Yesterday my younger son showed me how to make a "Bloods" sign -- something complicated you do with your fingers and thumbs so that they form b-l-o-o-d. The "l" is a middle finger gesture which I believe is the same all over the English-speaking world.
One of his school friends made this sign -- as a joke -- to the police officer who sits outside their school in his police car every day, keeping an eye on things. And nearly got in trouble.
I marvel at how American culture spreads -- Crips, Bloods, MS-13 -- coming to a neighborhood in your town soon.
Do ya'll have the kids in the huge jeans with the belts hanging down so you can see their underwear, and the shoes with no laces?
That's called "jailing." In jail, you see, you can't have belts or shoelaces so you won't hang yourself or strangle others. In the neighborhoods where the men don't have jobs, the kids look up to the men who just got out of jail, and hope to grow up to be just like them.
Odd thing is, this particular style of dress came into fashion at least ten years ago. Very odd that it doesn't seem to pass.
My kid's friends don't do "jailing." They have "Dress Up Tuesdays" and wear suits (or tuxedoes, if they have them).
But the older son studies hard. I don't think he's going to have to worry about being displaced by semi-literate illegals.
Everywhere I go here, I see them. Shorter and darker (melanin!-rich compared to non-Latino whites) than the population in general, head down, mouth set in determination, flattened affect but keeping an eye open, and working hard, all the time. I like them.
Especially compared to the guys with the baggy pants. They keep their pants up and their hats turned around and their shoes tied, so they can work without falling down.
You want to hear something? Even their gangs work harder. MS-13, those guys are very, very bad. |
