Crips–Bloods gang war
Street gang rivalry in the United States / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Crips and the Bloods, two street gangs founded in Los Angeles, California, have been in a gang war since the 1970s. The war is made up of smaller, local conflicts perpetrated by chapters of both gangs, and has mostly taken place in major cities in the United States, especially Los Angeles (L.A.). It is also present in other countries, including Belize. The gangs often identify themselves using clothing colored blue for Crips, and red for Bloods; people wearing those colors in gang territory are often targets of violence.
The war started when a lack of economic opportunities in South Central L.A. led to the formation of gangs like the Crips, who claimed city territory and guarded it from other gangs. The Bloods formed in response to widespread shootings by the Crips. Both groups started extorting money from local businesses in the 70s, and distributing crack cocaine in the early 1980s. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) fought heavily against the gangs. In 1987, the LAPD started an intense anti-gang operation, Operation Hammer. The operation was controversial, as it lead to mass incarceration which did not greatly reduce gang violence, and included the vandalism of people's homes; in response, the various gangs gained a sense of solidarity and began discussing a truce.
A peace agreement was signed in 1992 in Los Angeles between two rivaling Crip chapters, which eventually included the Bloods. The resulting truce lasted in the city for around 10 years; the violence came back, as there was still a lack of economic opportunities. Crime was brought down again due to new policies enacted by the city of Los Angeles starting in 2006. Despite this, the war continued in the city and elsewhere, including a major war in Hempstead, New York, in 2012, which led to 56 people being shot by the end of the year.