I have noticed a recent spike in violent crimes in my neighborhood, with an increase in participation by young hip-hop identified white males. Two weeks ago I took the bus with one of the most vicious looking young whites I have seen in quite a while—you know, these white people can get scary when they forget they represent those other white people who own everything.

As are 8 out of 10 people under 30 this man is heavily tattooed. He is fit. He has hard facial lines without trying, definitely the product of negative socialization. He is blonde, a tough looking middleweight I would say. He has three teardrops tattooed below the outside of his left eye.

I ran into a young lady in her twenties by the food market who is very pregnant, and who I have carried groceries for. She seemed very nervous about getting home before dark. I asked her why.

“You know it’s a rough area. Up on Bayonne we have three crack houses and a heroin den. They are all over the place. But now I have these three guys that just came in from out of town living on my street, three doors down. They are beating the shit out of people and just taking their stuff. I saw them jack this one guy that was walking with his wife. The guy was older. This dude with the teardrops walks up to him and cracks him hard to the ground—takes his phone, empties his pockets. In the street, during the day!

“Nobody is calling the cops because they know these guys will be around when the cops aren’t. The cops can’t protect you. What are you going to do, file a complaint, so the cop can give these dudes you’re name and address like you’re going to the people’s Court to argue over back rent? I don’t think so.

“Anyways, they’re getting popular. They have girls over their every night—whores, drug-heads and ghetto bitches, stripping down to the waist and throwing hands in the street like they’re filming a ghetto brawl video for YouTube. I stay clear of them. What’s scary is I’m sure they’re more coming’. These guys call themselves the ‘Vice Lords’. These are hard dudes to be coming in white and forming up in an area like this where you have all of this established black shit goin’ on.

“I’m really afraid about staying around once my baby comes. These guys scare me. They’re startin’ shit with the other drug houses, taking their girls. It could get bad.”

I had thought the Vice Lords was a black gang based in Chicago. I don’t know if these guys are affiliates or not. I’ve never been any good at reading gang tags, of which we have had an increase over the past 18 months. I suppose it’s about time I get started.