Asian Gangs

     Each country, each culture/ethnic group, unfortunately has a criminal element.  It doesn't matter whether it is a rich, industrialized society or a struggling country in the developing world.  They all have gangs and criminal organizations going back many years.
     Japan is known for its Yakuza, and Yakuza have now spread to Europe and the United States.  There are Yakuza in every major U.S. city, starting with Honolulu in Hawaii and going across all the way to New York and the eastern seaboard.  The Chinese Triads are also well known world wide and have been transnational in their activities for many years.  The Korean Kkangpae are not as well known, but they too have become transnational and are everywhere from Honolulu to New York.  The Japanese Yakuza and the Chinese Triads are perhaps best known to the American public, the Korean Kkangpae not so much.  But the other ethnic gangs or criminal organizations are not all that well known, some in fact, are not known to the American public at all. 
     Part of the reason for this lack of knowledge by the general public is that they are mostly lumped with and thought of as being Chinese or Japanese!  The Vietnamese have had a very active criminal element operating in the U.S. since the mid 1970s.  But they are often misidentified as Chinese gangs! There are several Vietnamese street gangs, and perhaps the best known is the "Born To Kill" gang in New York, also known as BTK gang.  This violent Vietnamese street gang was a holy terror in New York Chinatown in the mid 1980s.  They poached on other gangs' territories without hesitation and often engaged in violent "turf wars" with Chinese gangs.  In Vietnam, there were and still are some violent gangs that came to public attention in the 1980s.  Most of them were run by former ARVN, Republic of Vietnam Army veterans who were quite familiar with weapons and violence!  They turned to life of crime after they were released from the "reeducation camps!"
     One almost never hears about Filipino gangs in the U.S,  Part of the problem is that they are invariably lumped together with other Hispanic gangs because of their names.  For instance, the best known Filipino street gang in Southern California is called "Santana" or STS.  Its easy to see how with such a name it is misidentified often as a Latin gang.  In Philippines, the best known gang is the Bahala Na gang.  At least this gang has a Tagalog name and cannot be confused with a Hispanic gang!  The Bahala Na gang got its start in a Manila prison shortly after World War Two and has been active ever since.  Some of its members did manage to migrate to the U.S. but seem to have kept away from forming a U.S. chapter!
     Every Asian ethnic or national group has a gang in the U.S., even the H'Mong Montagnards!  Even the native Hawaiians have a gang that is called "The Company."  So, every group has a criminal element, every European, Asian, Hispanic, African, and Middle Eastern group!  Some gangs simply migrated from the old country.  Others started new gangs.  After all, America is a land of opportunity!
     Although the criminal organization Yakuza has established itself in the U.S., it is interesting that there are (at least to this point!) no known youth gangs associated with the Japanese community in America.  There may be some wild young Japanese, individuals with criminal bent that engage in illegal activities, but no real gangs to speak of, not like back in Japan.  The Chinese have both the Triads and the street gangs.  The Koreans have the Kkangpae and it seems there are some street gangs in "Korea Town," like in L.A., but not so with the Japanese, its only the Yakuza, the big boys.