LA Gangs Trade In Raiders Gear For Dodgers

From the time NWA was coming straight outta Compton, gang members in Los Angeles were wearing Raiders gear. Even after the team went back to Oakland.

No more. Now it’s more Dodger gear.

The website Complex listed the top 10 gang-affiliated hats in sports, and the Dodgers topped the list.

Why? The Crips have always been blue, so they have a color affiliation. The Latin Angels like the “LA.” The Gangster Disciples may have started in Chicago but they like the “D” in Dodgers to mean Disciples.

Over at Sports By Brooks, they’ve taken a look at what was behind the change.

The most obvious reason -- the Raiders left Los Angeles in 1994, and a lot of today’s gang members (anyone under age 20) didn’t grow up watching the home town Raiders play or feeling a part of that culture. The Dodgers, on the other hand have always been here.

So have the Lakers -- but who can afford to go to a Laker game?

Dodger games, on the other hand, can be very affordable, especially out in the bleacher areas. Sports By Brooks says that Latin gang members can often be found in the bleacher seats at the stadium.  It is a cheap form of entertainment.

Plus, the Dodgers have an identity in this town since Manny Ramirez came to play. Ramirez gave the Dodgers a star power the franchise had not had since Orel Hershiser and Kirk Gibson were on the team. The Dodgers were cool again, especially with Matt Kemp dating Rihanna.

Don’t worry Raiders fans, your hat still came in No. 3 on the gang affiliation list. Which is a lot higher than the football team has in a long time.