Chicago is a microcosm of the United States: a mélange of working-class neighborhoods dominated by a single ethnic group, be it African-American, Latinx, or European descent. The enclaves were hermetic, drawing strict boundaries that were fiercely protected by local street gangs, widely known as “clubs” that often got their start in schools and athletic associations.
.
In the 1950s, the gangs began to don sweaters to identify themselves, and carried compliment [business] cards that bore their affiliation and became status symbols. As the gangs grew, the violence increased, and by the 1980s, many of the smaller local clubs had been consumed by larger syndicates that have become synonymous with inner-city violence. Within this extremely male-dominated culture, the ultimate underground phenomenon emerged: that of girl gang members whose stories have largely gone untold.
.
“It’s real shit,” says Diamond, who first got involved with Chicago gangs in the mid-1980s. “I came from Riverside, Illinois—an all-white neighborhood, middle to high-class, million-dollar homes—and went into the heart of Humboldt Park. This can happen to anybody’s kid. If they walk the wrong way, they can end up being a gangbanger, drug dealer, drug addict, or in the street.”
.
Read the Full Story at Document Journal
.
