THE NEW MAFIA
BY ELIZABETH MORA-MASS
They are not the Sicilian crime families of old, but the shadowy street gangs of Queens, who hail from countries like Mexico, Ecuador, Peru and El Salvador. They are the violent and deadly “New Mafia,” according to politicians, gang experts and crime fighters.
They control their turfs through violence and intimidation while committing crimes, dealing in drugs, promoting prostitution, selling illegal documents and trafficking in human lives. They wear identifying colors, have secret hand signals and use graffiti for messages to members, all in an effort to elude the authorities.
In his book “Gang Crisis”, Dr. William Triplett said, there are at least 21,500 gangs with more than 731,000 active members nationwide. Gangs like the Bloods and the Crips remain powerful, but in recent years the problem has worsened dramatically. “Heavy immigration, particularly from Latin America and Asia, has introduced extremely violent gangs like Mara Salvatrucha (MS 13), and the Almighty Latin Kings Nation,” said Triplett.
School Problem
Gang activity is a growing problem in Queens, especially around our schools. Public and private schools, historically considered “neutral turf,” are increasingly the sites of violent gang activities.
“On January 20, 2006, three students were attacked outside a Jamaica high school in what appeared to be an initiation ritual by the Latin Kings gang,” according to spokesman for the 103rd Precinct. The incident happened at Parsons Boulevard and Highland Avenue, next to Hillcrest High School.
“This is a fight between the Latin Kings and the Bloods. We are very afraid of both groups,” said a teenager, who goes to the high school. “That incident didn’t happen in the school. That is a police matter,” said a spokesman for the New York City Department of Education.
Nidia, a mother of two teenage girls who attend Newtown High School in Elmhurst, said “Here in the school we have the Bloods, (African Americans) the Latin Kings, MS13, and lately the A.K.B. (Against the Kings and the Bloods). Other active gangs include The Patolocos (Ecuadorians and Peruvians), and Dragons (Asians). Some kids even have tattoos with symbols of terrorist groups. School authorities deny there is any gang activity, but we have a lot of trouble with gangs.”
“The ‘New Mafia’ is born. It’s an international Mafia. They are little groups that come from different countries. They have the language and the culture of the streets,” said Curtis Sliwa, founder and president of the Guardian Angels, an organization that fights against gangs and crime around the world.
Guardian Angels
Three years ago, Assemblyman Jos/ Peralta invited the Guardian Angels to work in Queens helping the community - especially the immigrant community - to fight gang activities. The Guardian Angels provide after- school programs, recreational activities, and gang prevention advice.
According to Sliwa, “the situation is very similar to what happened with the Italian Mafia in the beginning of the past century. Now, we don’t have the Sicilians, but we have the MS-13, pure Salvadorians. We have the MS-18, a little combination of people from many countries. They have their “turfs” (territories). MS-13 is more coordinated. They run an enterprise of prostitution, drugs, illegal documents, human trafficking. They learn by example from ‘The Godfather,’ and ‘Goodfellas’ movies. And they feel free to go back and forth across the border. The police and the principals always are going to deny the presence of any gangs in the schools, but all of us know the truth.”
Andrew Papachristos, a sociology researcher with the University of Chicago, in his article, Gang World, in the March/April issue of Foreign Affairs, wrote: “Increasingly, gangsters are operating without concern for borders - and that has hampered efforts to cut down on gang activity.”
Like Old Mafia
“They [the gangs] are very similar to the old Mafia; they want loyalty in exchange for protection and friendship,” said Peralta. Since 2002, Peralta has made the fight against the gangs in Jackson Heights, Corona and East Elmhurst one of his causes.
The most feared and violent gang on the streets, the MS 13, draws its members from El Salvador, or those born to Salvadorian parents. According to Mandalit del Barco, a sociologist of Central American issues, “children of Central America’s bloody wars immigrated to the U.S., where they became violent gang members.”
Ernesto Miranda, aka Smokey, co-founder of the Mara Salvatrucha in Los Angeles, and a former soldier in El Salvador’s civil war, said “the training we got during the war in our country served to make us one of the most violent gangs in the United States.”
According to Peralta, “MS-13 is so violent that the other gangs go to see the police asking for protection.”
Overall, NYPD authorities say gang-related crime is down in Queens and in the city. “For 2005 in Queens North gang-related crime was down 28%, 56 incidents compared to 78 in 2004,” said Michael Coan, spokesman for Queens North. “Gang-related incidents were down 20.6% citywide,” said Deputy Chief John P. Gerrish, Commanding Officer at the Analysis and Planning Department at Police headquarters in Manhattan.
In the 115th Precinct, which covers Jackson Heights and Corona, gang-motivated incidents are down 53.8%. However in the 110th Precinct, which includes Elmhurst, Fresh Meadows and Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, gang-related incidents are up 6.8% and gang-motivated incidents were up 21.4%.
Explaining why youth would want to join gangs, experts say children who live in poverty and racial segregation very often have no dreams or ambitions because they are traumatized.
Gang Comes First
“Very often, they don’t care about anything at all - not even whether they lived or died,” said a counselor at a high school with several gangs. “They see themselves as security guards protecting their turf from anyone who threatens them. The gang comes first and is the most important part of their lives.”
Many young kids say they have to defend themselves, and that is their reason for joining a gang. “Three years ago, these four dudes jumped me on the way home from school for no reason. I was twelve years old. That’s was ugly. The tirachas also hit me. The next week I was in a gang. Now I have respect, and nobody – – – with me,” said Antonio, a teenager from El Salvador.
“Each street gang has its own unique signal, sign, colors, jewelry, and dress. These serve not only to identify gang members, but also to promote group solidarity,” said John Muller, an associate at CTS Associates Incorporated, a security consulting firm, talking on gangs at Elmhurst Hospital Center. “Last year, we had many incidents related to gangs in the emergency room” said a spokesperson at Elmhurst Hospital Center.
In Jackson Heights, Corona, East Elmhurst and Elmhurst some people are very afraid of their children becoming victims or members of gangs. “We are looking for a house. We want to move to Little Neck, Bayside or New Jersey,” said a Hispanic father who was at the office of Assemblyman Peralta, talking about this problem.
GANG COLORS
Bloods Red, Black, Green, Tan
Crips Blue
Latin Kings Gold, Black, Red
Latin Saints Blue and Black
MS 13 Blue and White
Mexican Red, White and Green
Mexican Mafia Black
