"Vice Lord Nation" coolest Chicago gang ever?

The History of the Conservative Vice Lords

The Vice Lords are considered the oldest street gang in Chicago. Their development can be traced back to the late 1950s, when the gang was formed as a club in the Illinois State Training Center for Boys, in St. Charles reformatory, Illinois. This center was a facility for juvenile offenders convicted of various offenses. As members were released from the center and returned to their west side neighborhood, the club evolved into a street gang (Vice Lords) in the Lawndale area of Chicago. In the 1960s, a war on poverty was funding grass roots efforts around the country. The Vice Lords became the Conservative Vice Lords Inc. in 1967 after they were allotted federal grants. The CVL, Inc. set up a variety of programs and businesses through the west side. Many observers thought that gangs might be able to be transformed into pro-social organizations. (Keiser 50). There were also many allegations of waste and fraud concerning these federal money and federal program, but none of the Vice Lords were convicted of fraud.

During the 1970s and the early 1980s, the Vice Lords remained a west side street gang. As the Vice Lord gang leaders and hardcore gang members were released from the penitentiary system, they relocated to various north and south side neighborhood in Chicago. From this relocation process the influence and power expanded as new Vice Lord gang members were recruited and new branches were revealed. The racial make-up of most Vice Lords is African-American. The branches all have alliance to the People and are under the five-point star.

In Chicago the branches consist of:

Albany Vice Lords, Cicero Insane Vice Lords, Conservative Vice Lords, Ebony Vice Lords, Four Corner Hustler Vice Lords, Imperial Insane Vice Lords, Mafia Insane Vice Lords, Traveling Vice Lords, Undertaker Vice Lords, Unknown vice Lords, and the only Latino Vice Lords are the Spanish Vice Lords not to be misconceived with the Spanish Lords that are not part of the Vice Lords.

Today, fractions of the Vice Lords can be found in almost every suburban area of Chicago in Cook County, as well as numerous jurisdictions in the collar counties of Kane, Lake and DuPage. Fractions of the Vice Lords have also been established in Gary, Indiana, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Peoria, Illinois, Minneapolis, Minnesota and numerous other cities in the Midwest. Their main gang colors are gold and black, & red and black. Their emblems consist of: Pyramid with a crescent moon, the letters “V/L,” top hat with cane and gloves, pair of dice, champagne glass, Playboy bunny head, crescent moon with a five-pointed star, a dollar sign, and gloves.