Juggalos, the Insane Clown Posse Fans are now officially gang members.
US District Court judge Robert Cleland ruled last week that the FBI did nothing wrong when it named the fan base of rap-metal group Insane Clown Posse as a “loosely organized hybrid gang” in a 2011 report.
The fans were labeled thanks to several of the members' criminal activity, assault, vandalism, and a logo showing a man running with a hatchet.
The group came to the attention of the FBI in 2007 following the “Gathering of the Juggalos” drew a crowd of over 6000 fans and took over a town of 400 people in Illinois. 22 people were arrested on drug charges, and teens were found beating homeless people in Oregon, while two Seattle Juggalos were charged with murder.
Alongside the ACLU, the Juggalos filed a lawsuit saying they were being discriminated against by police who saw their eccentric style as signs of dangerous gang behavior.
The label, Cleland wrote, ”does not recommend any particular course of action for local law enforcement to follow, and instead operates as a descriptive, rather than prescriptive, assessment of nationwide gang trends.”
Displeased with the verdict, ICP member Violent J promised to not rest until it was overturned.
“This is not the end. We'll keep fighting to clear the Juggalo family name,” he said in a statement. ”While it is easy to fear what one does not understand, discrimination and bigotry against any group of people is just plain wrong and un-American.”
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Photo Credit: Billboard.com
