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{{short description|Neo-Nazi prison gang and organized crime syndicate}}
{{distinguish|Aryan Brotherhood of Texas}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2021}}
{{Infobox criminal organization
| name              = Aryan Brotherhood
| image             = Aryan Brotherhood hate symbol.svg
| image_size        =  <!--(defaults to 220px)-->
| caption           =
| founded           = {{start date and age|1964}}<ref name="ABC">{{cite news|last=Coverson|first=Laura|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=1726215|title=Aryan Brotherhood Tried for 40 Years of Prison Mayhem|work=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]|date=March 15, 2006|access-date=October 27, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070312021411/https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=1726215&page=1|archive-date=March 12, 2007|url-status=live}}</ref>
| founder           =  <!--or | founders = -->
| named_after       = 
| founding_location = [[San Quentin State Prison]], California, United States<ref name="ABC"/>
| years_active      = 1964–present
| territory         = [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]], [[Southwestern United States|Southwestern U.S.]], and throughout the [[Federal Bureau of Prisons|federal prison system]]<ref name="Prison Gangs">[https://www.justice.gov/criminal-ocgs/gallery/prison-gangs Prison Gangs] [[justice.gov]] (May 11, 2015)</ref>
| ethnicity         = [[White Americans|White American]]<ref name="Prison Gangs"/>
| membership_est    = 20,000<ref name=splc-groupdef />
| leaders           = 
| activities        = Murder, assault, drug trafficking, robbery, gambling, extortion, racketeering, arms trafficking, inmate prostitution, human trafficking, dog fighting<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.crimemagazine.com/blood-blood-out-violent-empire-aryan-brotherhood |title="Blood In, Blood Out: The Violent Empire of the Aryan Brotherhood", Crime Magazine |publisher=Crimemagazine.com |access-date=July 13, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927143527/http://www.crimemagazine.com/blood-blood-out-violent-empire-aryan-brotherhood |archive-date=September 27, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="ABabout">{{cite web |url=http://crime.about.com/od/gangsters/a/aryanbrothers.htm |title=The Aryan Brotherhood: Profile of One of the Most Notorious Prison Gangs |publisher=About.com |last=Montaldo |first=Charles |date=2014 |access-date=July 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160721073746/http://crime.about.com/od/gangsters/a/aryanbrothers.htm |archive-date=July 21, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| allies            = {{plainlist| <!-- Any and all additions to this section require a reliable source. -->
* Dirty White Boys<ref name="ABabout"/>
* [[Gambino crime family]]<ref name="nydailynews.com">{{cite news|url=https://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/aryan-prison-gang-links-mafia-drugs-money-gambinos-article-1.508409 |title=Aryan Prison Gang Links with Mafia Drugs, Money & the Gambinos |work=[[New York Daily News|Daily News]] |date=November 3, 2002 |access-date=April 3, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224153454/http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/aryan-prison-gang-links-mafia-drugs-money-gambinos-article-1.508409 |archive-date=December 24, 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Hells Angels MC criminal allegations and incidents|Hells Angels MC]]<ref name="Reputed Aryan Brotherhood Gang Member Convicted of Murders of Three Men in Massachusetts">[https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2014/05/16/reputed-aryan-brotherhood-gang-member-convicted-murders-three-men-Massachusetts Reputed Aryan Brotherhood Gang Member Convicted of Murders of Three Men in Massachusetts] Bill Marlin, [[Southern Poverty Law Center]] (May 16, 2014)</ref><ref name="Hell's Angels: Masters of Menace">[https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/hells-angels-masters-of-menace-84148/ Hell's Angels: Masters of Menace] Howard Kohn, ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' (April 5, 1979) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211216135830/https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/hells-angels-masters-of-menace-84148/ |date=December 16, 2021 }}</ref>
* [[Mexican Mafia]]<ref name="Prison Gangs"/>
* [[Nazi Lowriders]]<ref name="About">{{cite web |url=http://crime.about.com/od/gangsters/a/nazilowriders.htm |title=The Nazi Low Riders - NLR |publisher=About.com |access-date=July 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160701124734/http://crime.about.com/od/gangsters/a/nazilowriders.htm |archive-date=July 1, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* [[Public Enemy No. 1 (gang)|Public Enemy No. 1]]<ref name="UT2">{{Cite news|date=December 17, 2006|title=Racist gang caught in sting kept a list of Orange County police targets|work=[[The San Diego Union-Tribune]]|agency=[[Associated Press]]|url=http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20061217/news_1n17gang.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120512004749/http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20061217/news_1n17gang.html|archive-date=May 12, 2012}}</ref> <br/> [[Sureños]]<ref name="ABabout"/>
* [[Vagos Motorcycle Club|Vagos MC]]<ref name="ABabout"/>
}}
| rivals            = {{plainlist| <!-- Any and all additions to this section require a reliable source. -->
* [[Black Guerrilla Family]]<ref name="ABabout"/>
* [[Dead Man Incorporated]]
* [[Almighty Black P. Stone Nation|Black P. Stones]]<ref name="ABabout"/>
* [[Bloods]]<ref name="ABabout"/>
* [[Crips]]<ref name="ABabout"/>
* [[D.C. Blacks]]<ref name="Marked for Death">[https://www.westword.com/news/marked-for-death-5062721 Marked for Death] Alan Prendergast, ''[[Westword]]'' (May 25, 2000) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220608001815/https://www.westword.com/news/marked-for-death-5062721?showFullText=true |date=June 8, 2022 }}</ref>
* [[Nuestra Familia]]<ref name="dc.state.fl.us">{{cite web |author= Florida Department of Corrections |url= http://dc.state.fl.us/pub/gangs/prison2.html#bgf |title= Prison Gangs (continued) - Gangs and Security Threat Group Awareness |publisher= Florida Department of Corrections |access-date= August 5, 2012 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100312183629/http://www.dc.state.fl.us/pub/gangs/prison2.html#bgf |archive-date= March 12, 2010 }}</ref>
}}
| notable_members   = {{plainlist|
* [[Clayton Fountain]]
* [[Barry Mills (Aryan Brotherhood)|Barry Mills]]
* [[Thomas Silverstein]]
}}
}}
The '''Aryan Brotherhood''' ('''AB''' or '''The Brand''') is a [[Neo-Nazism|neo-Nazi]] [[prison gang]] and an [[organized crime syndicate]] that is based in the [[United States]] and has an estimated 15,000–20,000 members both inside and outside prisons. The [[Southern Poverty Law Center]] (SPLC) has characterized it as "the nation's oldest major white supremacist prison gang and a national crime syndicate"<ref name=splc-groupdef /> while the [[Anti-Defamation League]] calls it the "oldest and most notorious racist prison gang in the United States".<ref name="ADL symbols">{{Cite web|title=Aryan New York Aryan Brotherhood member Brian Barrow 3rd in Command on the East coast reigns terror as an Enforcer status active 2022 NC prison system |url=https://www.adl.org/education/references/hate-symbols/aryan-brotherhood|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140822205428/http://www.adl.org/combating-hate/hate-on-display/c/aryan-brotherhood.html|archive-date=August 22, 2014|access-date=October 4, 2020|publisher=[[Anti-Defamation League]]}}</ref> According to the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] (FBI), the Aryan Brotherhood makes up an extremely low percentage of the entire US prison population, but it is responsible for a disproportionately large number of prison murders.<ref>{{Cite web|title=FBI Records: The Vault – Aryan Brotherhood|work=FBI |url=https://vault.fbi.gov/Aryan%20Brotherhood%20|publisher=[[Federal Bureau of Investigation]]}}</ref>{{quotation needed|date=September 2023}}{{page number needed|date=September 2023}}

The gang has focused on the economic activities which organized crime entities typically engage in, particularly [[Drug Trafficking|drug trafficking]], [[extortion]], inmate [[prostitution]], and [[murder-for-hire]]. The organization of its whites-only membership varies from prison to prison but it is generally hierarchical, headed by a twelve-man council which is topped by a three-man commission. The Aryan Brotherhood uses various terms, symbols, and images in order to identify itself, including [[shamrock]]s and [[Swastika#Nazi symbol|swastika]]s. In order to join the Aryan Brotherhood, new members may swear a [[Blood brother|blood oath]] or take a pledge; acceptance into the Aryan Brotherhood is aided by a prospect's willingness to [[Prison violence|kill another inmate]].

==History==

Most prisons in the United States were [[Racial segregation in the United States|racially segregated]] until the 1960s. As prisons began to [[Desegregation in the United States|desegregate]], many inmates organized themselves into gangs along racial lines.<ref name = SPLC/> The Aryan Brotherhood is believed to have been formed at [[San Quentin State Prison]], but it may have been inspired by the Bluebird Gang.<ref name = ABC/> They decided to strike against the African-Americans who were forming their own militant group called the [[Black Guerrilla Family]].<ref name=grann>David Grann. [http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2004/02/16/040216fa_fact_grann "The Brand"], ''The New Yorker,'' February 16, 2004,{{subscription required}} collected in ''[[The Devil and Sherlock Holmes]]'' (2010).</ref> In the early 1970s, the Aryan Brotherhood had a connection with [[Charles Manson]] and the [[Manson Family]]. Several members of the Manson Family were in prison at the time, and they attempted to join forces. However, the relationship did not last long as the Aryan Brotherhood took offense at the murder of pregnant actress [[Sharon Tate]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Sanders|first=Ed|title=The Family|publisher=Thunder's Mouth Press|year=2002|isbn=1560253967|pages=255|lccn=2002020317|author-link=Ed Sanders|orig-date=1971}}</ref>

The Aryan Brotherhood grew quickly in the California prison system and eventually engaged in a race war in 1975 with the other prison gangs such as La Nuestra Familia, and Black Guerilla Family. As a result of the race war, California prison officials segregated the gangs to different prisons in California. When the Aryan Brotherhood was isolated in the Chino prison, they were able to continue to grow and develop their leadership hierarchy.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Plunkert |first=Robert T. |date=2009 |title=The Aryan Brotherhood, Crawford, and the Death Penalty. |journal=Saint Louis University Law Journal |volume=53 |pages=663}}</ref>

In 1981, [[Thomas Silverstein]] and [[Clayton Fountain]] were charged with the murder of a black inmate named Robert Chappelle in the [[United States Penitentiary, Marion]], control unit. It was believed that Silverstein and Fountain strangled Chappelle in his cell. Silverstein and Fountain later killed Raymond Smith, a friend of Robert Chappelle. The two men stabbed Smith 67 times. Silverstein then started to plan killing a correctional officer. On October 22, 1983, gang members from the Aryan Brotherhood killed two correction officers at Marion. Silverstein killed an officer named Merle Clutts, stabbing him approximately 40 times. Several hours later, Fountain also killed an officer named Robert Hoffman. The tactics used were developed for a prior inmate murder; Silverstein used an improvised knife and handcuff key while being taken to the showers. He picked the lock, then attacked and killed Merle Clutts. Fountain used similar tactics to kill Robert Hoffman.<ref>{{cite news|last=Peters|first=Justin|date=October 23, 2013|title=How a 1983 Murder Created America's Terrible Supermax-Prison Culture|work=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]|url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2013/10/marion-prison-lockdown-thomas-silverstein-how-a-1983-murder-created-america-s-terrible-supermax-prison-culture.html|url-status=live|access-date=February 14, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150221071745/http://www.slate.com/blogs/crime/2013/10/23/marion_prison_lockdown_thomas_silverstein_how_a_1983_murder_created_america.html|archive-date=February 21, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bop.gov/about/history/hero_clutts.jsp|title=Merle E. Clutts|work=Federal Bureau of Prison|accessdate=2022-06-07}}</ref>

By the 1990s, the Aryan Brotherhood had shifted its focus away from killing for strictly racial reasons and focused on organized crime such as drug trafficking, prostitution, and sanctioned murders.<ref name=grann/> They took on organized crime-level power inside much of the United States' prison system, where they eventually accumulated greater power and influence than [[Italian-American Mafia|the American Mafia]].<ref name=grann/> This situation was personified when, after being assaulted by an African-American inmate while incarcerated in [[Marion Federal Penitentiary]] in 1996, [[Gambino crime family]] boss [[John Gotti]] allegedly asked the Aryan Brotherhood to murder his attacker. Gotti's attacker was immediately transferred to protective custody and the planned retaliation was abandoned.<ref name = LAWeekly/><ref name=Denver_Post>Hughes, Jim. "Aryan Brotherhood Makes Home in State". ''Denver Post'', November 24, 2002.</ref>

In April 1993, members of the Aryan Brotherhood along with members of the  [[Conversion to Islam in U.S. prisons|Black Muslims]] and other gangs in the [[Southern Ohio Correctional Facility]] initiated the [[Lucasville Prison Riot]] in [[Lucasville, Ohio|Lucasville]]. The rioters took several officers hostage and killed nine inmates, then killed an officer. Their complaints included alleged abusive treatment and overcrowding, with Black Muslims also demanding an end to mandatory [[tuberculosis]] testing, which they said violated their faith.<ref>{{Cite news|date=April 11, 2018|title=From the Vault: Nine inmates, one guard killed in 1993 Lucasville prison riot|publisher=[[WCPO-TV]]|url=https://www.wcpo.com/news/our-community/from-the-vault/from-the-vault-nine-inmates-one-guard-killed-in-1993-lucasville-prison-riot|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190427194211/https://www.wcpo.com/news/our-community/from-the-vault/from-the-vault-nine-inmates-one-guard-killed-in-1993-lucasville-prison-riot|archive-date=April 27, 2019}}</ref>

=== Investigations and prosecutions ===

In late 2002, 29 leaders of the gang were simultaneously rounded up from prisons all over the country and brought to trial under the [[Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act|Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act]].<ref name=grann/> The intention was to bring death sentences for at least 21 of them, in a manner similar to tactics used against organized crime.<ref name=grann/> The case produced 30 convictions but none of the most powerful leaders received a death sentence.<ref name=grann/> Sentencing occurred in March 2006 for three of the most powerful leaders of the gang, including [[Barry Mills (Aryan Brotherhood)|Barry Mills]] and Tyler Bingham, who were indicted for numerous crimes, including murder, conspiracy, drug trafficking, and [[racketeering]] and for ordering killings and beatings from their cells.<ref name="ABC"/><ref name="Divided by bars and colour">{{cite news|date=December 5, 2002|title=Divided by bars and colour|work=[[BBC News]]|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/2447403.stm|url-status=live|access-date=June 15, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170708101708/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/2447403.stm|archive-date=July 8, 2017}}</ref><ref name="online.ceb.com">{{cite web | title=The People, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Curtis Floyd Price, Defendant and Appellant | work=ceb.com | url=http://online.ceb.com/CalCases/C4/1C4t324.htm| access-date=June 5, 2007}}</ref><ref name="findlaw">{{cite web |url=http://fl1.findlaw.com/news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/crim/usmills101702ind.pdf |title=United States v. Barry Byron Mills, et al. |access-date=July 13, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111026163045/http://fl1.findlaw.com/news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/crim/usmills101702ind.pdf |archive-date=October 26, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Bingham and Mills were convicted of murder and sent back to [[ADX Florence|United States Penitentiary Administrative Maximum Facility Prison]] (ADX) in Florence, Colorado, escaping the death penalty. Bingham is serving a life sentence without parole. Mills, also sentenced to life without parole, died in ADX in 2018.

Prosecuting the gang has been difficult, because many members are already serving life sentences with no possibility of [[parole]], so prosecutors were seeking the death penalty for 21 of those indicted but have dropped the death penalty on all but five defendants. By September 2006, the 19 indictees not eligible for the death penalty had pleaded guilty.<ref name = SPLC/> The first of a series of trials involving four high level members ended in convictions in July 2006.

On June 23, 2005, after a 20-month investigation, a federal strike force raided six houses in northeastern Ohio which belonged to members of the "Order of the Blood", a criminal organization which is controlled by the Aryan Brotherhood. 34 Aryan Brotherhood members or associates were arrested and warrants were issued for the arrests of ten more.<ref name = SPLC/>

In June 2019, 16 members and associates of the Aryan Brotherhood were charged with numerous federal offenses following a multiyear investigation inside and outside of California’s prisons. Members and associates of the gang were charged with racketeering, murder, attempted murder and drug trafficking crimes.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Rettig |first=Casey |date=April 30, 2024 |title=Three Aryan Brotherhood Prison Gang Members Convicted of Murder in Aid of Racketeering, RICO Conspiracy, and Conspiracy to Commit Murder in Aid of Racketeering |url=https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2024/04/30/three-aryan-brotherhood-prison-gang-members-convicted-murder-aid |website=U.S. Department of Justice}}{{source-attribution}}</ref> In April 2024, a federal jury found California State Prison Sacramento inmate Ronald "Renegade" Yandell, 61, guilty of murder in aid of racketeering; conspiracy to conduct the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity; five counts of conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering; two counts of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin; five counts of distribution of heroin; and one count of distribution of methamphetamine.<ref name=":0" /> The same jury found inmate Danny Troxell, 71, guilty of conspiracy to conduct the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity and conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering. The jury found inmate Billy Sylvester, 55, guilty of murder in aid of racketeering; conspiracy to conduct the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity; conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin; and distribution of methamphetamine.<ref name=":0" /> The three are already serving life sentences and await punishment for the most recent verdicts.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-04-30 |title=Three Aryan Brotherhood members guilty of everything as lengthy RICO trial comes to a close |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/04/30/three-aryan-brotherhood-members-guilty-of-everything-as-lengthy-rico-trial-comes-to-a-close/ |access-date=2024-07-20 |website=The Mercury News |language=en-US}}</ref>

A 34-year-old man associated with the "Aryan Cowboy Brotherhood" was identified as the key suspect known as "[[Aftermath of the George Floyd protests in Minneapolis–Saint Paul#"Umbrella Man"|Umbrella Man]]" who allegedly incited the looting and burning of the first building in the aftermath of the June 2020 [[George Floyd protests in Minneapolis–Saint Paul|George Floyd Protests in Minneapolis]].<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2020/07/30/umbrella-man-minneapolis-protests-george-floyd-police-sidner-ctn-pkg-vpx.cnn |title='Umbrella Man' linked to white supremacy group, police say {{!}} CNN |date=2020-07-30 |language=en |access-date=2025-02-01 |via=www.cnn.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Jany |first=Libor |date=2020-07-29 |title=Minneapolis police say 'Umbrella Man' was a white supremacist trying to incite George Floyd rioting |url=https://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-police-say-umbrella-man-was-a-white-supremacist-trying-to-incite-george-floyd-rioting/571932272 |access-date=2025-02-01 |website=[[Star Tribune]] |language=en}}</ref> As of late 2022, he has not been charged with any crime.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sepic |first=Matt |date=2022-10-18 |title=FBI seeks tips on 'Umbrella Man' seen smashing windows at start of 2020 riots |url=https://www.mprnews.org/story/2022/10/18/fbi-seeks-tips-on-umbrella-man-seen-smashing-windows-at-start-of-2020-riots |access-date=2025-02-01 |website=[[MPR News]] |language=en}}</ref>

In November 2020, more than sixty individuals that were associated with the Aryan Brotherhood were arrested in a multi-agency operation that took place in California, Montana, and Nevada.<ref name="justice.gov">{{Cite web |date=2020-11-20 |title=More than 60 Aryan Brotherhood Gang Members and Associates Arrested for Violent Crime, Firearms, Fraud, and Drug Trafficking |url=https://www.justice.gov/usao-edca/pr/more-60-aryan-brotherhood-gang-members-and-associates-arrested-violent-crime-firearms |access-date=2022-04-01 |website=www.justice.gov |language=en}}</ref> Investigators saw evidence that Aryan Brotherhood members were operating outside of prisons and noticed connections between the gang and violent crimes, firearms trafficking, and drug trafficking. The government saw these offenses occurring on the West Coast, however, connections to the gang were made across the country, reaching as far as  Alabama, all tied to the Aryan Brotherhood, eventually leading to the seizure of 80 pounds of methamphetamine, 5 pounds of heroin, and more than 25 firearms.<ref name="justice.gov"/>

== Ideology and motivation ==

The initial motivation for the formation of the group in San Quentin in 1964 was self-protection against an existing black prison gang. The SPLC has said that, although they clearly have a [[White supremacy|white supremacist]] ideology, the major motivation is money, and they have occasionally set aside racist views, such as by allying themselves with Latin American gangs, in order to make a profit.<ref name=splc-groupdef>{{cite web |title=Aryan Brotherhood |url=https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/group/aryan-brotherhood |publisher=[[Southern Poverty Law Center]] |access-date=January 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170221065013/https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/group/aryan-brotherhood |archive-date=February 21, 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The SPLC, which monitors hate groups and other extremists throughout the United States, has designated the Aryan Brotherhood as "...the nation's oldest major white supremacist prison gang and a national crime syndicate", and the "...largest and deadliest prison gang in the United States".<ref name=splc-groupdef />

Daryl Johnson, leader of the Domestic Terrorist Analysis Team whose job it is to monitor the activity of right-wing militias and other domestic terrorist groups, said that white supremacist organizations in prisons are a "...radicalization threat", committing acts of violence inside prison, and then in the larger communities after release. Johnson named the Aryan Brotherhood, [[Aryan Brotherhood of Texas]], and the [[Aryan Circle]] as examples of white supremacist prison-based gangs which are radicalization threats.<ref name="Johnson-2012">{{cite book |last=Johnson |first=Daryl  |title=Right-Wing Resurgence: How a Domestic Terrorist Threat is Being Ignored |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T54QkWvLZO4C&pg=PA325 |access-date=January 10, 2018 |year=2012 |publisher=[[Rowman & Littlefield]] |location=Lanham, Maryland |isbn=978-1442218970 |oclc=820388137}}</ref>{{rp|325}}

In an investigation in California prisons which ended in 1989, the [[FBI]] characterized the Brotherhood as a "...violent, white supremacist group",<ref name="fbi-2006">{{cite book |author1=United States Federal Bureau of Investigation. Freedom of Information Office, Paperless Archives |author-link1=FBI |author2=Freedom of Information Office |author-link2=Freedom of Information Act (United States) |title=Aryan Brotherhood FBI Files |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0tm5AQAACAAJ |access-date=January 10, 2018 |year=2006 |publisher=Paperless Archives |location=Beverly Hills |oclc=880183968}}</ref> and a 2008 [[DHS]] intelligence conference in [[Newport, Rhode Island]] divided violent domestic extremism into three types, and concluded that white supremacist groups like Aryan Brotherhood remained a threat and a cause for concern.<ref name="Johnson-2012" />{{rp|189}}

== Operations and membership ==

Estimates of Aryan Brotherhood membership vary from 15,000 to 20,000 members in and out of prison.<ref name="ABC"/><ref name=splc-groupdef /><ref>Organized Crime, p.284, 2000</ref>

The Aryan Brotherhood has members inside federal and state prisons, and outside on the streets. All members are white, and are either in prison or have been in prison. Joining is difficult. New members are on probation for a year, must swear a blood oath for life, and must commit a violent act to join the Brotherhood, such as killing a rival inmate, assaulting an officer or murdering an African American or Hispanic prisoner.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/04/01/why-i-fear-the-aryan-brotherhood-and-you-should-too|title=Why I Fear the Aryan Brotherhood—and You Should, Too|last=Anonymous|date=April 1, 2013|work=The Daily Beast|access-date=September 3, 2018|language=en}}</ref> Members are inculcated with various reading materials smuggled into prisons published by [[Aryan Nations]], [[Militia of Montana]], and other groups,<ref name="Bosworth-2004">{{cite book |last1=Heege |first1=Carrie A. |last2=Byers |first2=Bryan D. |editor1-last=Bosworth |editor1-first=Mary  |title=Encyclopedia of Prisons and Correctional Facilities |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v1w5DQAAQBAJ&pg=PT82 |access-date=January 10, 2018 |volume=1 |year=2004 |publisher=[[SAGE Publishing|Sage]] |location=Thousand Oaks, California |isbn=978-0761927310 |pages=40–41 |oclc=755061966}}</ref> as well as ''[[Mein Kampf]]'', ''[[The Art of War]]'', and [[Machiavelli]]'s ''[[The Prince]]''.<ref name=splc-groupdef /> Early members liked the [[Western (genre)|Western]] novels of [[Louis L'Amour]], source of the organization's self-proclaimed "the Brand" moniker. Therefore, they perpetuated an admiration for the outlaw [[gunslingers]] of the American West. Members also have a fondness for medieval [[Vikings]] and the [[Pirate|pirates]] of the [[Golden Age of Piracy|Golden Age]].

Criminal activities inside prison walls include [[male prostitution]], [[Gambling in the United States|gambling]], [[extortion]], and [[Illegal drug trade in the United States|drug trafficking]],<ref name=splc-groupdef /> primarily involving methamphetamine.<ref name="Bosworth-2004" /> Outside prison, the AB engages in every kind of criminal enterprise, "...including murder-for-hire, armed robbery, gun running, methamphetamine manufacturing, heroin sales, counterfeiting, and identity theft", according to the SPLC.<ref name=grann /><ref name=splc-groupdef />

== Organization and affiliation ==

=== Organization ===

After its formation in California prisons in the mid-1960s, the Aryan Brotherhood had spread to most California prisons by 1975. After some of its leaders were sent to federal prisons, they took the opportunity to start organizing inside the federal prison system. This ended with the creation of two separate, but related organizations, the California Aryan Brotherhood, and the federal prison Aryan Brotherhood. As a former top leader said, "They're like two related but different crime families. They each have their [ruling] commission… but they're allies." By the late 1970s, these gangs had fewer than 100 members, but their membership grew rapidly as they absorbed other racist and [[White power skinhead|skinhead]] groups, and today these gangs are estimated to have over 20,000 members in both the federal and state prison systems.<ref name=splc-groupdef />

In its early days, the group had a one-man, one-vote system, but this broke down as a result of the group's rapid expansion, and it was replaced by the establishment of a hierarchical structure, headed by a 12-man council, and overseen by a three-member commission. The federal and state systems each had their own council and commission.<ref name=splc-groupdef /> Organization varies somewhat, from prison to prison. For example, in the Arizona prison system, members are known as "kindred" and organize into "families". A "council" controls the families. Kindred may recruit other members, known as "progeny", and serve as a mentor for the new recruits.<ref name=AZDOC>Arizona Department of Corrections. [http://www.azcorrections.gov/STG/AAB.htm  "Arizona Aryan Brotherhood"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060928034506/http://www.azcorrections.gov/STG/AAB.htm |date=September 28, 2006 }}. Retrieved October 27, 2006.</ref>

A sort of internal banking or accounting system was instituted, which allowed them to "tax" criminal activity on the streets, and collect 20% on the proceeds, money which is then laundered and controlled by the commission.<ref name=splc-groupdef />

=== Affiliations, alliances and rivalries ===
The Aryan Brotherhood is affiliated with a network of smaller [[Peckerwood#Street gangs|peckerwood gangs]], such as the [[Nazi Lowriders]] and [[Public Enemy No. 1 (gang)|Public Enemy No. 1]],<ref name="UT2"/><ref name="adl">{{Cite web|title=Nazi Low Riders|url=https://www.adl.org/resources/profiles/nazi-low-riders|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201014125138/https://www.adl.org/resources/profiles/nazi-low-riders|archive-date=October 14, 2020|publisher=[[Anti-Defamation League]]}}</ref> and the national hate-based organization [[Aryan Nations]].<ref name="Bosworth-2004" /> The group also has an alliance with the [[Mexican Mafia]] (''La Eme''), as the two are mutual enemies of [[Black Guerrilla Family]].<ref name="Tucker">{{cite web|last=Tucker |first=Kenneth S |title=Major Prison Gangs |url=http://www.dc.state.fl.us/pub/gangs/prison.html |publisher=Florida Department of Corrections |access-date=September 9, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120709063058/http://www.dc.state.fl.us/pub/gangs/prison.html |archive-date=July 9, 2012 }}</ref> Other rival gangs include the [[Black P. Stones]], [[Bloods]], [[Crips]], [[D.C. Blacks]], and [[Nuestra Familia]].<ref name="ABabout"/><ref name="Marked for Death"/><ref name="dc.state.fl.us"/>

The Brotherhood has associated in criminal ventures with the [[Hells Angels]].<ref name="Hell's Angels: Masters of Menace"/><ref name="Reputed Aryan Brotherhood Gang Member Convicted of Murders of Three Men in Massachusetts"/> The gangs were also involved in a power struggle in the [[East Bay]], which led to the killing of Hells Angels vice-president [[Michael O'Farrell (gangster)|Michael O'Farrell]] on June 6, 1989.<ref name="Hells Angels Stage Funeral for Leader Killed in Bar Fight">[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-06-11-mn-3190-story.html Hells Angels Stage Funeral for Leader Killed in Bar Fight] ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' (June 11, 1989)</ref><ref>[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-07-16-mn-5796-story.html The State : Killing Laid to Power Battle] ''[[The Los Angeles Times]]'' (July 16, 1989)</ref>

In 1992, the gang established ties with [[American Mafia]] crime, via boss [[John Gotti]], who was sentenced to prison and contacted the Aryan Brotherhood for protection while he was in prison. Gotti also organized a business partnership which operated on the outside between his group and the Brotherhood and as a result of this business partnership, the group's power greatly expanded on the streets.<ref name=splc-groupdef />

The Aryan Brotherhood's communication and control has become so tight and efficient that they have been able to organize and direct major criminal enterprises on the outside, even from [[solitary confinement]], much to the frustration of federal and state authorities.<ref name=splc-groupdef />

== Symbology and identification ==

The Aryan Brotherhood uses various symbols and images to identify members, and the organization, and spoken or written mottos and oaths to secure them.

=== Tattoos and other marks ===

[[File:Aryan Brotherhood.jpg|thumb|right|267px|A member's tattoo]]
New members were branded with a [[tattoo]], following the procedure in a prison novel popular among inmates. The image was either a green shamrock (also called, "the rock"), the letters ''AB'', or the number ''666''. "The brand" meant the inmate belonged to Aryan Brotherhood.<ref name="Brook-2011">{{cite book |last=Brook |first=John Lee  |title=Blood In, Blood Out: The Violent Empire of the Aryan Brotherhood |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZGe3vuePkxoC |access-date=January 10, 2018 |year=2011 |publisher=SCB Distributors |isbn=978-1900486804 |oclc=793002272}}</ref>

Like most prison gangs, Aryan Brotherhood members mark themselves with distinctive tattoos. Designs commonly include the words "Aryan Brotherhood", "AB", "[[Number of the beast|666]]", [[Nazi symbolism]] such as [[SS]], [[Sowilō|sig runes]], and [[swastika]]s, as well as [[shamrock]]s and [[Celtic art|Celtic iconography]].<ref name = LAWeekly/><ref name="ADL symbols"/>

=== Mottos and pledges ===

Other means of identification of group membership were the "blood in, blood out" motto symbolizing life-long membership with no exit other than death, and "the pledge", an eight-line oath that each new member had to swear.<ref name="Brook-2011" />

== Categorization and analysis ==

According to the FBI, as of 1992, the gang made up less than 1.0% of the prison population but was responsible for between 18{{ndash}}25% of murders in the [[Federal Bureau of Prisons|federal prison system]].<ref name="SPLC">{{Cite magazine|last=Holthouse|first=David|date=October 14, 2005|title=Smashing the Shamrock|url=https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/2005/leaders-racist-prison-gang-aryan-brotherhood-face-federal-indictment|url-status=live|magazine=[[Intelligence Report]]|publisher=[[Southern Poverty Law Center]]|issue=119|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100120131126/http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=569|archive-date=January 20, 2010|access-date=October 27, 2006}}</ref><ref name="LAWeekly">{{Cite news|last=Duersten|first=Matthew|date=February 3, 2005|title=Who'll Stop the Reign?|work=[[LA Weekly]]|url=https://www.laweekly.com/wholl-stop-the-reign/|url-status=live|access-date=April 6, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090626234200/http://www.laweekly.com/2005-02-03/news/who-ll-stop-the-reign/|archive-date=June 26, 2009}}</ref>

The [[United States Department of Homeland Security]] (DHS) released the [[Domestic Extremism Lexicon]] report in 2009 that defines different classifications of extremists. On the last entry of the 11-page report, it broke down the "white supremacist movement" into six categories: [[Neo-nazi]], [[Ku Klux Klan]], [[Christian Identity]], [[White power skinhead|racist skinhead]], [[Old Norse religion|Nordic mysticism]], and Aryan prison gangs.<ref name=dhs-extremism>{{cite web |title=Domestic Extremism Lexicon |url=https://fas.org/irp/eprint/lexicon.pdf |date=March 26, 2009 |website=Federation of American Scientists |publisher=U.S. Department of Homeland Security |page=10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003211955/http://www.fas.org/irp/eprint/lexicon.pdf|archive-date=October 3, 2009|id=IA-0233-09 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

An analysis by ''[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]'' describes the Aryan prison gang classification as "...further outside the white supremacy mainstream", and describes them as largely independent of other white supremacist groups, although the lines blurred as time went on. The report also refers to them as "more flexible" than other white supremacist groups since "...their criminal goals usually take precedence over ideology."<ref name="Rastogi-2018">{{cite news|last1=Rastogi|first1=Nina Shen|date=May 5, 2009|title=The Six Flavors of White Supremacy|website=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]|url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2009/05/categorizing-white-supremacists.html|url-status=live|access-date=January 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315063538/http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2009/05/the_six_flavors_of_white_supremacy.html|archive-date=March 15, 2014}}</ref>

== Additional notable members ==
* '''David "David SS" Chalue''' – One of the three men charged with the kidnapping and slaying of David Glasser, Edward Frampton and Robert Chadwell in 2011.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://casetext.com/case/commonwealth-v-chalue|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220402184327/https://casetext.com/case/commonwealth-v-chalue|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 2, 2022|title = Commonwealth v. Chalue, 486 Mass. 847 &#124; Casetext Search + Citator}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.masslive.com/news/2014/04/lawyer_for_berkshire_triple_mu_1.html|title=Lawyer for Berkshire triple murder defendant David Chalue wants no mention of the Aryan Brotherhood at upcoming trial|date=April 9, 2014}}</ref>
* '''David Frank Jennings''' – Murderer of [[Jewish Defense League]] coordinator [[Earl Krugel]] while the two were imprisoned at [[Federal Correctional Institution, Phoenix]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rothman |first=Tibby |date=August 5, 2009 |title=Why was Jewish Radical Earl Krugel Slain in Prison? |url=https://www.laweekly.com/why-was-jewish-radical-earl-krugel-slain-in-prison/ |website=LA Weekly}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=November 6, 2005 |title=Jewish extremist killed in jail |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4411408.stm |work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>
* '''David Clay Lind''' – Affiliate of the infamous [[Wonderland Gang]] of drug dealers that received media attention following the [[Wonderland murders]].{{cn|date=March 2025}}
* '''Todd "Fox" Morgan''' – High-ranking AB member and drug lord who was fatally attacked by three inmates wielding improvised weapons at [[Salinas Valley State Prison]] in October of 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Yagunov |date=2025-10-31 |title=Three Inmates Suspected in Fatal Attack on Aryan Brotherhood Member at California Prison |url=https://www.echr-cpt.com/2025/10/31/california-prison-ab/ |access-date=2025-12-08 |website=Prevention of Torture |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Times |first=Matthew Ormseth Los Angeles |date=2025-10-29 |title=Reputed Aryan Brotherhood leader stabbed to death by inmates with Nazi tattoos |url=https://www.mohavedailynews.com/townnews/crime/reputed-aryan-brotherhood-leader-stabbed-to-death-by-inmates-with-nazi-tattoos/article_461d2491-f6a2-4e2c-a3e3-f49e9de4f712.html |access-date=2025-12-08 |website=mohavedailynews.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-10-24 |title=Aryan Brotherhood member killed in Central Coast prison |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/10/23/aryan-brotherhood-member-killed-in-california-prison/ |access-date=2025-12-08 |website=The Press Democrat |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=KTVU |date=2025-10-24 |title=3 convicted murderers suspected of killing fellow inmate at California prison |url=https://www.ktvu.com/news/convicted-murderers-kill-fellow-inmate-salinas-valley-state-prison |access-date=2025-12-08 |website=KTVU FOX 2 |language=en-US}}</ref>
* '''Paul "Cornfed" Schneider''' – The owner of the two [[Presa Canario]] dogs who attacked and killed [[Diane Whipple]] in 2001. Schneider, along with his roommate and fellow AB member '''Dale Bretches''', had the intent of starting an illegal Presa Canario dog-fighting ring from prison.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Cornfed-draws-3rd-life-term-Inmate-in-2580493.php|title = 'Cornfed' draws 3rd life term / Inmate in dog-maul case sentenced in sheriff's 1995 killing|date = October 28, 2003}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/kimberly-guilfoyle-hit-cornfed-schneider-bane-nazi-dog|title=The Unbelievable True Story of Bane the Nazi Hellhound, 'Cornfed' Schneider and the Dog-Mauling Case That Made Kimberly Guilfoyle Famous|date=January 16, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/2001/womans-death-exposes-seamy-prison-scam|title = Woman's Death Exposes Seamy Prison Scam| date=May 8, 2001 }}</ref>
*'''Robert Lee Willie''' – A serial killer whose crimes, including the murders of three individuals, led to his execution by the state of Louisiana in 1984.<ref>https://digitalcommons.nyls.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1271&context=journal_of_human_rights</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wills |first=Garry |date=1993-09-23 |title=Living Others’ Deaths |url=https://www.nybooks.com/articles/1993/09/23/living-others-deaths/ |access-date=2025-12-08 |work=The New York Review of Books |language=en |volume=40 |issue=15 |issn=0028-7504}}</ref>

==In popular culture==

'''TV documentaries'''
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* ''America's Deadliest Prison Gang''
* ''Aryan Brotherhood'' ([[National Geographic Society|National Geographic]])<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tvsquad.com/2007/01/30/national-geographic-goes-inside-the-aryan-brotherhood/2 |title=Aryan Brotherhood |publisher=Tvsquad.com |access-date=July 13, 2011}}</ref>
* ''[[Gangland (TV series)|Gangland]]'': "Aryan Brotherhood" ([[History (U.S. TV channel)|History Channel]])
* ''[[Marked (documentary)|Marked]]'' ([[History (U.S. TV channel)|History Channel]], August 27, 2009)
* ''[[Outlaw Empires]]'' (1 episode, 2012)
* ''[[Ross Kemp on Gangs]]'' (2004–2008)
{{div col end}}

'''Films'''
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* ''[[American History X]]'' (1998)
* ''[[American Me]]'' (1992)
* ''[[Animal Factory]]'' (2000)
* ''[[An Innocent Man (film)|An Innocent Man]]'' (1989)
* ''[[Bad Boys: Ride or Die]]'' (2024) 
* ''[[Bad Country]]'' (2014)
* ''[[Big Stan]]'' (2007)
* ''[[Blood In Blood Out]]'' (1993)
* ''[[The Butterfly Effect]]'' (2004)
* ''[[Dead Man Walking (film)|Dead Man Walking]]'' (1995)
* ''[[The Death and Life of Bobby Z]]'' (2007)
* ''[[Death Race (2008 film)|Death Race]]'' (2008)
* ''[[El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie]]'' (2019)
* ''[[The Experiment (2010 film)|The Experiment]]'' (2010)
* ''[[Felon (film)|Felon]]'' (2008)
* ''[[Fire with Fire (2012 film)|Fire with Fire]]'' (2012)
* ''[[Honour (film)|Honour]]'' (2014)
* ''[[Higher Learning]]'' (1995)
* ''[[Inherent Vice (2014)|Inherent Vice]]'' (2014)
* ''[[Lockdown (2000 film)|Lockdown]]'' (2000)
* ''[[Miami Vice (film)|Miami Vice]]'' (2006)
* ''[[Once Fallen]]'' (2010)
* ''[[Ricochet (1991 film)|Ricochet]]'' (1991)
* ''[[Shot Caller (film)|Shot Caller]]'' (2017)
* ''[[Snitch (film)|Snitch]]'' (2013)
* ''[[Supremacy (film)|Supremacy]]'' (2014)
* ''[[South Central (film)|South Central]]'' (1992)
* ''[[Top Dog (1995 film)|Top Dog]]'' (1995)

{{div col end}}

'''TV series'''
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* ''[[Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.]]'' (season 4, episode 1: "The Ghost") (2016)
* ''American Gangs'' (2009)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-schedules/series.html?paid=1.14951.25982.37369.x/ |title=Discovery Channel TV Series: American Gangs |publisher=Dsc.discovery.com |access-date=July 13, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628213140/http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-schedules/series.html?paid=1.14951.25982.37369.x%2F |archive-date=June 28, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref>
* ''[[Animal Kingdom (TV series)]]'' (Season 6: 2022)
* ''[[Banshee (TV series)|Banshee]]'' (seasons 2 and later; 2014)
* ''[[Bad Blood (TV series)|Bad Blood]]'' (Season 1: 2017)
* ''[[Breaking Bad]]'' (Season 5: 2012–2013)
* ''[[Dexter (TV series)|Dexter]]'' (Season 3: 2008)
* ''[[Explorer (TV series)|Explorer]]'' (2010)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/explorer/2594/Overview/ |title=National Geographic TV Series: Explorer |publisher=Channel.nationalgeographic.com |access-date=July 13, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110804063405/http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/explorer/2594/Overview |archive-date=August 4, 2011 }}</ref>
* ''[[Gangland Undercover]]'' (2015)
* ''[[Law & Order]]'' (2004)
* ''[[Monk (TV series)|Monk]]'' (season 2, episode 16: "Mr. Monk Goes To Jail") (2004)
* ''[[Oz (TV series)|Oz]]'' (1997–2003)
* ''[[The Punisher (TV series)|The Punisher]]'' (2017-2019)
* ''[[Person of Interest (TV series)|Person of interest]]'' (season 2, episode 1: "The Contingency") (2012)
* ''[[Police Story (1973 TV series)|Police Story]]'' (season 5, episode 5: "The Broken Badge") (1978)
* ''[[Prison Break]]'' (2005–2009)
* ''[[Raines]]'' (2007)
* ''[[Ray Donovan]]'' (season 3: 2015)
* ''[[Sons of Anarchy]]'' (2008, 2014)
* ''[[Truth Be Told (2019 TV series)|Truth Be Told]]'' (2019)
* '' [[Mayor of Kingstown]] '' (2021)

{{div col end}}
'''Other'''
* ''[[Hard Time (comics)|Hard Time]]'' (comic book; 2004–06)

==See also==
{{Portal|United States|Law}}
* [[Aryan Brotherhood of Texas]]
* [[Aryan Circle]]
* [[Nazi Lowriders]]
* [[Universal Aryan Brotherhood]]
* [[Prison tattooing]]
* [[Public Enemy No. 1 (street gang)]]
* [[Peckerwood]]
* [[White power skinhead]]
* [[Far-right subcultures]]
* [[List of fascist movements]]
* [[List of fascist movements by country]]
* [[List of Ku Klux Klan organizations]]
* [[List of neo-Nazi organizations]]
* [[List of organizations designated by the Southern Poverty Law Center as hate groups]]
* [[List of white nationalist organizations]]
* [[Prison gangs in the United States]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* [http://vault.fbi.gov/Aryan%20Brotherhood%20/Aryan%20Brotherhood%20Part%201%20of%201/view FBI File on the Aryan Brotherhood]
* [https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/2532861.stm "Allegations against Aryan Brotherhood"] – [[BBC News]]
* [http://online.ceb.com/calcases/C4/1C4t324.htm  ''People v. Price'' (1991) 1 C4th 324]

{{skinhead}}
{{Neo-Nazism}}
{{Organized crime groups in America}}

[[Category:Aryan Brotherhood| ]]
[[Category:Organizations established in 1964]]
[[Category:1964 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Neo-Nazi organizations in the United States]]
[[Category:White-supremacist organized crime groups in the United States]]
[[Category:Prison gangs in the United States]]
[[Category:White nationalism in California]]
[[Category:Gangs in California]]
[[Category:Peckerwood]]