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To try and explain anything about the caribbean Sparkle Posse, I'll have to explain a little something about Jamaican gangs, and Voodoo, the latter I know very little about. The former, however, have been around and pretty well known throughout most of the West since they first began to break through into the criminal underworld in the early 80s of the last century. First in cities like New York and London, they began to set themselves apart from other gangs with a very distinct criminal culture and an extreme propensity for violence.
.: Posse Culture
Posses - or Yardies, a reference to the Jamaican, poor, backyard culture from whence most of their members originate - don't have an overal hierarchy like the Mafia has, or even the way the Yakuza or Triads have. They are far more like your every day gangs than they are a highly organised criminal organisation, with multiple gangs working independent and fully autonomous of one another, with their own ideas, recruitment, plans and sub-culture. Most of the time when two posses have remained independent from eachother for some time than they have done so for a reason; usually their inability to cooperate is because of some long standing fued, which are frequent and usually violent.
As opposed to most other criminal organisations and gangs, who's world revolves around honour, the world of a posse member is obsessed with image, which is a subtle but important difference. Honour is nothing and is only extended and received through intimidation - use of image and status. So you can stab somebody in the back without lying awake thinking about whatever it may have done to your reputation as long as you did it in the style and with the grandeur befitting of a posse member.
It's the pursuit of wealth upon which the entire image is based that drives a posse. Money, that's the only thing that counts. You have to have it to count, and if you don't, then you have to look like you have it. This obsession has lead to a lot of frustration among the relatively large group of young adults who have their roots in the Caribbean League who live far below the UCAS poverty level. This frustration expresses itself in increased violence caused by desperation. Overwhelming violence to the point of recklessness is key to the "never stand down" attitude the posse members posses because they have nothing to lose but their image. The live-for-the-moment philosophy explains, according to many Criminologists, the average life expectancy of a posse member is 34.
Despite their lack of discipline, the "here today, gone tomorrow" culture has been a major obstacle to the Star's efforts to infiltrate a posse. The Star don't have enough under cover agents with a death wish and unafraid of anything and everything. And the heightened, unreasonable fear that a posse's intimidating attitude exudes makes it very hard to start a case against any of them simply because no witnesses will come forward. The posses can hold their own when it comes down to a competition with the Mob or the Yaks to see who can intimidate the most witnesses to a crime. A posse's power might not be as far reaching as the Mob's, but what they lack in power they make up in viciousness, reacting immediately and decisively to anyone who crosses them.
The notorious death of Mark Burnett demonstrates that in 2056, when he was shot dead in the middle of a Seattle nightclub after he accidentally stepped on the foot of a posse gunman. There were 2,000 partying the night away alongside Mark Burnett when he was murdered. Yet 450 claimed to have been in the bathroom when the shooting started, hundreds gave false names and addresses and of the 270 who were immediately arrested, none could recall seeing anything out of the ordinary.
.: Posse Colours
Because their obsession with image, posse member often wear excessive amounts of gold and platinum, as well as very loud coloured, expensive clothing. Retro-Mochino and Gucci & Dolce-Gabbana are favourites because of their reconisable urban brands as well as their high cost, accentuating their image as wealthy gang members. Large sports or muscle cars, complete with all the "aesthetic" modifications are the vehicles of choice, often painted in clashing colours with elaborate hood paintings depicting images of those things they hold dear: money and freedom.
.: Posse Activities
Posses engage in weapons trade, synthetic drug trade, armed robbery and murder. Especially the posses in Florida are heavily into gun and drug trade as they have tight connections to pirates and smugglers from the Caribbean League. Throughout the rest of the country they supplement their activities with armed robberies of anyone and everyone - even criminal syndicates and megacorporations if they think they can get away with it - and as murderers for hire. You want someone rubbed out, and don't mind a little collateral damage?
.: Posse Rivals and Enemies
If you set all the regular rivalry between gangs over turf, ego and merchandise aside, the posses have on big, all-encompasing rival; Rastafarians. You may wonder what the difference is between a posse member and a Rastafarian - they both wear dreadlocks, don't they? - well, back in the third quarter of the last century when both the posses and the rastafarians started to prolifirate themselves from Jamaica, and spread their influence into the U.S. across the ocean to the U.K. and along the caribbean, the Rastafarians were running the show and had most of the major cocaine distribution - cocaine is like a watered down version of novacoke, it's ancestor, basically - in New York City under control. Soon the question was raised if Jamaica should become a cocaine-producing country, which would lead to significant cost reductions and higher profit margins for the Jamaicans. The posses were for, while the Rastafarians were against the plan, saying that it would get too many Jamaicans hooked. They were okay with the production of marijuana - a intoxicating herb popular around the turn of the century - but cocaine would destroy the island. The posses decided to go ahead and execute their plan anyway. A decade later all the major cocaine distribution in New York City was done by posses, noticably, the Spangler and Shower posses.
.: Voodoo
Voodoo, a pantheistic belief system developed in West Africa and transported to the Americas during the diaspora of the slave trade, is the generic term for a number of similar African religions which mutated in the Americas. Voudoun is the tradition as practiced in Haiti and New Orleans. In Hispanic-speaking areas it is called Santaria while in some areas of Amazonia it's practiced as Camdoble. Many other names exist for this same tradition, like Macumbe, Obeah, Shango Baptist, etc.
Following are the basic concepts of Voodoo that I snagged off MagicNET:
- There is only one God, Bondye, which similar to the God of Islam, Judaism and Christianity.
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There are three important categories of spiritual beings:
- Loa (or Lwa). These are the spirits of the major forces of the universe.
- The Twins. A curious and mysterious set of forces representing contradictions.
- The dead. Ghosts, spirits of the deceased. Those who are ignored are very dangerous so honour and care for them.
- The central and key aspect of Voodoo is healing people from misfortune and illness. Healers heal with herbs and faith (with the help of Loa and other spirits).
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The priesthood of Voodoo contains both men (Hougans) and women (Mambos). Their most prominent functions are:
- Healing.
- Perform religious ceremonies to call or pacify the spirits.
- Telling the future and reading dreams.
- Casting spells and creating protections.
- Creating potions for various purposes.
- Another central feature of Voodoo are the religious rites of the religion, which are usually held outside, or in the Hounfour (or Casa in Santaria), the parish or region of a houganor mambo's influence. Drums are used extensively to provide music and dancing is absolutely essential to the whole service. The service is entirely participatory. Not only the houngan and mambo participate, but nearly everyone present. During this service those in attendance are all subject to being "mounted" by Loa, where they come and take over a person's body for a time. When the Loa comes, the person is gone. The body is the body of the person, but it's really the Loa. If a male Loa mounts a female person he is referred to as "he," not "she," during the ceremony. Nearly every Voodoo service has animal sacrifice that signifies the release of life and rejuvenate the Loa, who are exhausted by the task of running the universe.
- Rada is considered the family spirit Voodoo and the Voodoo of relatively peaceful and happy Loa, while Petro - in some areas called Congo - represents the black magic Voodoo and Voodoo of angry Loa. Dangerous things happen in Petro, including death curses, the making of Zombi and wild sexual orgies. The spectacular tales of black magic, while very real, are extremely rare so Petro is not typical Voodoo, but it does exist.
- Humans have two spirits, both making up the soul, and one body. Ti bon ange, or "little good angel", is similar to the "conscience" in Western understanding of people, while the gros bon ange, or "big good angel" is similar to the "soul" in Western understanding, except that the soul is much more separate from the person.
Following are some key terms in Voodoo:
- Hounfour: the paris or region of the houngan or mambo's influence.
- Govi: a small earthen bottle into which the gros bon ange of dead ancestors can be "rescued." After a person dies, the gros bon ange goes to the underwater place. A year and a day after he or she goes there the relatives can recall the gros bon ange. Unfortunately, this is a very expensive service, requiring a significant animal sacrifice. Thus it is often considerable time before the service can be done, but if too much time passes the ancestor may get a bit restles and cause trouble, misfortune or illness.
- Serviteurs: serious, devoted practitioners of Voodoo.
- Lave tet: Washing of the head, which is an initiation ceremony held for serviteurs after they have been mounted for the first time.
- Verve: Ceremonial drawings done in flour of various Loa.
- Les Invisibles: all spirits.
- Les Mysteries: the Loa.
Following are some of the Loa in the Voodoo patheon:
- Agwe appears as a tall, strong, black man glistening with water and draped with seaweed and seashells. He is dignified and regal and is the spirit of the sea.
- Azaca appears as an exuberant youth, eager to take action.
- Damballah is the father of serpents and snakes. Eggs are offered to him when he comes to mount a person. He is much loved and sought after. His wife Ayida Ouedo attends him.
- Erzulie is charming, seductive and is the spirit of love and lust.
- Ghede appears as a skinny man with a top hat, tail coat, sunglasses and a cain. Refered to as Papa Ghede he is the spirit of eroticism, death and resurrection.
- Legba is an old man, with bent limbs, walking with a staff. He's the gatekeeper between the two worlds. He is also the origins of life and the spirit of life, the sun and regeneration.
- Kalfu is the Petro counterpart of Legba, teh spirit of the night, the moon and the origins of darkness.
- Ogoun is the spirit of politics and violence. He appears as a warrior with large muscles and an iron-hard skin.
- Shango is the spirit of storms and fire and takes the form of a savage looking warrior, clothed in lightening.
What does that have to do with the Sparkle Posse, you're wondering? Well, King Benny, the posse's leader, is a Houngan and has a large influence over the posse members this way. "King Benny has the hottest bitches, the fastest cars, the biggest house, the most drugs, the best weapons...and he has something more; Deep Voodoo." It's all image. They follow him because they like to be associated with that kind of bad-ass mojo.
.: King Benny
We don't know anything about King Benny before the inception of the Sparkle Posse back in the late 40s. The Sparkle Posse has seen its ups and downs the last ten years but one thing has been concurrent throughout the last decade: King Benny's been at the head of it all.
His rule is absolute, though there are clear indications that he's not involved or included in many of the gang's day to day businesses. Rip-deals, heists, armed robbery, drug trade; these things don't concern King Benny, and never have. He uses his faithful following to "power his rituals in worship of Shango, Ghede, Damballah and the many other Voodoo spirits." All of his followers are deeply involved in Voodoo, and those who don't usually end up dying under strange circumstances.
His lack of involvement in the gang's activity has meant problems in the past, and he's recruited and appointed strong lieutenants to take care of his personal army of worshippers. They are often like unguided projectiles ripping off whoever they want, whoever they think they can go up against, and whatever they can get away with.
When he finally found one that could keep his flock under relative control, he retreated into seclusion more than he already had, only coming out occassionally to restate his dominance and conduct the deeply spiritual rituals required by the spirits.
One more thing that's worth noting is that word around the campfire is that King Benny has been a high roller in the cause to keep the Rastafarians and the Posses at eachother's throats. If you didn't know - and I sure as hell didn't - Jamaican Posses are not the same as Rastafarians. Aparently it has something to do with the sale of cocaine on Jamaica, dating back to the previous century. I don't know.
...to be continued
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