The “Crips” were founded in Los Angeles in 1969 by Raymond Washington, who is widely recognized as the principal founder of what would become a nationwide street-gang network. The Crips initially began as a local alliance before eventually fracturing into numerous independent sets.

Today, the “Crips” are a massive collection—or “alliance,” as many members may characterize the broader affiliation, particularly within prisons and jails—of both structured and unstructured street gangs across the United States. These groups share elements of a common gang culture, including the use of blue, shared terminology, iconography, symbolism, and ideological rivalries with groups such as the “Bloods”.

Crip-associated terminology can include linguistic conventions such as replacing “ck” with “cc” in certain words, resulting in spellings such as “bacc” instead of “back” or “sicc” instead of “sick.” This pattern can appear in graffiti, written communication, music, and online posts. Other commonly associated forms of symbolism include hand signs and, in some regions, six-pointed stars.

National Crip membership has been estimated at approximately 30,000 to 35,000 members. Although the Crips originated in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, Crip-affiliated groups eventually spread throughout the Midwest, East Coast, South, and other regions of the United States. Significant regional concentrations developed in places such as North Carolina, Minnesota—including Minneapolis, Michigan—including Detroit and Flint—Ohio—including Columbus and Toledo—as well as New Jersey and New York.

Crip groups outside California have often developed more adaptable or hybridized identities based on local street and prison culture. During the expansion of Crip-affiliated groups throughout the Midwest, East Coast, and South, local sets frequently adapted their practices to existing regional gang structures rather than strictly following Los Angeles neighborhood politics. As a result, regional Crip organizations may place greater emphasis on local alliances, prison politics, and relationships with other established gangs than on the specific 2X-versus-3X dynamics associated with Los Angeles.

Much of this expansion occurred during the 1980s and 1990s, driven by factors including mass incarceration, migration, popular media, and the movement of incarcerated gang members between correctional facilities. In Midwest, East Coast, and Southern correctional systems, incarcerated Crip sets encountered large, highly organized Chicago-based gang coalitions, most notably the Folk Nation and People Nation.

The Folk Nation is traditionally associated with the six-pointed star, while the People Nation is associated with the five-pointed star. Within certain correctional environments, Crip-affiliated groups developed alliances with members of the Folk Nation, which was heavily associated with the Gangster Disciples. These relationships are commonly described as the “8-Ball” alliance, a reference to the black eight-ball in pool and the perceived alliance between Crips and Folk-affiliated groups.

The six-pointed star consequently became an important symbol among many Crip sets outside California, particularly in parts of the Midwest, East Coast, and South. In these environments, the symbolism was incorporated into existing Crip identity and was sometimes interpreted through the six principles traditionally associated with the Gangster Disciples: Life, Love, Loyalty, Knowledge, Wisdom, and Understanding. Consequently, some Midwest and East Coast Crips use the “Six Points” or “Six” as a representation of purpose, loyalty, and affiliation.

It is important, however, to distinguish these regional adaptations from the historical culture of California Crips. Los Angeles and California Crips traditionally do not recognize the six-pointed star as a Crip symbol and do not consider themselves part of the Folk Nation. California Crips have historically operated according to localized neighborhood politics and affiliations, including distinctions between groups such as Rollin’ Neighborhood Crips and Gangster Crips.

As a result, a Crip member from the Midwest or East Coast who enters Los Angeles while displaying symbols associated with the Folk Nation—such as pitchforks or the six-pointed star—may be viewed by local L.A. Crips as an outsider rather than as someone sharing the same regional gang identity. These symbols developed within a different historical and correctional environment and therefore do not carry the same meaning within traditional West Coast Crip culture.

Detroit represents another example of how Crip identity has been adapted to a local environment. In Detroit, references to the “Six” or “6” can carry Crip-related meaning, while six-pointed-star symbolism may also overlap with iconography associated with Gangster Disciples. The meaning of these symbols is therefore highly dependent on regional context, local history, and the specific set using them rather than being universally interpreted the same way throughout the national Crip network.

In Detroit, the Rollin’/Neighborhood Crip (“2X”) presence is one of the city’s most widespread Crip identities, consisting of loosely connected subsets operating across both the west and east sides. Each set generally functions independently, with its identity and relationships shaped heavily by block-level geography, local history, and localized alliances.

For definitions of terminology related to activity, conduct, demographics, gang-related terms, identifiers, and classifications used on this page, refer to the site glossary.

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*In No Particular Order*

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Notes & Verification Status
Information is compiled from public records, community reports, and law enforcement sources.
Use of this page is for informational and historical purposes; it is not legal documentation.

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Sources:

*Sources are listed in no particular order. Numerical placement does not indicate priority, authority, or primary-source status.*

• 1. DOJ Press Release 2018, Rollin’ 60 Crips Gang Leaders Sentenced for Racketeering Charges
• 2. DOJ Press Release 2019, 16 Members of a Violent Gang from Detroit’s Westside Have Been Convicted for Their Roles in a Racketeering Conspiracy
• 3. Click On Detroit Local 4 WDIV 2018, 2 leaders of Detroit’s Rollin 60s Crips street gang sentenced for racketeering
• 4. Fox 2 Detroit 2016, 12 gang members of the Rollin 60s Crips in Detroit arrested
• 5. Click On Detroit Local 4 WDIV 2019, Inside the takedown of the ‘Playboy Gangster Crips’
• 6. Click On Detroit Local 4 WDIV 2018, Feds bust ‘Playboy Gangster Crips” gang
• 7. Detroit News Article 2025, Purported Crip-Affiliated Gang Member Documents City’s ‘Tag Wars’
• 8. 2025 Detroit Crips Mini-documentary, Most Dangerous Crip Gangs in Detroit: The Real Story of Power, Bloodshed & Survival
• 9. 2025 Detroit Bloods Mini-documentary, Most Dangerous Blood Gangs in Detroit EXPOSED: 55 Seven Mile Bloods, 82 Headbanger Bloods & More!
• 10. Alamy Stock Photos 2015-2025, “Detroit Crips Graffiti,” 330+ photos with EXIF data and detailed titles/captions used for identification and location context
• 11. “Tag” definition, GangEnforcement.com
• 12. Gang Terminology, GangEnforcement.com
• 13. Street Gangs, GangEnforcement.com