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Puro Tango Blast

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Tango Prison Gangs
Founding locationTDCJ, Texas, U.S.
Years activelate 1990s–present
EthnicityHispanic, White, Mixed Race
Membership14,000 - 17,000 [1][2]

'Tango prison gangs are a collection of mostly Hispanic gang members who operate on the streets and within many correctional facilities in Texas.

History

Puro Tango Blast, or Tango Blast, is a term used to collectively describe various regionally-based groups of generally Hispanic men from major Texas cities such as Houston, San Antonio, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Austin, El Paso, Corpus Christi, Rio Grande Valley, and West Texas- although anyone can join - who have banded together for protection from established security threat groups, like Mexikanemi and the Texas Syndicate.[3][4][5] Each regional group is individually called a Tango.[3] The term Tango Blast, in actuality, does not refer to a separate group; rather, it refers to the idea that a particular Tango member is more criminally active than others.[6])) Some Tango members say that Tango is an acronym for "Together Against Negative Gang Organizations"; however, Tango originally meant something like 'hometown clique.'[7]

Structure

Although often referred to as a prison gang, Tango Blast is different than traditional prison gangs such as Mexikanemi and the Texas Syndicate, lacking the typically strict hierarchy of those organizations.[8] While those more structured organizations, known as Security Threat Groups,[9] will have a variety of structures, Tango members in a particular area of a correctional facility will elect a silla (Spanish for "chair"), to speak for that area of the facility.[10] There is no consistent pathway for initiation into a Tango; rather, each individual set of Tango members determines who it admits and by what methods.[3][4] One initiation method is called a "Cora Check" or a test of heart in which the potential member must engage in physical combat with 2 or more members, provided that he does not surrender during the melee he is inducted to the gang.[7] Members are not required to perform gang activity when released from prison, making Tangos more popular among younger people.[7]

Individual Tangos

While it is commonly believed that there are only four chapters to the gang, other regions of the state have their own tangos.[7] Collectively, the tangos from Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, and Houston.[7] are known as the 4 Horsemen. Individual Tango members use regionally appropriate symbols as tattoos to identify the tango to which they belong; Houstone members, who are from Houston, often use the Houston Astros star,[6][7] D-Town members, who are from Dallas, may use the Dallas Cowboys star,[4][6][7] Foritos members, who are also known as Foros and are from Fort Worth, often use the 817 area code, a star with 817 in the center similar to a pentagram.,[6][7][11] and ATX or La Capirucha members, who are from Austin, may use the Texas Capitol building.[6][7][11] Generally, Tango members identify themselves by sport team logos or area codes from their home town or region.[11] These four tangos represent the earliest tangos to form.[12] Other areas of Texas have their own tangos, notably West Texas (Puro West or Wesos, often displaying 806 or 432, 23-20, the word West, or a WT in tattoos[12]), the Valley (Vallucos),[11][13] San Antonio (Orejones),[14] Corpus Christi (Corpitos),[14] and El Paso (Chucos).[5]

Media

History, in their series Gangland, dedicated an episode to a description of Puro Tango Blast in episode 11 of season 5.

References

  1. ^ Glass, Doug (April 29, 2011). "Over 14,000 strong, TDCJ's Tango Blast gang still creating major issues inside the walls". Backgate Website. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
  2. ^ "Tango Blast". Retrieved December 6, 2012.
  3. ^ a b c Brendel, Patrick (January 7, 2008). "Who is 'West Texas?'". oaoa.com. Retrieved May 23, 2011.
  4. ^ a b c http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-tango_30met.ART.State.Edition2.4aa5a13.html [dead link‍]
  5. ^ a b http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/pubs32/32146/appb.htm
  6. ^ a b c d e http://info.publicintelligence.net/PrisonGangsTangos.pdf
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Vogel, Chris (August 15, 2007). "Gang Lite?". Houston Press. p. 2. Retrieved May 23, 2011.
  8. ^ Vogel, Chris (August 15, 2007). "Gang Lite?". Houston Press. p. 1. Retrieved May 23, 2011.
  9. ^ http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/cid/Pamphlet-Narr%20Form-09-07.pdf
  10. ^ http://houstone.blogspot.com/2008/04/puro-tango-blast.html
  11. ^ a b c d http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/113008dnmettango.3d2fd2c.html
  12. ^ a b http://www.oaoa.com/news/west-12407-texas-tangos.html
  13. ^ http://old.brownsvilleherald.com/ts_comments.php?id=60230_0_10_0_C
  14. ^ a b http://alanpetersworld.blogspot.com/2010/04/security-threat-groups-in-texas.html
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