The gang had a major influence on other gangs around Chicago and the wider gang culture in Humboldt Park. The Royals are one of the oldest and largest white gangs in the US.
About one to two percent of United States Armed Forces members are estimated to belong to criminal gangs in the United States, a much higher proportion than in the civilian population.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, African American organized crime emerged following the first and second large-scale migration of African Americans from the Southern United States to major cities of the Northeast, Midwest, and later the West Coast. In many of these newly established communities and neighborhoods, criminal activities such as illegal gambling, speakeasies and were seen in the post-World War I and Prohibition eras. Although the majority of these businesses in African American neighborhoods were operated by African Americans, it is often unclear the extent to which these operations were run independently of the larger criminal organizations of the time.
Approximately 1.4 million people in the United States were part of gangs as of 2011, and more than 33,000 gangs were active in the country. These include national street gangs, local street gangs, prison gangs, outlaw motorcycle clubs, and ethnic and organized crime gangs.
People Nation is an alliance of street gangs generally associated with the Chicago area. They are rivals of the Folk Nation alliance of gangs.
Jeff Fort, also known as Abdul Malik Ka'bah, is an American mobster and former gang kingpin from Chicago, Illinois.
The Spanish Gangster Disciples is a street gang that originated on the south side of Chicago, respectively in the vicinity of 88th & Houston in the South Chicago neighborhood. The gang was founded by Rudy Rios, who was a former member of the Latin Scorpions street gang. It is an offshoot from Gangster Disciples.
The Maniac Latin Disciples Nation is a Hispanic street gang in Chicago and the largest in the Latino Folks Nation alliance. Originally known as the Latin Scorpions, the gang was founded by Albert "Hitler" Hernandez and other Puerto Rican teenagers in the Humboldt Park community in approximately 1966. They were influential in the culture and history of gangs in Humboldt Park, and continue to be active there today.
Bobby Gore was an American gang leader and activist from Chicago, Illinois. Gore was the former leader of the "Conservative Vice Lords" (CVL),
The Spanish Cobras is a primarily Latino street gang, present in multiple states throughout the Midwestern United States, with a strong presence on the north and west sides of Chicago, Illinois.
The Latin Counts is a Latino street gang based in Chicago, Illinois with a significant branch in Detroit, Michigan. It is a member of the People Nation alliance.
Chicago is considered the most gang-occupied city in the United States, with 150,000 gang-affiliated denizens, representing more than 100 gangs. Gang warfare and retaliation is common in Chicago. Gangs were responsible for 61% of the homicides in Chicago in 2011.
The Chicago neighborhood of Humboldt Park is the founding grounds for several major gangs, including the Latin Kings, Simon City Royals, and Maniac Latin Disciples, among a number of other gangs with active chapters in the area as of 2023. With its roots dating back to the 1950s, the continuous presence and activity of gangs around the neighborhood has caused it to be a frequent subject of law enforcement, media, and residents over the years.