THE PEOPLE SPEAK: Juggaloes not gang, just seek acceptance

[The Streets Don't Love You Back]

THE PEOPLE SPEAK: Juggaloes not gang, just seek acceptance

— My name is Robert Lowrance, I’m 17, and a student at Muskogee High School. I’m also a Juggalo.

What upsets me the most is the fact that Juggaloes are considered a gang, Is this because a few people have made mistakes? The news has misinformed everybody, saying that we’re nothing but weed smoking gang-bangers, who will never amount to anything, because there have been a few incidents involving Juggaloes. This is simply untrue, because not all Juggaloes, in fact very few of them, are like this and the ones that are, were gonna make these decisions whether they listened to ICP or not. There are 1.5 million Juggaloes in the United States, of course there are gonna be a few incidents, it’s like that with every group, from rednecks, to bikers, to Juggaloes, to Catholics.

What makes us Juggaloes is that we all listen to ICP and similar artists, and understand the meaning to their lyrics. Also, the Hatchet man is not a gang sign; it’s the logo for a music group. ...

The majority of Juggaloes are outcasts, who come from broken homes, and find comfort in the meaning of the lyrics, and the welcoming arms of fellow Juggaloes, as opposed to members of actual street gangs, such as bloods, and crips, whose main goal is to achieve power. We just seek acceptance.

Another problem is the fact that just for wearing ICP merchandise, we’re labeled as pot smoking criminals, just because of the fact that we have a hatchet man necklace, or an ICP T-shirt. Just because we wear a shirt with a clown on it, does not mean that we’re criminals, no more than wearing a Beatles shirt means that we drop acid?

I believe that misinformation is what has caused the majority of what’s transpired, to go unnoticed. Juggaloes are not a gang, we’re a family of friends, who enjoy listening to ICP, and if the school board wishes to crack down on us, then they should take the same procedures with actual street gangs, and anyone wearing band shirts.

ROBERT LOWRANCE think