Vanguard of the Next Revolution: The Historical Involvement and Contemporary Potential of Gang Members in Revolutionary Activity

• In Event: Historical Studies of Crime

Abstract

This paper examines the historical involvement of gang members in revolutionary activity and examines the potential for gang members to become involved in revolutionary activity in the contemporary period. The paper first examines the involvement of gang members in the radical civil rights movement, particularly focusing on the Los Angeles chapter of the Black Panther Party and its progeny. The historical effectiveness of gang members in the radical civil rights movement is analyzed and compared with modern gang membership, suggesting that modern gang members are even better prepared to serve as the revolutionary vanguard of a new contemporary radical resistance to ultra-nationalism and neo-fascism in the American and European contexts.

Author

• Robert Donald Weide, California State University, Los Angeles