The Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation: Street Politics and the Transformation of a New York City Gang / Edition 1

by David C. Brotherton , Ph.D., Luis Barrios Ph.D.

Overview

From Los Angeles and New York to Chicago and Miami, street gangs are regarded as one of the most intractable crime problems facing our cities, and a vast array of resources is being deployed to combat them. This book chronicles the astounding self-transformation of one of the most feared gangs in the United States into a social movement acting on behalf of the dispossessed, renouncing violence and the underground economy, and requiring school attendance for membership.

What caused the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation of New York City to make this remarkable transformation? And why has it not happened to other gangs elsewhere? David C. Brotherton and Luis Barrios were given unprecedented access to new and never-before-published material by and about the Latin Kings and Queens, including the group's handbook, letters written by members, poems, rap songs, and prayers. In addition, they interviewed more than one hundred gang members, including such leaders as King Tone and King Hector. Featuring numerous photographs by award-winning photojournalist Steve Hart, the book explains the symbolic significance for the gang of hand gestures, attire, rituals, and rites of passage. Based on their inside information, the authors craft a unique portrait of the lives of the gang members and a ground-breaking study of their evolution.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780231114196
Publisher:	Columbia University Press
Publication date:	03/03/2004
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	464
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

David C. Brotherton, a sociologist, is an associate professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the City University of New York (CUNY) Graduate Center. Luis Barrios, a psychologist, is an associate professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Together they edited (along with Louis Kontos) Gangs and Society: Alternative Perspectives. Luis Barrios is assistant professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice where he teaches courses on Latino psychology and ethnic studies. He has written several articles on gangs and he is the co-editor (with Louis Kontos and David Brotherton) of Gangs and Society: Alternative Perspectives, which will be published by Columbia University Press in Spring 2003.

Table of Contents

Introduction
The Study
The Theory of Gangs
Politics and Gangs
Who are the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation?
The Tradions of King Blood
Non-Gang Traditions I
Non-Gang Traditions II
The Level of Organization and Structure of the Latin Kings
Membership
Identity and Collective Resistance
Goals Versus Acts
Perceived Adversaries
Conclusion

What People are Saying About This

Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh

Brotherton and Barrios have raised the bar on street gang research.Their attentiveness to history, social context, and patterns of social change within gangs over time combine the best of sociological and anthropological methods. While criminologists will benefit from this extraordinary book, it should be required reading for all students of American cities.

— Sudhir Alladi Venkatesh, Associate Professor of Sociology and African American Studies, Columbia University

John M. Hagedorn

An empirical challenge and theoretical wake-up call to an all-but-moribund criminology. Classic insider sociology.

Editorial Reviews

[This] well-researched book seems to focus intentionally on the social and structural aspects of the gang, because understanding those is key to understanding gang membership and steering youth out of it.

Youth Today

Recommended. Undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, and policy makers

Choice - A. A. Sisneros

In The Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation: Street Politics and the Transformation of a New York City Gang, Mr. Brotherton and Mr. Barrios provide a detailed analysis of the rise and fall of the gang's reform process, which had fallen into severe difficulties by 2001.

Chronicle of Higher Education

Recommended. Undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, and policy makers

Choice - A.A. Sisneros

Recommended. Undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, and policy makers

— A. A. Sisneros

Choice