Latin+Kings

= Latin Kings ​ = The **Latin Kings** are said to be the largest and most organized Hispanic street gang in the United States of America, which has its roots dating back to the 1940s in Chicago, Illinois. Latin King documents reveal that Gino Gustavo Colon ("Lord Gino") is considered the "SUN" of the Almighty Latin King Nation in Chicago—and has been for a long time. Currently he is serving a life sentence in federal prison due to a 25-count indictment, which includes charges of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and other drugs. Latin King headquarters is located on Beach and Spaulding in Northwest Chicago.

Organizational structure
The Latin Kings have a hierarchical organizational structure, and they have sets in numerous states across the country. These sets are referred to as "chapters" or "tribes", with each reporting to an Inca, Cacíque, Enforcer and Regional Officer. The head (or heads) of the entire criminal organization are known as "Coronas" (crowns in Spanish).

Markings
A member of the Chicago 51st & Ada chapter Latin Kings showing tattoo of a crowned lion The Latin King colors are black and gold; gang markings consist of a 5 or 3-point crown, writings of LK, ALK, ALKN, ALKQN abbreviations (or the whole words), and drawings of the Lion and/or the King Master. Latin King symbolism is usually accompanied with the name and number of the chapter, region or city of the gang. The Latin Kings are of the People Nation, and therefore, represent everything to the "left" in opposition to the "right", which is representative of the "Folk Nation".

Culture
Due to the organizations contradictory history, it is often debated about whether they are a criminal organization or a positive force in the community (as they have obviously taken on both roles at different points in time, as well as simultaneously). For example, in 2000 there were approximately 1600 self-admitted Latin Kings in the Illinois Department of Corrections, and these accounted for over half of all the recorded violent acts on prison personnel and other inmates, making the ALKN the most violent prison gang in Illinois (Federal Bureau of Investigation, Fiscal Report, 2000). But their "apparent contradictions", the Latin Kings may argue, can be better understood when viewed through the lens of their teachings. Once a member of the Almighty Latin King Nation, according to the "Latin King Manifesto", a member naturally passes through three stages of consciousness: (1) the Primitive Stage, wherein the neophyte member is expected to be immature and to be involved in such activities as gang-banging and being a street warrior without the full consciousness of Kingism; (2) the Conservative or Mummy Stage, which is where a member tires of the street gang life but is still accepting of life as it has been taught to him by the existing system that exploits all people of color, dehumanizes them, and maintains them under the conditions and social yoke of slavery; and (3) the New King Stage, where the member recognizes the need for a revolution of the "mind". According to the Manifesto, "The New King is the end product of complete awareness, perceiving three-hundred and sixty degrees of enlightenment; his observations are free and independent; his thoughts are not clouded by any form of prejudice...For him there are no horizons between races, sexes and senseless labels", including gang labels for recognition. The New King no longer views the rival warriors as the cause of his ills and seeks world unity for the sake of humanization and freedom for all the "Oppressed Third World Peoples". Therefore, as appropriately expressed by their own teachings, a great majority of Latin Kings live a criminal lifestyle while a select few seek to better their communities and fight against social oppression and injustices. Raúl T. Carlos, Adíán and Iván.