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HISTORY The club was first formed in Houston by Donald Eugene Chambers. After seeing a Television commercial for Fritos Corn Chips featuring the Frito Bandito , Chambers called his club the Bandidos and adopted a variant of the cartoon mascot as the center patch for the club's colors. After Chambers' tenure Ronny Hodge became president and expanded the club internationally. CHAPTERS The Bandidos are the fastest growing Outlaw Biker Motorcycle Club in the United States , with more than 90 chapters nationwide. The club is mostly concentrated in the Southwest with the largest grouping in Texas , though chapters exist as far north as Washington . Internationally, chapters are found in Asia (Bangkok), Australia , and Western Europe . The Bandidos have had chapters in Canada since 2000 but as of 2006 have only a minimal presence. ORGANIZATION The Bandidos enjoy a reputation for being highly organized with state and regional officers to coordinate its chapters, grouped under a national chapter with four regional vice presidents and a national president. CONTROVERSY One of the Bandidos' members is being investigated by Texas police to see if he and the motorcycle club are connected with the 2004 Murder of former Boxing world champion Robert Quiroga . The Bandidos are also known in Australia for their involvement in the Milperra Massacre in 1984 . Most recently, the gang has been connected to the 2006 Shedden Massacre in southwestern Ontario , Canada , 25 miles southwest of London , Ontario . Eight members or assiocate memebers of the Bandidos were found dead in several vehicles located on a remote farm. Five people including one Bandidos member have been arrested and charged with eight counts of First-degree Murder . Numerous theories for the murders have been put forward, but to date nothing has proven conclusive. Police are now saying, however, that more arrests will be forthcoming. The mass murder is one of the worst in Ontario 's history -- the 1833 mass murder of eight people in Upper Canada being the other. The massacre has effectively ended the Bandidos' presence in Canada, at least in the short term, as the crime has not only annihilated much of their leadership (by death and arrest), but damaged their credibility among would-be bikers, which will make recruitment difficult. {Link without Title} SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS When literally translated, the word, “bandito” means “bandit” or “outlaw”. It is used to describe someone who is a villain or done something legally wrong or is on the run (Wood 1). Often, however, “bandito” can be used to describe a certain stereotype of Latin Americans. Much of the time, this stereotyping is media driven and portrays Latin Americans as gangsters or “banditos” (1). According to Andrew G. Wood’s article, “Outlaws, Bandidismo, and the Chicano Experience,” he states, “the term has a long history of abuse by the mainstream U.S. media, conjuring up the silver screen specter of dirty, lewd, amoral border bandits” (1). The term seems to have come alive, beginning with the Gold Rush in California when Anglo-Americans started to head west. These people began forcing Mexicans from their homes and land which created tension between the two groups (Chavez 3). According to Ken Chavez who wrote an article entitled, “States Latinos Lost in the Rush,” he states, “Some Mexicans formed roving bands of robbers and thieves giving rise to the moustachioed gun slinging “bandito” stereotype” (Chavez 3). Most of the time, “bandito” is associated with males. It goes along with an image of a super macho man or a “greaser” type (Chavez 3). Another way to understand a “bandito” would be to compare it to the “guido” stereotype. Many times males from new Jersey are though of as “guidos” which are mafia-associated, flashy people. This, however, certainly cannot be said for the entire male population of New Jersey. Similiarly, the same is true for “bandito” and Latin Americans. Bandito in Latin American culture is a serious thing. Banditos are not good people, and while they may tend to have “cool” factors to them, much of their activities are not legal. A bandito can be considered a folk persona that is widely known in Latin American culture. For example, Zorro is a media created version of a bandito (Lowry 1). Even Zorro, however, has been a character that trivializes the meaning of bandito (2). Zorro was a character that is revered and held up as a hero, however, he remains a stereotype of Mexicans. A more recent portrayal of a bandito that caused a lot of controversy would be “Frito Bandito” used by the Frito-Lay company as a character to sell product (Lowry 1). The character was done away with, but Latin Americans, especially Chicanos feel this is how they are seen (Lowry 1). A playful character should not, according to Latinos, have the connotation of an outlaw with it. Another way to look at it would be to compare how a serial killer in the United States might be associated with a toy or sales pitch in another country and having that portrayal associated with Americans in general. Bandito means something serious in many Latin American countries. It conjures up thoughts of thieves or drug dealers or anyone running from the law. Somewhere along the way, however, the term has been warped by mainstream culture to stereotype Latin Americans and to also demean the definition of the word. “Bandito” is both a real person and a stereotype. |
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