the first time we sent a lockup crew was weeks after they suffered their worst gang riot in history. and there was still tension in the air as the crew walked through the gates. the riot fought primarily between black and hispanic inmates lasted a little over 30 minutes. one inmate was killed and dozens of others were stabbed or beaten. when we returned five years later, the tension was still palpable. one of the interesting things about pelican bay is there really seemed to be two systems of rules, the prison administration and then the rules of the gangs. and there s this constant tension between the two. it s like a modern day sparta. they have trained themselves mentally, physically for a wartime situation. and it feels like a war. it feels like a wartime prison, pelican bay. correctional staff told us that when it comes to battling gang activity, they re fighting
i didn t want is that to happen to me. when they decided to leave gang life behind, pelican bay had a place for them to go. but admittance came with a price. one of the areas at pelican bay is the transitional housing unit, this is where inmates who want to opt out of the gang life divulge everything they know to the prison authorities, they then get the protection of being put away from the prison population. they re trying to build up some credibility with you, are you being honest with them? or are you trying to be a sleeper so you can get out there and stab one of these people who has disassociated themselves from these gangs. for a gang member, it s probably one of the toughest decisions they ll ever make in their life. it s easy to get into the gang and start doing stuff with the gang.
are you going to work out? yeah. then nearly two minutes pass, with nothing happening. our camera operator walked in between exercise cages waiting for the session to begin. finally our crew was informed it wouldn t start until they left. when our crew went back indoors, they learned that kern valley s dominant hispanic gang controlled the exercise session. because all their practices are shrouded in secrecy, they would not work out in front of our cameras. but they can t avoid prison surveillance cameras. notice right now you have what a call a cadence call. it s an exercise routine, there s a certain group of inmates that initiate it. and, therefore, the race have to follow as long as they show respect. everything in prison is about respect.
so three months after coming to pelican bay, i was assigned squad leader because squad leader is i m in charge of educating other people on the bombs, the format, how to make knives, how to stab people, where to stab people, what would be the best times, exercising and making sure everybody s following the guidelines of our gang. right? i almost felt like it must have been what it was like 10,000 years ago when you have this almost tribalism. and you have to rely on your clan for protection. people would get stabbed because the mentality that we had out here and the way we train people within our own gang is the only time you should be fighting using your fist is to defend yourself. when we re attacking somebody, you re going to come at them with a knife, period. because, you know, it s better to do something right the first time than having to go back and do it a second time. this here is a sampling of the type of weapons that we do find here at pelican bay.
just getting sunlight. it s like a lizard, takes a minute to get going. are you going to work out? yeah. then nearly two minutes pass, with nothing happening. our camera operator walked in between exercise cages waiting for the session to begin. finally our crew was informed it wouldn t start until they left. when our crew went back indoors, they learned that kern valley s dominant hispanic gang controlled the exercise session. because all their practices are shrouded in secrecy, they would not work out in front of our cameras. but they can t avoid prison surveillance cameras. notice right now you have what a call a cadence call. it s an exercise routine,