Pakistani Gangs
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The first Pakistani gangs in the United Kingdom were formed in the 1960s to protect the pakistani community from skinheads .[ citation needed] The biggest Pakistani gangs in the 1960s in Birmingham were the Lynx Gang in the small Heath, West Midlands and Lozells areas, and the Aston Gang in the Birmingham borough Aston.[ citation needed] Both gangs had more than 1,000 members.[ citation needed]
In the beginning, the Pakistani gangs fought against British skinheads, some of whom had prejudices against Pakistanis but not against blacks — due to their shared interests in ska, reggae and soul music , as well as rude boy culture and clothing styles. Some skinheads were involved in what was called Paki bashing, which was random attacks on Pakistanis and other South Asians .[1] [2] However, there had also been anti-racist and leftist skinheads from the beginning, especially in areas such as Scotland and Northern England.[3] [4]
As time moved on, the skinhead subculture died out to a certain extent and there was no enemy left for the Pakistani gangs. That's when the Pakistani and Caribbean gangs began to fight against each other. [ citation needed] The Caribbean gangs started to overtake the drug business.[ citation needed] The Pakistani gangs, which had a very much greater membership than the Caribbean gangs, started to discriminate against black people in Birmingham. [ citation needed] Often newer black communities in the UK, such as the Somalis, have suffered from discrimination by Pakistanis. [ citation needed] The biggest Pakistani gangs in London today are the Muslim Birmingham Panthers, the Redheads, the Lynx Gang, the Aston Gang and the Muslim Pakis. They all have more than 500 members in each gang. Especially the Muslim Birmingham Panthers and the Muslim Pakis see their basis gang life Islamic based. The gang members may often have long beards and be strict muslims. These gangs are still there to protect not only the Pakistani community but also the whole Birmingham Muslim community. The islamic based gangs are famous for not dealing with drugs. The Muslim Birmingham Panthers and the Muslim Pakis also support the Somali community of Birmingham, as they are also Muslims.
The biggest Pakistani gang in London is the Paki Pantherz, which is based in the east London boroughs Newham, Waltham Forest, Redbridge and Barking & Dagenham.[ citation needed] It may have more than 5,000 members.[ citation needed] Other strong Pakistani gangs in London, which all have more than 500 members, are the Slough Muslim Gang, which is based in Slough and Southall in west London and the Real Punjabis in Southall.[ citation needed]
As time went on, many of the Pakistani gangs, mainly of Kashmiri/Mirpuri origin, moved into the drug trade, especially in the Birmingham areas such as Sparkhill, Alum rock and Saltley.[ citation needed] There has been a notably large Pakistani gang presence in Bradford, Leeds and Manchester — which has had a dominant foothold in the heroin trade outside of London.[ citation needed] Especially in the Midlands, there are large Mafia-styled Pakistani gangs.[ citation needed] Notable are the Niazi Family in Birmingham and Bradford, the Aali Brothers in Walsall and the Choudhry Family in Nottingham .[ citation needed] These criminal cartels are based on their members' Pakistani tribes and their gang life is family based. [citation needed ]
In Walsall, Pakistani gangs are known for what they call black-bashing.[ citation needed] They use black-bashing in the same way that skinheads and some black Caribbeans used Paki-bashing in the 1960s.
In Pollokshields, Scotland the Pakistani gang Young Shields (YS) are known for their part in the murder of schoolboy Kriss Donald.[ citation needed] Three members were jailed for up to 25 years. [citation needed ] They are known for fighting with rival Asian gangs and the white gang McCuloch street team
