King Tone

Antonio Fernandez (aka King Tone).

Antonio Fernandez, Aka King Tone, is the former head of the Latin Kings (the largest Hispanic street gang in the US). In 1999, Antonio was sentenced to 12–15 years for conspiring to sell narcotics. Upon his release, Antonio has begun a new chapter where he shares his insights as a former gang leader and political activist. Most recently, Antonio was featured in a new book, The Misfit Economy, by best selling author Alexa clay. The book explains how his approach to managing the Latin Kings contains key insights that can be applied elsewhere in the 'legitimate economy'. Antonio is also a public speaker, represented by the agency Propela, and is credited for his inspiring talks for business and community leaders .

Life in the 'Latin Kings'

In 1997, a few months after his appointment as leader of the Latin Kings, The New York Times posed the question whether Antonio was a "Man of Vision or of Violence". They concluded he was the former, a man with the self-assigned mission of transforming the Latin Kings from an organised crime syndicate to a political movement, fighting for social justice on behalf of suppressed Latin American community.

Antonio is seen as a rarity and a paradox. He seemed set for a life of addiction and crime until he went to prison and found solace in a gang. He saw something in the criminal organisation that others didn't - a place that offered the structure and love that he needed to beat addiction. From his own experiences he knew the Latin Kings had more to offer. Mirroring the activism of groups such as the Black Panthers and the Nation of Islam, he wanted to reform and rebrand the Latin Kings and its 7,000 members. He united the divided sects of the gang and presented his ideas at local meetings, building the new principles of the Latin Kings from the ground up. He had former gang members canvasing for politicians and feeding the homeless. The younger members were given curfews and sheltered from elder members who were entrenched in crime. The police called him a "gangster with a PR campaign", but to many he was a symbol of hope.

HBO Documentary.

In 2007, HBO released a documentary called "Latin Kings: A Street Gang story", which was primarily a biography of Antonio Fernandez. Created by award-winning documentary maker Jon Alpert, it depicts two sides to Antonio' role as head of the Latin Kings. It portrays him as a symbol of hope who empowered the Latin American Community, increasing the King's membership by a 1000+. Contrastingly, it also portrays him as a man who could not practise what he preached. Despite asking his Latin King members to find legitimate employment and to reject a life of crime, he continued to use his position as leader of the Latin Kings to assist in large scale narcotic transactions. With an IMDB rating of 7.1, Antonio's story proves to be both insightful and popular.

The documentary is now featured on YoutTube and has had nearly 400,000 views.

Life after Prison.

After a number of corporate talks around the world, Antonio has signed to 'forward thinking' speakers agency Propela. With the backing of business leaders he is set to become a prominent speaker at a number of high profile conferences and events.