Video: Juggalos vs. the FBI – Why Insane Clown Posse Fans are Not a Gang

Produced by Paul Detrick: “Juggalos vs. the FBI – Why
Insane Clown Posse Fans are Not a Gang”

Originally published on March 5, 2014. Original text is
below:

You may already know Juggalos, the fans of Detroit
horrorcore rap group Insane Clown Posse (ICP), from
Buzzfeed lists, television
shows like Workaholics, or music videos like “Juggalo Island.”
But, you may not know that Juggalos are one of the best examples of
a self reliant (but demonized) community. 

Juggalos began to garner a lot of mainstream attention in 2011
when they were classified as a “hybrid gang” by the Federal Bureau
of Investigation (FBI) in their
National Gang Threat Assessment report. The report says
Juggalos could “exhibit gang-like behavior and engage in criminal
activity and violence.”

Juggalos at the 2013 Gathering of the Juggalos, a
music festival held in Cave-in-Rock, Illinois, told Reason TV that
they disputed the claims made by the FBI.

“That’s stereotyping pretty much,” said one Juggalo. “You know
people who don’t listen to the music or are not a fan or a family
are going to think we are violent people when they see hatchet men
[emblem of Juggalos] or Juggalo stuff.”

Insane Clown Posse’s members, Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J, agree
and are suing the FBI along with the American
Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, claiming that profiling
Juggalos as a gang violates Juggalos’ constitutional right to
express themselves. Further, the gang classification could
subject Juggalos to routine stops, detainment, and interrogation by
local and federal law enforcement based solely on their music
preferences. 

“I think it’s ridiculous to consider the Juggalos a gang,”
says journalist Camille
Dodero, who has written about Juggalos and Insane Clown Posse
for Gawker and the Village Voice. “In some ways it’s almost ironic.
These are a group of people that no one else in America has ever
cared about and then this one band gave them a sense of
identity–like it was a support group.”

Dodero says Juggalos often come from lower class backgrounds and
although some of them commit crimes, not all of them do.

“And that’s not to say that there are that many kids doing it.
It just so happened that somebody caught onto the fact that those
kids who have that hatchet man sometimes steal things,”
says Dodero. ”That is part of who ICP has been reaching
though, people with really bad upbringings.”

ICP, who grew up in lower class households just like their fans,
have targeted victims as their audience. These include kids who
were homeless, came from an abusive family, or were molested. The
result is a world where these young people have escaped the life
they were dealt for a supportive community they’ve helped create.
One they lovingly refer to as “family.”

The FBI said it could not comment on pending litigation, but the
effects of the gang label may have already impacted the next
Gathering of the Juggalos. The 2014 music festival had to
change locations multiple times thanks in part to the fears of
local residents, fears Insane Clown Posse has said are associated
with the gang classification.

For a behind the scenes look at the filming of this documentary
short check out Reason TV’s Instagram account:

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Approximately 7:56.

Written and produced by Paul Detrick. Field produced by Alex
Manning and Detrick. Additional camera by Jim Epstein.

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