Two Two Boys

This history was updated 4/2/26

First of all I want to shout out to Prince Sal of the Two Two Boys for doing the podcast “Hood Activist Podcast” on YouTube that features Prince Sal and Chief Willie telling their story about a good chunk of Two Two Boy history blended with some powerful positive messages about helping your community. Prince Sal got tired of people telling the story wrong or all out disrespecting the legend of the Two Two Boys. Thanks to his interviews and the Hood Activist, I am redoing this history and using those videos as one of my sources for the 22^nd and Cal Two Twos.

The Almighty 22nd Boys

When watching the Hood Activist videos interviewing Prince Sal I was shocked that Prince Sal said that the Two Two Boys were founded in the 1960s. Prince Sal even said his father was a Two Two Boy. Sal didn’t go into details about the foundation but he said he knew of one of the Two Two Boys that joined in 1969, Sal said the Two Two Boys go back to at least 1965.

According to Sal, the original name was the “Almighty 22^nd Boys” and they started as a party crew/social athletic club and not a gang. I can back up what Sal says through research I have done on Little Village and Marshall Square in the 50s and 60s. The first Hispanic families moved to Little Village/Marshall Square in 1962. At that time the Gaylords and Outlaws Motorcycle club, two all white clubs ran Little Village/Marshall Square and were bitter rivals. The main ideals these two clubs shared was their resentment for large waves of Hispanics moving to the area all of a sudden. There were racial issues and racial violence that was never published that I could only learn about from the testimonials of the first Hispanic families to live in this area. There were other white gangs that were friendly to Hispanic youths and recruited them.

In the mid-60s, majority Hispanic groups started forming in the Little Village/Marshall Square area and the Latin Kings formed in 1966 in Little Village at 24^th and Marshall Boulevard. From testimonials I have read about and heard about, the 22^nd Place and California Avenue area was always resistant to Latin Kings and Satan Disciples. The Satan Disciples moved to 24^th & Washtenaw in 1966 while Morgan Deuces moved to Cullerton & Washtenaw in 1966 and the Artistics moved to 21^st and California in 1966. I theorize the Almighty 22^nd Boys formed in that same year of 1966 to protect their own from all these outsider gangs moving in. I recently learned the Brazers street gang has a legacy from 22^nd and California back in the 60s which shows there was club activity in that area. The Brazers did not run that area and had no official club either, the 22^nd Boys did have a club and were running that area at least since 1966.

There is no known legends about the original 22^nd Boys but that doesn’t surprise me because no one knew about the original Two Six in the same area until recently. The neighborhood was more familiar with the big gangbanging clubs while groups like the 22^nd Boys were not about expansion and showing off their power, they just protected their own and looked out for the people in the neighborhood. Many of the original 22^nd Boys drank at Vega’s bar and Ricardo’s bar.

The Insane 22^nd Boys

The second generation of Almighty 22^nd Boys was Beto, Yayo, Jap, Oscar, Chano, Joe, Jackie, Vince, Wedo, Frank, and three others. Like the first generation, the second generation hung at 22^nd & California. The second generation joined in about 1969-1970.

The younger kids in the neighborhood gathered a block away at 23^rd & California in the mid-70s. Some of this younger group was: Lil Tita (Anna Mal), Bennie, Jimbo, Chicken George, Celso, Gil, and Santos Limon Junior. Yayo was often hanging around the younger group at 23^rd. I have seen Yayo’s name on a second generation “Almighty 22^nd Boys” card and in an early to-mid 80s Two Two Boys tag from an old Chicago Police manual I made viral many years ago, it is a black and white photo with Lil Tita and Yayo’s names on it.

Lil Tita had a good relationship with the Satan Disciples of 24^th & Washtenaw especially Rusty, Chango, Joker, Beto and Little Vinny of the SDs. Lil Tita lived at 2841 West 23^rd Street which was along 23^rd Street between Marshall Boulevard and California which put her very close to the Latin Kings. All these kids enjoyed playing sports like baseball especially right outside of either Spry Elementary or Harrison High School which is right at 24^th & Marshall, the motherland of the “Boulevards” Latin Kings.

In the year 1976, a younger generation of Boulevards Latin Kings wanted 22^nd & Cal area which was a section the Kings had been wanting for the past 10 years but these younger ones really wanted to take it, at first, but not by force. The Latin King method for takeover was to harass the kids from 23^rd & Cal and continuously bother them about turning Latin King so the hood could become rightfully theirs. The kids resisted but things became tough when they started attending Harrison High School and had to walk into Latin King hood everyday. The situation escalated until one day Latin Kings drove down 23^rd Street and shot up Lil Tita’s house. After the shooting these kids from 23^rd & Cal formed the “Insane 22^nd Boys” in 1976 which would be a younger generation to the older Almighty 22^nd Boys. There was an immediate bond that formed between Insane 22^nd Boys and Satan Disciples. 22s and SDs became so tight that 22s hung out at 15^th & Talman, 18^th & California, 18^th & Oakley, 24^th & Washtenaw, and Taylor & Racine, all the most notorious and biggest SD hoods.

War with Latin Kings was vicious immediately for Insane 22^nd as Latin Kings targeted Lil Tita’s house the most. Tita’s house was marked as Latin Kings continued to shoot and shoot and shoot at her house drilling several bullets in her home of all calibers. Even in the Prince Sal YouTube video Sal talked about how Latin Kings shot up his house while his mother was standing in the front of the house, the Latin Kings knew it was his mom but still tried to kill her anyway until Sal saved her life. Despite all the attacks and violence the 22^nd Boys weren’t going anywhere.

In 1978, all the violence the 22^nd Boys were enduring caused “Malo” from Ambrose, much concern. Malo is the cousin of Lil Tita; therefore, Malo began hanging around 23^rd & Cal. At that time Ambrose and SDs hated each other to the point where SDs tried to kill the Ambrose president Louie Limas in 1974, a story that made the newspaper. Malo started bringing his Ambrose friends but 22^nd Boys didn’t feel like picking and choosing who they would hang out with. The solution the 22^nd Boys came up with was to draw up blueprints for an alliance between 22^nd, Ambrose and SDs and this would include Two Six; peace was then established.

The original south side four families

One thing I loved about the Prince Sal videos on YouTube made by Hood Activist is that Sal broke it down about south side Latin Folks in a way I have never heard before and it was detailed. I saw some comments of people saying he was wrong but that’s because they completely missed what he was saying and didn’t have the comprehension to understand what he said. In this piece I will take his knowledge that he shared and put it in writing for, hopefully, more understanding for those that miss the point of what he said. Sal said there are “four families” of Folks on the south side that were the original Folks. People commented and misunderstood saying things that the Two Two Boys did not start Folks and it was the Gangster Disciples and/or they were saying the north side gangs were also originators of Latin Folks. All Sal was saying is that on the SOUTH SIDE and SOUTH SIDE only, is where the original four SOUTH SIDE Folks families formed and became Folks before any other mob. This is completely true, Two Six, Satan Disciples, Ambrose and Two Two Boys were the first south side mobs to connect with the Folks, especially in prison. Santos Limon was locked up in 1978-1979 and could have been the representative for the Two Two Boys into Folks. At 23^rd and Cal, Two Two Boys hosted many meetings and gatherings with SDs Ambrose and Two Six. Two Six was using the “Insane” moniker as far back as the mid-70s then 22^nd Boys adopted it but did not take it from Two Six, instead it was something in common they had with each other. SDs adopted the “Insane” moniker as well. Sal described it great that these four Folks mobs traveled all over the city helping each other establish new hoods in new neighborhoods. This mostly happened in the late 70s and if you look at history, Ambrose and SDs were hanging together in Marquette Park in the late 70s and established sections there. Two Two Boys and SDs put together 51^st & Wood in the Back of the Yards and Two Six established 47^th Street in the Yards too. In Brighton Park SDs and Two Six carved out new hoods and in Gage Park Two Six set up shop as did Ambrose, this all happened in the late 70s between 77-79. When these four mobs had members go to prison in the late 70s they cliqued up with Black Gangster Disciples and became part of the original prison council of Folks before the term “Folks” was even created.

Folks

When the Folks alliance was in its earliest stages of formation in 1978, the Satan Disciples, Ambrose, Two Six and Two Two Boys were simultaneously gathering in Two Two Boys and SD hoods hanging out together and bringing about an alliance. The terms “Folks” was not invented by these four mobs; however, as soon as Folks was being created these four mobs took it upon themselves to put the Folks on the south side streets and make it official in the early 80s.

By 1981, Folks was fully released on the streets and because of arrangements made with the hierarchy of the Folks, these four mobs were declared the “Latin Folks” of the south side. This arrangement was explained by Prince Sal in the Hood Activist Podcast YouTube video as Sal laid out that no south side mob could join Folks without getting the blessing from one of these four groups. For years I had always known that Ambrose, Two Six and Satan Disciples were some of the biggest recruiters of Folks but once I heard Sal explain it how he did it instantly made lots of sense and he is completely accurate. These four mobs were known as “ATTSDN” or “Ambrose, Two Two Boys, Two Six and Satan Disciples Nation.” Two Two Boys would become especially close with Satan Disciples and Ambrose. The “Insane” title became adopted by Two Six, Two Two Boys and Satan Disciples. At this time, I do not know if any mobs joined Folks with the Two Two Boys’ blessing. Mobs like Latin Souls, Party People, La Raza etc…joined Folks later on after the ATTSDN became official.

51^st & Wood

Chicago’s Back of the Yards community has one of the first gang lands in Chicago history going back to the 1860s. By the 1950s the Back of the Yards became greaser gang land and by the late 60s the notorious Saints gang was the dominant gang in the community. The Saints consisted of mostly white guys with some Mexican members. These Mexican youths were descendants of the earliest Mexican families that had been in the community since the first or second world war. The Latin Souls were another gang that formed in the Back of the Yards after they departed from the Englewood/Back of the Yards border. When the Latin Souls started congregating at 51^st & Hermitage area in the mid-70s it angered the Saints and war ensued. Many groups of white people were not happy when Mexican people began moving to the neighborhood in larger numbers starting in the mid-70s but the Saints were not fighting a racial fight, they were fighting a gang fight and they hated when any gang moved around the city near them.

When a new wave of Mexican migration came to the Back of the Yards in the late 70s, some of the Two Two Boys moved alongside the first signs of this new wave. In 1978, the Two Two Boys moved to the Cornell Square Park area a block away from the Latin Souls. The Two Two Boys established their first satellite chapter in history at 51^st & Wood. At 51^st & Wood, Two Two Boys wore the same brown and beige colors as the motherland from 22^nd and Cal. 51^St & Wood would be the only satellite chapter that would use these colors ever. Two Two Boys and Latin Souls would become tight in the Back of the Yards and were seen constantly hanging out and drinking together in Cornell Square Park.

In the year 1980, Back of the Yards was taken by storm when Two Six, Satan Disciples, Bishops, Latin Kings, and Black P Stones moved in. Satan Disciples took up residence in Cornell Square Park area especially at 51^st & Wood. Two Two Boys had a strong brotherhood with Satan Disciples; therefore, the SDs were permitted to move to the hood and now all three gangs were hanging out in the Cornell Square Park drinking together day and night. Two Two Boys and SDs came to the aid of the Latin Souls during their war with Latin Kings, Saints and Black P Stones and this is what enticed the Latin Souls to join Folks even though the Souls joined Folks under Two Six for some reason. Two Two Boys were the first outsider gang to move into the Back of the Yards which was a major accomplishment in their heavily Saint controlled neighborhood. Two Two Boys helped SDs and Latin Souls develop in this community during these early colonization years and now Souls and SDs are still active in the neighborhood presently.

Two Two Boys of 51^st were well known between the years 1978-1985 and were even recognized by the Rebel gang founder Tim Salmon who worked with the Two Two Boys in 1985, I have seen the pictures of this and the Two Two Boys were wearing Two Two Boy shirts. Some of the downfall of the Back of the Yards Two Two Boys was the violence they got involved in. In the year 1982, “Slow” of the Two Two Boys shot the leader of the 50^th & Elizabeth Bishops named “Chava” in the head with a shotgun killing him instantly. This murder got Slow put in prison but the Bishops left 50^th and moved to 53^rd & Winchester because of this murder. In the year 1984, Two Two Boys killed someone at 47^th & Marshfield outside of the People’s Theater which was another violent case. In the mid to late 80s the Two Two Boys left the Back of the Yards and the SDs took over 51^st & Wood forever.

Cicero

In the year 1979, the Two Two Boys were still mostly known as “Almighty and Insane 22^nd Boys” and this is what they were called when they began congregating in the nearby suburb of Cicero. Jimbo and his brother “Worm” moved into the suburb at 19^th & Cicero Avenue which was the first area of Cicero where Mexican families were moving in. Cicero was a suburb that did not take kindly to people of color moving in in large numbers and this Mexican migration wave was the largest migration of any people of color in Cicero history. Gangs in the neighborhood like Noble Knights, Twelfth Street Players, Arch Dukes and Park Boys went on the prowl day and night looking for rival gangs from Little Village and looking to intimidate Mexican youths as they had been doing since the late 60s.

When Jimbo and his brother moved in they got into altercations with these mostly white gangs and some of it was racial. Right after the holidays of 1979, Two Two Boys from 22^nd & Cal area were congregating at 19^th & Cicero to protect their family members. It was decided to make a chapter of Two Two Boys at 19^th Street and 48^th Court which is exactly where Jimbo and Worm were residing. The Two Two Boys were officially established in Cicero in January of 1980. The original Two Two Boys battled Twelfth Street Players, Noble Knights, Arch Dukes, Park Boys and Latin Kings as they settled the area lightly in the early 80s before establishing themselves full time. Two Six and Imperial Gangsters settled near the same area and bonded with the Two Two Boys due to them all being Folks, but Two Six and IGs were in small number in the early 80s, the Two Two Boys were the only fully developed gang to oppose the white gangs; however, they were terribly outnumbered by the white gangs at first but they survived and gained respect from many of the local youths that happened to be white kids.

The white kids in the Parkholme and Grant Works areas of Cicero were often from impoverished or broken and abusive homes. As a kid growing up with a crazy father then eventually no father I can relate to these suburban kids that end up lost with no father figure, especially when you are struggling financially. The Two Two Boys related to these kids in this area and recruited them by 1982 which was the year the Two Two Boys really started to blow up and get big in Cicero. The poor white boys were often more inclined to join a mostly Hispanic gang and this is why the original Cicero Two Two Boys were very white. These white boys were heavy hitters and very loyal to the nation. According to the white gangs they were fighting a racial type of gang war but in the eyes of the Two Two Boys it wasn’t racial it was all about gang rivalry because at least half of the original Cicero Two Twos were white. The white kids taken into the Two Two Boys were referred to as “hillbillies” by the white gangs likely because a lot of them were very poor.

In local newspapers in the early 80s I read about Noble Knights complaining about city gangs moving into the area and shooting at them and Cicero police blamed the Noble Knights for the shootings but this was only some of the cases. The Cicero police were especially hard on Two Two Boys. I’m not sure if it is true but a Two Two friend of mine told me a long time ago that Cicero police would round up the Two Two Boys make them kneel down with their hands clasped together above their heads and the police would hit them in the nuts with nightsticks and once they fell down from it they were beaten badly by the cops. Whether this was real or not there were for sure terrible things Cicero police did to the Two Two Boys for a long time. The white gangs all ended up joining the People alliance with the help of the Latin Kings. The People alliance, along with having sway and respect from the community gave the People gangs more immunity and favorability over the Two Two Boys. Twelfth Street Players, Noble Knights and Park Boys were deep as could be back in the early 80s and the Arch Dukes were only in their earliest stage of retiring but they also had some really mean older members that would ride against the Two Two Boys too. The Two Two Boys would get some aid from Satan Disciples from the Little Village area and some help from the small Imperial Gangster group and the smaller Two Six group but for the most part the Two Two Boys of Cicero were on their own against a mean white gang force that could even get aid from the Latin Kings if needed. Back in these days, Cicero was the land of the five point star because People alliance gangs ruled. In order to become a Two Two Boy and not have a hard time in the gang in the early 80s you had to be down and get ready to fight all the time. Even though Cicero was brutal to the original Two Two Boys they stayed strong and were the main Folks through the 80s.

In the summer of 1982, Mexican kids freshly moving into the area were sick of white gang harassment as were the impoverished white boys from the same neighborhood. At 14^th Street & 49^th Street, in the Grant Works area many of these frustrated kids gathered and soon were taken in by the 19^th Street Group. These original 14^th & 49^th members were the Flores brothers, Rudy, Rab and Lil Rab, Sin, Karoo, Risky and one of the big names “Nigs” and his brother “Lil Nigs” just to name some. 14^Th & 49^th was the first street corner where the first wild Cicero gang activity started in 1952, something I read about in a 1953 newspaper making this corner legendary and now the Two Two Boys had it as of 1982. Noble Knights were pissed off a new Two Two Boy group formed because Noble Knights were just a few blocks away west of 50^th Street which was their side of the neighborhood. These Noble Knights were often poor kids too but were in the embrace of their nation because these guys were deemed worthy and the right image to be Noble Knights. These Knights came in yelling while smashing car windows calling out Two Two Boys for a fight. Not only would Two Twos square up and fight these Noble Knights the Two Twos would sweep through Knight’s hood with guns blazing, Two Twos also shot at the Knights in their own section. Even when Noble Knights would come in 40 deep Two Twos fought them outnumbered and still held their own.

Once the 82-83 school year started, the gang went from just a small group of Two Twos to now a large group and shortly into the school year more kids were getting in on the idea of becoming a Two Two Boy, now their section expanded as east as Cicero Avenue and as west as 50^th Street then onto Laramie. Two Two Boys also had Roosevelt to 16^th street by the end of 1982 and now they were strong in Grant Works as well.

In the year 1983, Two Two Boys began recruiting in the Hawthorn neighborhood and opened at 31^st Street and Laramie Avenue, this section was known as “Tre One.” Tre one was once a strong section of Two Two Boys in the 80s and 90s. When I was growing up in Romeoville, two Cicero Two Two Boys from Tre One moved into a house the next block over and they became friends of mine, this is how I became familiar with Tre One. I met these two guys in 1997, which was the time when Tre One closed. These guys were proud of the nation and wore black and baby blue every day of the week. Anytime they invited Two Two Boys from Cicero over they were always cool guys, this is how I gained lots of respect for Two Two Boys, the Two Two Boys from Bolingbrook were cool as hell too. They eventually flipped to become Romeoville Gangster Disciples in 1998. Tre One was 31^st & Laramie but once these Two Two Boys took over between 51^st Avenue to Central Avenue and between Ogden to 33^rd Street, the area became known as “Rey Town.”

Some other notable sections of Two Twos that started in the 80s was 24^th & Central and 35^th & Austin.

By the mid-80s, there were about 100 Two Two Boys in Cicero and they became one of the biggest gangs in Cicero especially since Arch Dukes and Park Boys were beginning their final years of active gang activity.

Santos Limon

One of the most legendary Two Two Boys was Santos Limon, a Two Two Boy from 23^rd & Cal. Limon was one of the original Insane 22^nd Boys when they formed in 1976 and Limon was respected and feared by rival gangs. Limon did time in prison in the late 70s getting out in 1979. Limon did hard time as he was even burned on his arm where a tattoo once said “22 Boys” but because of the burn it said “2 Boys.”

Prince Sal broke down a whole story about misfortune that happened to Santos Limon as he died a violent death. According to Sal, the gang that targeted Santos was a group called “Bad Company,” a crew that lived down the street that hated Two Two Boys. Bad Company wanted to get Limon badly and once they got a hold of him they felt the need to not only kill him, they tortured him. Limon was stabbed in the face 11 times and beaten in the back of the head badly. Bad Company wanted Limon’s sweater but Limon fought with every inch of his life to the point that Bad Company could not get the sweater so not only did they stab him in the face and beat him in the back of the head they also took a knife and sliced his chest open, cut off some of his fingers and they shot him. Bad Company then threw his body over a fence and packed him with snow to freeze him, but freezing him backfired because the Satan Disciples found Limon and rescued him. Limon initially survived the attack but later died on December 28, 1981.

War with Two Six

On November 7, 1986 Two Two Boys from Cicero were invited to a party that was being thrown by Ambrose at 63^rd and Rockwell in the Marquette Park neighborhood.  When the Two Two Boys arrived at the party they were informed of another Ambrose party being held at 6318 south Washtenaw, so they decided to check that party out. The Two Two Boys went back to Cicero to get more of their friends they stopped and got cigarettes at a 7-11 were they witnessed two Two Six gang members Jason Gray and Manuel Bobe also known as “Little Hulk” beating up two guys in the parking lot.  The Two Two Boys then later were driving down Kedzie and were approaching the I-55 expressway exit when that same Two Six car pulled up alongside them and were flashing Two Six gang signs throwing bottles at the car.  Bobe and Gray and a third Two Six in the car thought the Two Two Boys were Ambrose gang members, but even when Jessie Alvarez and Sam Rahder flashed Two Two Boy gang signs the Two Six gang members did not stop with the hostility according to court documents, then the Two Two Boys pulled onto the expressway and proceeded to pick up their two friends from Cicero.  On the way back to the party, once the Two Two Boys got off I-55 at the California Ave exit, that same Two Six car whipped out in front of them, and Bobe and Gray got out flashing Two Six signs and challenging them to a fight, the Two Two Boys got out of the car to fight, but the Two Sixs got back in the car and drove away (People Illinois vs. Manuel Bobe, 1992).

Later that night as the Cicero Two Two Boys were partying with Ambrose at the 63^rd and Washtenaw party there was a knock at the door at about 12:30 A.M, when the door was answered Jason Gray started shooting at the party guests then Manuel Bobe started shooting according to court documents.  Four people were shot and three of the four were killed.  One of those killed was a Two Two Boy gang member, and the one that was injured that was not killed was a Two Two Boy named Jose Mendez according to court documents (People Illinois vs. Manuel Bobe, 1992).  After this 1986 shooting Two Two Boys and Ambrose went to full scale war with Two Sixs despite the fact that they were all part of the Folk Nation. This hate never dissolved and only worsened in the early to mid 90s.

Marquette Park

Sometime in the late 80s, some Two Two Boys moved to the Marquette Park area into a building at 71^st & Fairfield. Ever since moving to Marquette Park, Two Two Boys have been all business and they have always known when to lay low. Many think the Two Two Boys just can’t establish themselves in Marquette Park, but the reality is they have always known how to operate discreetly while popping up once and awhile to represent, do some shootings, tag up the area then lay low again making many believe they are extinct, then when they pop out again it causes confusion.

One of the biggest Two Two Boy runs was 71^st & Spaulding that was started by “Silent” in 2007. At the same time Two Two Boys were operating along 66^th Street to 65^th Street between Mozart and Whipple. This activity lasted until 2011; however, Two Two Boys keep popping up through the years after and sometimes shootings go down and this is as of the 2020s decade…they are still out there.

Cicero 1993

Since the early 80s, the Two Two Boys were a major part of Cicero and through their connections with 22^nd & Cal, leadership of the Two Two Boys was politically active and Two Twos used to clean up graffiti in the neighborhood and protect their neighborhoods. Even the founder of Mothers Against Gangs, Francis Sandoval was related to the Two Two Boys and the Two Two Boys assisted her. The Two Two Boys had a positive side to them and were mostly a defensive gang that was non-aggressive about recruitment and bravado. Two Two Boys fit in well with Cicero and the youths of Cicero loved the Two Two Boys whether they joined them or not. The main people that hated Two Two Boys was their opps like Noble Knights, Latin Kings, Twelfth Street Players, Park Boys and Arch Dukes. The Two Two Boys needed to defend their turf violently and this put them in the cross hairs of public officials in Cicero and Cicero police; however, these issues with public officials were not severe until the year 1993.

In January 1993, Betty Loren-Maltese was sworn into office as the new Town President/Mayor of Cicero. Maltese was the wife of Frank Maltese, a city official that was also a bookie for the Cicero Italian Mafia until he died in 1993. Betty Maltese retained connections to the mob which is what led to her arrest and conviction for stealing some of Cicero’s money in 2003. Before Maltese was taken down by federal authorities she ran Cicero with an iron fist that often appeased long time mostly white residents and made Hispanic residents uncomfortable.

As soon as Maltese took office in 1993, she took the most aggressive tough on gangs policy Cicero had ever seen as she assembled a multi-jurisdictional police unit (Chicago Tribune June 17, 1993). Cicero police became increasingly aggressive, especially toward Hispanics as they often made Hispanics show green cards during normal traffic stops. Maltese was the one that allowed law suits against gang member’s parents which was controversial. Maltese put in restrictions on how many people could live in one house, which was an obvious attempt to weed out Hispanic families. Under her reign, the aggressive police force harassed groups of Hispanics just hanging out whether they were gang related or not and illegal arrests happened. Many more of these stories can be found on this resource I found (https://www.thisamericanlife.org/179/transcript#:~:text=Under%20Betty%20Loren%2DMaltese%2C%20Cicero%20cops,Mexican%20flag%20to%20lower%20it.) I never grew up in Cicero but heard many of stories from people from Cicero about how brutal the police were in the 90s, starting in the mid-90s which can back up this resource.

Maltese got tough on the gangs quick but she favored targeting Cicero’s largest Hispanic gang the Two Two Boys. Prior to 1993, only Two Two Boys, Two Six and Latin Kings were active Hispanic gangs in Cicero. The Two Sixs did not became much larger until after 1993 and the Latin Kings were so connected with the white gangs in the People alliance they could often dodge a lot of Maltese’s crackdowns. The Two Two Boys became the biggest targets of police harassment, illegal evictions and imprisonment. Between the years 1993 and 1994 the Two Two Boys lost lots of territory because of Maltese. The problem with Maltese’s plan was getting rid of the Two Two Boys opened the doors wide open for new gangs to take over old Two Two Boy territory and these gangs were more aggressive than Two Two Boys. This not only led to more wars for the Two Two Boys against fellow Folk gangs, it also led to these newly arrived gangs killing each other. Many of these newly arrived gangs did not have as much respect and love for Cicero as the Two Two Boys as all they wanted to do was sell drugs and kill. Two Two Boys lost 23rd-24th & Central, the majority of Rey Town and most of their Parkholme and Grant Works territories thanks to aggressive police take downs of the 90s driven by Maltese. Many myths circulate that Two Two Boys were “ran out” of Cicero by this gang and that gang but in reality many had to move away to avoid prison or they ended up in prison. With the loss of many heavy hitters and leaders remaining members became vulnerable and many were killed by rival gangs, but when the rivals would hit them there was an unfair advantage the rivals had thanks to the police.

New suburbs

Because of the Cicero crackdowns Two Two Boys moved to multiple Chicago area suburbs and some of those had success in the 90s while others failed. When I was a teenager I remember how the Two Two Boys were getting big in the burbs but by the 2000s most of these suburban outposts closed as gang members retired or became incarcerated. I have never seen a gang hated more than the Two Two Boys in all my years and the aggression against the Two Twos was often driven by jealousy and hatred due to the Two Two Boys’ independence and less aggressive recruitment. Other gangs get jealous that many youths just want to join the Two Twos naturally without pressure and/or coercion.

Some suburbs Two Twos started in the early to mid-90s were: Northlake, Carol Stream, Franklin Park, Melrose Park, Countryside, Bolingbrook, Stickney, and Oak Lawn.

Oak Lawn

In the early to mid-90s Two Two Boys opened at 97^th & Parkside. I once saw a pic of these guys taken in 1999 and there were a lot of them in the pic and they looked like some serious members. I don’t know much more about this section but it mostly closed in the 2000s.

Stickney

In the early to mid-90s Two Two Boys moved into the suburb of Stickney right at the border with Lyons. The Two Two Boys moved into a strip of apartments at 44^th & Harlem Avenue which was an area of single income families and struggling families. I am not sure how long the Two Two Boys had this area but they lasted until sometime in the 2000s.

Countryside

In the mid to late 90s Two Two Boys moved into the Country Club Woods mobile homes by La Grange Road and Joliet Road. These Two Two Boys fought against the Gangster Disciples from La Grange. Most of these Two Two Boys were from white struggling families, I am not sure how long they lasted.

Bolingbrook

I went to high school with Bolingbrook Two Two Boys and all my encounters were nothing but positive and I eventually hung out with two Cicero Two Two Boys that later connected with the guys in Bolingbrook. The Bolingbrook Two Two Boys arrived in the early to mid-90s and were founded by “Poppy” and led by “Superman.” This group was in the Pepper Tree subdivision as they claimed the entrance of the subdivision at Ingleside and Drake. If memory serves me, these Two Two Boys fought with Vice Lords that also lived in Pepper Tree and I knew much about the drama between Two Two Boys and Latin Kings at Romeoville High School and Bolingbrook High School. These Two Two Boys were active until about the 2000s.

Kankakee County

I have heard about how big Two Two Boys got in Kankakee county in the 1990s after arriving in the early to mid-90s but I am not sure which suburb they moved to, whether it was the city of Kankakee or some other towns. I never heard of them in Kankakee in particular so maybe it was other towns. When I get more info I will update.

Lexington Kentucky

The only out of state large Two Two Boy group I have heard of is in Lexington, Kentucky that started in the early to mid 90s. This group got very large but that is all the info I know right now.

War and War and more War

Once Betty Maltese started her crackdowns alongside the most aggressive Cicero police in history starting in 1993, the Two Two Boys of Cicero faced their most challenging years. The Maltese crackdowns put so many key Two Two Boys behind bars or forced them out of Cicero that the Two Twos were operating with about half capacity as before. The crackdowns left a gaping hole in the Cicero gang landscape that proved to be more dangerous than healthy for Cicero. Maltese was a corrupt mayor and was eventually imprisoned over it. During Maltese’s time as mayor she shook down the gangs off the record demanding they pay up or leave Cicero. The Two Two Boys refused to pay Maltese so she made their lives a living hell and shot holes in their hoods in Reytown and Grant Works and other sections. When these crackdowns happened the police were especially brutal and targeted the Two Two Boys the most which undid most of their territory in the mid-90s.

When the crackdowns were happening in the 1993-1994 years, it just so happened that a new wave of white flight was sweeping Cicero as was a new Hispanic migration wave. Normally, when Hispanics moved to Cicero in the 80s and early 90s many of the migrating youths joined Two Two Boys or Latin Kings, but most became Two Two Boys. With the Two Two Boys facing elimination it gave Hispanic youths the option to bring in a new gang from outside the neighborhood and set up shop in old Two Two Boys areas.

There were a few People alliance mobs that touched down in Cicero in the 1993-1994 years which included Bishops and Latin Counts. My Two Two Boy friends told me about the wars with the Bishops that was so bad the police got involved and made my friend stand around in Bishop hood wearing a sign that says “I HATE BISHOPS.” The Bishops were a little outside of Two Two Boy hood along 61^st Street but that didn’t matter. In the year 1997, the Latin Pachucos started up at 15^th & 51^st which was in old Two Two Boy hood that was taken away by the Maltese crackdowns, this brought on a nasty war between Pachucos and Two Twos. The People alliance gangs were always a problem for Two Twos but beginning in 1993, fellow Folks almost seemed to become worse enemies. At least the People mobs were not encroaching in Two Two neighborhoods like these other Folks.

War with Latin Angels

Since the Latin Angels started in the late 80s, the Two Two Boys were tight with this neutron party crew, the Angels were a crew not interested in gangbanging. The Angels were a lowrider club from Grant Works that lived in Two Two neighborhood around 14^th and 50^th. In the year 1993, shit hit the fan when Latin Kings went out one summer day looking to shoot up some Two Two Boys but the Latin Kings spotted Two Two Boys and Latin Angels together and shot up a Latin Angel killing him thinking he was Two Two. The Latin Angels blamed the Two Two Boys because they flashed gang signs at Latin Kings which enticed the Latin Kings to shoot and this started a permanent war with Latin Angels that would last forever. In 1995, the Latin Angels made up with the Latin Kings and joined the People alliance.

War with the Insane Majestics

In the late 1980s, the Two Two Boys welcomed the Majestic Party Crew into Reytown right at the heart of the hood at 31^st & Laramie. Between the late 80s and 1993, the Majestics and Two Two Boys hang out at 31^st & Laramie day and night as close pals. In the year 1993, the Satan Disciples moved to Cicero and the Majestics immediately connected with the SDs. The Two Two Boys were on the brink of turning the Majestics Folks but in a surprise move the Majestics joined Folks under the umbrella of the SDs instead which pissed off the Two Two Boys. This brought a nasty war between Majestics and Two Twos that involved shootings and several beatings. This was a tough war for both gangs because it was in close quarters in each other’s backyards. The war never ended, instead both gangs mostly withdrew from the area. Both groups did come together for a while in 1997 to team up against the Maniac Latin Disciples but that eventually fell apart.

War with the Maniac Latin Disciples

In the year 1997, the Maniac Latin Disciples moved into Cicero for the first time and they wanted Rey Town. The MLDs were able to nestle into most of Rey Town thanks to the Betty Maltese crackdowns that pushed most of Rey Town out. At 31^st & Laramie the Tre One Two Two Boys fought hard against the Maniacs and Majestics until the neighborhood became too much drama; however, Two Two Boys presence never 100% left Rey Town. These Two Twos fought hard against the Maniacs and if it weren’t for Betty Maltese they likely would have never lost Rey Town.

War with the Satan Disciples

Since the 1970s, Two Twos and Satan Disciples were as tight as brothers and it was even the SDs that came to the aid of Santos Limon in 1981. When SDs moved to Cicero, they were welcomed by the 23rd-24th & Central Two Two Boys and the SDs were given 23^rd & Central. Both gangs were tight in Cicero at first and even had egg fights for fun on Halloween in 1993-1994.

Either at the end of 1994 or beginning of 1995, Two Two Boys and Satan Disciples went to war for good. I do not know the whole story behind the war but it likely has to do with the fact that SDs started growing very large in the mid-90s and perhaps stepping all over Two Two Boy hoods. Because of the Maltese crackdowns, the SDs were able to outpace the Two Two Boys after too many Two Twos got locked up, some from this war with the SDs. Maltese ended up allowing a monster to grow because by 1999 she was trying to sue Satan Disciples in the village, but she let this happen by an unfair raid on Two Two Boys.

War with La Raza

At one time Two Two Boys were deep at 14^th Street and 49^th Avenue as one of their prime corners. As soon as Betty Maltese started her harsh crackdowns in 1993, 14^th & 49^th was so hot with Cicero police and Two Two Boy arrests that the only way Two Two leadership could run this corner was remotely through visiting the hood. Alongside a new Hispanic migration wave came a group of La Razas that took over the hood starting in 1993. This of course meant war as Two Two Boys tried to fight to keep the hood but Cicero police were ready to pounce on the Two Twos before La Raza any day, it became best to leave the hood to La Raza but Two Two Boys in sections still well established nearby gave La Raza hell for years, both nations still hate each other.

War with Sin City Boys

The Sin City Boys started in the late 60s not far away from Two Two Boys in the Little Village community. I never heard of any conflict between the two gangs in 70s or 80s in Little Village and the Sin City Boys were pretty much family with Two Six. Once the Maltese crackdowns began in 1993, the Sin City Boys happened to be fleeing from the Little Village carnage between Latin Kings and Two Six as they landed in Grant Works at 13^th & 49^th, right in old Two Two Boy hood. The Maltese crackdowns once again weakened Two Two Boy presence in this area and this lead to bloodshed, and again, Cicero police were all too eager to favor locking up Two Two Boys and this allowed Sin City Boys to take over this area. During the same year of 1993, Two Sixs were growing into the Parkholme area right by the Two Two Boys and that war worsened, the Sin City Boys of course teamed up with the Two Sixs against the Two Two Boys. The war never ended.

War with Milwaukee Kings

In the year 1993, the Maltese crackdowns did a number on the Parkholme Two Two Boys, and this was Two Two original hood. Before the original Parkholme area Two Twos were mostly finished by law enforcement, the Milwaukee Kings were able to move into the area at 21^st & 51^st and spin into a violent war with Two Two Boys that lasted until 1995. At least in this case the Cicero Police locked up both gangs and the Milwaukee Kings never returned to Cicero, but the bloody war between MKs and 22s cannot be forgotten.

War with Spanish Cobras

In the year 1997, the Spanish Cobras moved in just outside of Two Two hood at 16^th & 47^th; however, the two gangs still did not mix well because the Spanish Cobras wanted to take over Two Two hood. The Spanish Cobras were not nice about it and became very aggressive and disrespectful to the Two Two Boys and nasty war ensued. Two Two Boys were weakened by the Betty Maltese crackdowns and this made it more difficult to take on new rivals that normally would have been easy to dismantle. The Spanish Cobras did not last and were gone by the 2000s but the war stays in place.

War with Ashland Vikings

In the year 1993 when the Maltese crackdowns began, the Ashland Vikings settled at 21^st & 47^th which was not in a Two Two hood but Vikings were right outside the original Parkholme settlement starting problems with the Two Two Boys. In 1997, it got worse when the Spanish Cobras moved in and teamed up with the Vikings against Two Two Boys but the Two Two Boys fought the Vikings well even with reduced numbers until the Vikings left Cicero in the 2000s.

War with Gangster Disciples

In the year 1993, the original Two Two hood in the 19^th & Cicero area was under attack when Mexican members of the Gangster Disciples moved into this neighborhood and began taking over an area that became known as “Hell Zone” which was in the 18th-19th & 48th-49th area which was the original hood of Two Two Boys going back to 1980. The Maltese crackdowns made it much easier for these GDs to come into the neighborhood and these GDs recruited fast and on a large scale. These GDs had access to weapons and drugs that gave them an edge along with strength in numbers and the fact that Cicero police favored removal of Two Two Boys under Betty Maltese’s orders. Maltese was mad that the Two Two Boys did not bribe her and now the GDs would move in which resulted in a nasty war.

Two Two Boys in Countryside had a bad war with GDs from La Grange too. In Bolingbrook in the late 90s, GDs and Two Two Boys mostly got along but a war was about to happen, but the Bolingbrook Two Two Boys closed shop before that started.

Relations with Cullerton Deuces

The Cullerton Deuces of Marshall Square have a colorful history as starting as a faction of the Morgan Deuces gang in the late 60s. When a new wave of Pee Wees got inducted into the Cullerton Deuces in the year 1980, these Deuces were highly active gangbangers. The Two Two Boys became more active and visible at the same time and it was a recipe for a storied gang war. Cullerton Deuces loved the Latin King while Two Two Boys were in tight with Satan Disciples. Cullerton Deuces had a vicious war with Satan Disciples as did the Two Two Boys with the Latin Kings. This led to a nasty war of SDs and Two Twos versus Deuces and Kings especially since the Kings and Deuces rode with the five point star while SDs and Two Twos rode with the six point star. I am not sure if the 60s and 70s Two Two Boys had beef with the Morgan Deuces but they likely did but it wouldn’t be nearly as bad as the war between Cullerton Deuces and later Two Two Boys of the 80s.

The bloodshed went on for a decade and a half until the Cullerton Deuces went to war with Latin Kings in 1994. The Deuces flipped to Folks under the north side Insane family thanks to the Insane Deuces and Spanish Cobras. This flipping caused many of the Deuces to flip to Latin Kings in disgust but the rest that remained recruited a new wave of Deuces and all these guys took a shining to the Two Two Boys. When I first met my Two Two friends in 1997 they told me they were pretty cool with the Deuces but admitted there would be some beef at times as of 1997 and that is when friction came back between the two gangs but never anything severe. Since the later 90s Two Two Boys and Cullerton Deuces have an on and off interesting relationship which is more interesting considering they were once bitter rivals in the 80s and almost half of the 90s.

Later years

Lil Tita moved out of 23rd and California in 1987 but she left a major legacy as the first and only female founder of one of Chicago’s most notorious street gangs.  Yayo, Gil and Benny Bear later became family men and retired from the gang life but continued to run the Two Two Boys well into the 1990s.  Yayo bore a son he named Santos to be named after Santos Limon.  The legend of these founders is something to be marveled, especially the legacy of Lil Tita, later known as AnnaMal as being the only known female founder of a Chicago street gang.  in the 1970s and 1980s she was the most protected female in Little Village.

Two Two Boys pulled most of their forces out of Marquette Park and Cicero in the year 2011 and joined the boys at 22^nd & Cal to keep it strong. That doesn’t mean they went extinct in Cicero and Marquette Park, it just means their visibility toned way down and they only became about business in those neighborhoods not tagging, flagging and having shorties stand around on the blocks day and night. Even at 22^nd & Cal things are low key but no other gangs can take over the neighborhood, even presently.

The Two Two Boys got dealt an unfair hand thanks to the Betty Maltese crackdowns and many have come forward in more recent years about how racist and unfair the treatment was toward Hispanic people in Cicero in the 90s by Cicero police and Cicero public officials under Betty Maltese.

Known sections of the Two Two Boys past and present

Back of the Yards neighborhood Established 1978-late 80s

Sections of the Back of the Yards

51^st & Wood (Shared with the Satan Disciples)

Marshall Square neighborhood Established Mid-60s-present years

Sections of Marshall Square

Cermak to 24^th, Marshall to California (Motherland, Cal Boyz)

Suburbs

Stickney Established 1993-2000s

Bolingbrook Established 1993-2000s

Carol Stream

Cicero 16^th & 47^th Court (Murda Town), Ogden to 33^rd, 51^st Ave to Central Ave (Rey Town), 14^th & 49^th Court, 18^th & 48^th Court (1980), 24^th & Central, 31^st & Cicero, 35^th & Austin, Laramie from 31^st to 33^rd (Tre-One), 31^st & 50^th Court, 31^st & 48^th, 14^th to 16^th, 47^th to 50^th Established 1980-present years

Countryside 1993-2000s

Franklin Park 1993-2000s

Melrose Park 1993-2000s

Northlake 1993-2000s

Oak Lawn 97^th & Parkside 1993-2000s