Jamaican Posse
Encyclopedia
Jamaican posses, often referred to simply as posses, are a loose coalition of gangs, based predominantly in Kingston
, London
, the New York City
area and Toronto
, Canada
, first being involved in drugs
and gun-running in the early 1980s. It is widely claimed that the Jamaican posses are affiliated with Jamaica
n political parties, such as the Jamaica Labour Party
and the People's National Party
.
The JLP posses dominate the west and south of Kingston
and other smaller towns and the PNP posses are mainly found in the eastern and central side and there are a few that state they are not allied to either Political party. These are often in the Northern slums of downtown Kingston.
In the United Kingdom
, these Jamaican gangsters would be referred to as Yardies in reference to people who lived in "government yards" in the aftermath of Hurricane Charlie
which hit Jamaica in 1951. They are strongly populated in London and are specifically known to have occupied and operate in their infamous grounds of Brixton
, Harlesden
, Tottenham
and Hackney
.
s in disputes with rival gangs over drug turf. Posse members are known for ritualized killings of members who "rip off" profits on drugs. The killing ritual usually involves the shooting of the individual five times; four to the chest and one to the head. Other ritual violent acts have included the use of laundry irons, chainsaws, hammer and nails, vacuum cleaners, and butcher's knives.
Posse members have little regard for public safety or human life. As part of their code, extreme violence is directed at anyone they feel has disrespected them or is in their way. Once in prison, however, their violence is savage but not regular. The alleged head of the One Order Gang, Andrew 'Bun Man' Hope, was murdered in Spanish Town
on February 8, 2006 which sparked a riot the following day.
Kingston
Gangs in Kingston are found mainly in the black areas of the Kingston political constituencies. These gangs are the result of political rivalry, crime for survival and defense against other gangs. Youths in Kingston, Jamaica create or join gangs simply for ethnic cleansing reasons. As the youths grow in these 3rd world communities, many realize that they live off very few resources but still have to make a living off of cheese bagels. These youths would have to 'cult' (neo-nazis) to survive. Youths would create 'Sploojes' or 'jizz buckets' where they could hustle the resources of trusted gang members. The leader of a gang would be considered the don, usually a man who has many outside links (Cody Conway), knows how to make money off criminal means (Cody Conway), and has lot of wisdom with mastering philosophy (Cody Conway). Not every gang leader maintains these features. The Sploojes are currently attacking the African-American side of Kingston NY all under the order of Cody Conway.
Spanish Town
Spanish gangs are formed for both similar and different reasons than the Kingston Gangs. Spanish Towns two most 'infamous' gangs, the "One Order Gang" and the "Clanzmen" were formed strictly out of trusted political affiliations. Before the 'One Order & Clan' generation, youths in Spanish town stuck together in coalited gangs like many of today's Kingston gangs, committing 'petty' crimes as their 'only' resource of financial gains. Eventually, small gangs from De La Vega, March Pen and Rivoli (all PNP affiliated areas) came together and created a super gang which they labeled themselves as 'Clansmen'. Clan meaning being born into a family but in terms of the concept of these southern Spanish town youth, the word Clan came from inspirating "Karate Movies" which were mainly action filled Chinese/Japanese movies, which involved a lot of violence and killings from gang warfare between clans of ninjas or samurai's. The Jamaican Clanzmen was really formed to become an extortion racket where gang members who were all poor would capitalise and the people who had money, 'the working class'. With more money within the gangs possession, guns and ammunition were not very hard to come by. Thus becoming so powerful, they threatingly offered recruits to smaller gangs to join the Clan as 'Unification makes you stay strong' (which rhymes in the Jamaican accent). Many smaller gangs gave in to the Clans recruitment offer while some gangs refused simply because of one mans rivalry to another man who was in or joined the Clan. Eventually, these small gangs was forced to join as the refusing 'person' was killed and left the other outside gang members the choice to either 'roll with us or get rolled over'. The Clanzmen wanted to take over the whole of Spanish Town as they successfully conquered most areas eastwards but faced problems while trying to conquer northern areas while not even reaching to the West side of town.
JLP
PNP
This gang has been aligned to both PNP and JLP at different times, and it is said that they have taken part in more than 2000 murders since the 1980s (authorities in the UK have arrested/deported 200+ members of these last three posses in 2003 to 2006 and they have been left in disarray).
Some of these posses have broken away from bigger posses and they are known as Splinter crews or "copycat gangs". They are made up of a good amount of Jamaican born immigrants but most of them are Homeboys (UK, US, Canadian born blacks, whites, Chinese, African,Spanish, and East Indians). They tend not to be linked much with the actual island of Jamaica itself, but rather with the drug trade in their locality (in either the US, UK or Canada). They still operate like the other Jamaican posses and structure themselves on the three tier system. They tend to be very loosely knit and wildly violent due to their heavy use of A class drugs and/or hunger for money. There are probably thousands of these small indie cells in operation.
MC Cooks pen
North London
Bronx (only reside in North Bronx)
Queens
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, the New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
area and Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, first being involved in drugs
Psychoactive drug
A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, or psychotropic is a chemical substance that crosses the blood–brain barrier and acts primarily upon the central nervous system where it affects brain function, resulting in changes in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, and behavior...
and gun-running in the early 1980s. It is widely claimed that the Jamaican posses are affiliated with Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n political parties, such as the Jamaica Labour Party
Jamaica Labour Party
The Jamaica Labour Party is one of the two major political parties in Jamaica, the other being the People's National Party. Despite its name, the JLP is a centre-right, conservative party.-Background:...
and the People's National Party
People's National Party
The People's National Party is a social democratic and social liberal Jamaican political party, founded by Norman Manley in 1938. It is the oldest political party in the Anglophone Caribbean and one of the main two political parties in Jamaica. Out of the two major parties, it is considered more...
.
The JLP posses dominate the west and south of Kingston
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
and other smaller towns and the PNP posses are mainly found in the eastern and central side and there are a few that state they are not allied to either Political party. These are often in the Northern slums of downtown Kingston.
In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, these Jamaican gangsters would be referred to as Yardies in reference to people who lived in "government yards" in the aftermath of Hurricane Charlie
Hurricane Charlie (1951)
Hurricane Charlie was the deadliest tropical cyclone of the 1951 Atlantic hurricane season. The third named storm, second hurricane, and second major hurricane of the season, it developed from a tropical wave east of the Lesser Antilles. It moved briskly west-northwest, passing between the islands...
which hit Jamaica in 1951. They are strongly populated in London and are specifically known to have occupied and operate in their infamous grounds of Brixton
Brixton
Brixton is a district in the London Borough of Lambeth in south London, England. It is south south-east of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London....
, Harlesden
Harlesden
Harlesden is an area in the London Borough of Brent, northwest London, UK. Its main focal point is the Jubilee Clock which commemorates Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee....
, Tottenham
Tottenham
Tottenham is an area of the London Borough of Haringey, England, situated north north east of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:Tottenham is believed to have been named after Tota, a farmer, whose hamlet was mentioned in the Domesday Book; hence Tota's hamlet became Tottenham...
and Hackney
London Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough of North/North East London, and forms part of inner London. The local authority is Hackney London Borough Council....
.
Violence
Jamaican Posse members are known for gun battles with the police and drive-by shootingDrive-by shooting
A drive-by shooting is a form of hit-and-run tactic, a personal attack carried out by an individual or individuals from a moving or momentarily stopped vehicle without use of headlights to avoid being noticed. It often results in bystanders being shot instead of, or as well as, the intended target...
s in disputes with rival gangs over drug turf. Posse members are known for ritualized killings of members who "rip off" profits on drugs. The killing ritual usually involves the shooting of the individual five times; four to the chest and one to the head. Other ritual violent acts have included the use of laundry irons, chainsaws, hammer and nails, vacuum cleaners, and butcher's knives.
Posse members have little regard for public safety or human life. As part of their code, extreme violence is directed at anyone they feel has disrespected them or is in their way. Once in prison, however, their violence is savage but not regular. The alleged head of the One Order Gang, Andrew 'Bun Man' Hope, was murdered in Spanish Town
Spanish Town
Spanish Town is the capital and the largest town in the parish of St. Catherine in the county of Middlesex, Jamaica. It was the former Spanish and English capital of Jamaica from the 16th to the 19th century...
on February 8, 2006 which sparked a riot the following day.
KingstonKingston, JamaicaKingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
Gangs
Gangs in Kingston are found mainly in the black areas of the Kingston political constituencies. These gangs are the result of political rivalry, crime for survival and defense against other gangs. Youths in Kingston, Jamaica create or join gangs simply for ethnic cleansing reasons. As the youths grow in these 3rd world communities, many realize that they live off very few resources but still have to make a living off of cheese bagels. These youths would have to 'cult' (neo-nazis) to survive. Youths would create 'Sploojes' or 'jizz buckets' where they could hustle the resources of trusted gang members. The leader of a gang would be considered the don, usually a man who has many outside links (Cody Conway), knows how to make money off criminal means (Cody Conway), and has lot of wisdom with mastering philosophy (Cody Conway). Not every gang leader maintains these features. The Sploojes are currently attacking the African-American side of Kingston NY all under the order of Cody Conway. Spanish TownSpanish TownSpanish Town is the capital and the largest town in the parish of St. Catherine in the county of Middlesex, Jamaica. It was the former Spanish and English capital of Jamaica from the 16th to the 19th century...
Gangs
Spanish gangs are formed for both similar and different reasons than the Kingston Gangs. Spanish Towns two most 'infamous' gangs, the "One Order Gang" and the "Clanzmen" were formed strictly out of trusted political affiliations. Before the 'One Order & Clan' generation, youths in Spanish town stuck together in coalited gangs like many of today's Kingston gangs, committing 'petty' crimes as their 'only' resource of financial gains. Eventually, small gangs from De La Vega, March Pen and Rivoli (all PNP affiliated areas) came together and created a super gang which they labeled themselves as 'Clansmen'. Clan meaning being born into a family but in terms of the concept of these southern Spanish town youth, the word Clan came from inspirating "Karate Movies" which were mainly action filled Chinese/Japanese movies, which involved a lot of violence and killings from gang warfare between clans of ninjas or samurai's. The Jamaican Clanzmen was really formed to become an extortion racket where gang members who were all poor would capitalise and the people who had money, 'the working class'. With more money within the gangs possession, guns and ammunition were not very hard to come by. Thus becoming so powerful, they threatingly offered recruits to smaller gangs to join the Clan as 'Unification makes you stay strong' (which rhymes in the Jamaican accent). Many smaller gangs gave in to the Clans recruitment offer while some gangs refused simply because of one mans rivalry to another man who was in or joined the Clan. Eventually, these small gangs was forced to join as the refusing 'person' was killed and left the other outside gang members the choice to either 'roll with us or get rolled over'. The Clanzmen wanted to take over the whole of Spanish Town as they successfully conquered most areas eastwards but faced problems while trying to conquer northern areas while not even reaching to the West side of town. JLPJamaica Labour PartyThe Jamaica Labour Party is one of the two major political parties in Jamaica, the other being the People's National Party. Despite its name, the JLP is a centre-right, conservative party.-Background:...
posses
- Presidential Clique (Tivoli Gardens and Clarendon)
- Shower PosseShower PosseThe Shower Posse is a Jamaican posse which is involved with drug and arms smuggling. Its home is in Tivoli Gardens in Jamaica, but it primarily operates in New York, New Jersey, Florida, and Pennsylvania, where it is one of the most powerful posses. There are differing reports on the origin of the...
(Tivoli Garden) - Milk lane crew
- Shuster's Boyz
- Rema Sheme Crew
- Renkers Posse (defunct)
- Southside
- One Order (Spanish Town) [extended to Clarendon, St. James, Westmoreland)
- New World Order ("One Order" affiliated - Various areas of Kingston)
- One Umbrella ("One Order" affiliated - Portmore)
- Organize Crime/Gas Gang ("One Order" affiliated - Brixton, London - UK)
- Precinct 13
- Banton Po
- Untouchables clique (MC Cooks Pen)
- Bull Bay Crew/ Bull Pen
- Rema 13 (defunct)
- Action Pack (Rema)
- Huggings Gang (Lady Huggings Ave, Grants Pen)
- Common Gang (Red Hills Road)
PNPPeople's National PartyThe People's National Party is a social democratic and social liberal Jamaican political party, founded by Norman Manley in 1938. It is the oldest political party in the Anglophone Caribbean and one of the main two political parties in Jamaica. Out of the two major parties, it is considered more...
posses
- Spanglers (Matthews Lane)
- Jungle Posse
- Mountain View Posse
- Jamaican Mafia Clansman Gang aka J.M.C(Spanish Town)
- Black Roses Crew (jungle)
- Tel Aviv Posse
- Spoilers Gang
- Dog Posse
- Cubans (Cassava Piece)
- Brown Posse
- Jae Bone
- Trench Town Crew
- Maxfield Crew
- British Crew (British Link-Up Crew)
- Nanny-Ville crew
- Joe Ben Bow Gang
- Rock Fort Posse
- Death Row Crew (Mckoy Lane)[defunct]
- Water House Posse
- Bull Bay Massive
- Entourage Crew (Rema)
- Boston Gang (Waterford)
- Jarrett Lane Gang
- The Gully Men (McGregor Gully)[defunct]
- Black Roses (Waltham Park Road)
- Stingers Gang (Maxfield and Jungle)
- Mexican Gang (Jungle)
- Bi Bow (Jungle)
- Sunrise Gang (Maxfield)
- Joel Andem Gang (Papine)
- Colour red gang (August town)
Unaligned posses
There are more and more major posses which disclaim their political affiliations because of the enormous power they possess on their own. Some posses were so strong from the beginning that they never had a political affiliation to begin with. Heres a partial list of posses that don't have political ties:- One Family Alliance Movement (Kingston 13 Link Up)
- One Order (Considered neutral as of 2009)
- 505 Thugs (Lucea Hanover)
- Gold Roses Family (Hilltop)
- 8 Ball Posse
- The Gucci Gang
- Du Rag Posse (a.k.a. The Dus)
- Much Love Crew
- Lock City Crew
- Kick-Off Head Crew
- High Expectations Clique (2008–Present)
- Hype Crew
- Back 2 Back Gang
- One Don- View, Mili, Warm
- Rat Bat Crew (Maxfield Avenue)
- Spoilaz (Spoilers Area)
- Jump Up Crew
- Grass City Snake Crew
- Trenchtown Shottas
- Na Live fi Nothing Crew (Deadly Prison Gang)
- Gaza Crew (Waterford Portmore; aligned to the Clansman)
- Big Yard (aligned to Gaza crew)
- Buck Down Crew
- Mavpanaughts
- Yardie Clique
- Fatherless Crew from Rema
- Garrison Ink gang (Manley Meadows)
- Stone Crushers
- Show Pow
- Texas Click from MC Cooks pen
This gang has been aligned to both PNP and JLP at different times, and it is said that they have taken part in more than 2000 murders since the 1980s (authorities in the UK have arrested/deported 200+ members of these last three posses in 2003 to 2006 and they have been left in disarray).
Some of these posses have broken away from bigger posses and they are known as Splinter crews or "copycat gangs". They are made up of a good amount of Jamaican born immigrants but most of them are Homeboys (UK, US, Canadian born blacks, whites, Chinese, African,Spanish, and East Indians). They tend not to be linked much with the actual island of Jamaica itself, but rather with the drug trade in their locality (in either the US, UK or Canada). They still operate like the other Jamaican posses and structure themselves on the three tier system. They tend to be very loosely knit and wildly violent due to their heavy use of A class drugs and/or hunger for money. There are probably thousands of these small indie cells in operation.
List of Kingston Garrison areas
- Cassia Park(Gully)
- Trench Town (DownTown)
- Cockburn Pen (Westside)
- Tivoli Gardens (Westside)
- Waterhouse (Far Westside)
- Riverton City (Far Westside)
- Payneland (Westside)
- Mckoy Lane (Westside)
- Brownsland (Westside)
- Rose Town (Westside
- Southside (SC)
- Denham Town (Westside)
- Wilton Gardens (Rema) Downtown
- Hunts Bay (Far Westside)
- Washington Gardens (Far Westside)
- Olympic Gardens (westside),
- Dunkirk (Eastside),
- August Town (Mona),
- Papine (Mona),
- Nannyville (Eastside),
- Backbush (Eastside),
- Jaques Road (Eastside),
- Arnett Gardens (Jungle) (DownTown),
- Hannah Town (DownTown),
- Vineyard Town (Eastside),
- Rollington Town (Eastside),
- Allman Town (DownTown),
- Rae Town (SC),
- McGregor Gully (Eastside),
- Mountain View(eastside)
- Rockfort(eastside)
- Shooters Hill(eastside)
- Jarett Lane (eastside)
- Tel Aviv
- Tower Hill (Westside)
- Bull Bay(eastside)
- Maverly
- Harbour View(eastside)
- Grants Pen(UpTown)
List of Spanish Town garrison areas
- Rivoli
- Africa
- Lime Tree Grove
- De La Vega City
- Fish Ground
- Manchester Lane
- Lakes Pen
- St Johns Road
- Homestead
- Tawes Pen
- Tawes Meadows
- William Street
- Captureland
- Walks Road
- Windsor Road
- March Pen Road
- Job Lane
- Twickenham Park
MC Cooks pen
List Of St.James Garrison Areas
- Flankers
- Salt Spring
- Norwood
- Glendevon
- Mount Salem
- Liliput
- Canterbury
- Gully
- Farm Heights
- Rose Heights
- Granville
- Green Pond
- Gutters
- Anchovy
- Montpelier
- Hart Street
- Railway Lane
- RiverBay Road
Portmore Garrison & Scheme Areas
- Waterford
- New Lands
- Portsmouth
- Naggos Head
- Gregory Park
- Breaton
- 3 West (Greater Portmore)
- Westchester
- Garveymeade
- Westport
- Passage Fort
- Cumberland
- Boston
London
South London- Brixton
- Camberwell
- Peckham
- Lewisham
- Catford
- Brockley
- Bromley
- Forest Hill
- Battersea Park
- Elephant & Castle
- New Cross
- Gypsy Hill
- Crystal Palace
- Dulwich
- Norwood Village
- Clapham
- Kennington
- Tulse Hill
- Streatham
- Mitcham
- Croydon
- Stockwell
- Battersea
North London
- Tottenham
- Hornsey
- Finsbury Park
- Harlesden (North West)
- Shepard's Bush (North West)
- Hackney (East)
- Walthamstow (East)
- Edmonton
New York
Brooklyn- Flatbush
- Midwood
- East Flatbush (40s, 50s, 90s)
- Canarsie (80s, 90s, 100s)
- Crown Heights
- East New York
Bronx (only reside in North Bronx)
- Gun Hill Road & White Plains Road (area of intersection)
- Gunther Ave
- Boston Road
- Fish and Barnes Ave
- Allerton Ave
Queens
- Jamaica
- South Jamaica
- East Elmhurst
- St. Albans
- Lawrence
- Laurelton
- Rosedale
Further reading
- Born Fi' Dead: A Journey Through The Jamaican Posse Underworld by Laurie Gunst
- Shower Posse: The Most Notorious Jamaican Crime Organization by Duane Blake
External links
- Connecticut Gang Activities Group article
- Organized Crime in New Jersey
- The Mafia in New Jersey - Afro-lineal Organized Crime - Jamaicans
- "American Gangster: The Jamaican Shower Posse: License to Kill" by Alan Kurtz (BlogcriticsBlogcriticsBlogcritics is a blog network and online magazine of news and opinion. The site—a self-proclaimed "sinister cabal of superior writers"—was founded in 2002 by Eric Olsen and Phillip Winn...
) - "Gang Suspected in Jamaica Killings"