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I am Raymond Washington: The only authorized biography of the original founder of the Crips Kindle Edition

by Zach Fortier (Author), Derard Barton (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.1 415 ratings

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I am Raymond Washington provides the reader with an unprecedented look into the life of the founder of the Crips. Forget everything you have been told about who started the Crips and why. Most of it is wrong, very wrong. Welcome to the only authorized biography of the undisputed founder of the Crips. Filled with interviews of friends, family and acquaintances from people who knew and grew up with, Raymond Lee Washington. Don’t look here for horrific stories of gang violence and crimes committed by gang members, that has been done before. If you are looking for a factual and intuitive look into what made Raymond Washington unique in the mean streets of Los Angeles, this book is for you. This book is filled with stories and eyewitness accounts of those that knew who the real founder of the Crips gang was, what he represented to the people that knew him, and hopefully explains why his name is still spoken on the streets of Los Angeles with hatred, fear, and awe and reverence. Entering the world of Raymond Washington with an open mind was difficult for me but eventually the story of who Raymond Washington was as a leader, warrior, tactician, and mentor became clear. Hopefully it will become clear to the reader why the gang was so successful and explain how an apparently unremarkable 15 year old kid in the fall of 1969 would sit down with his best friend and form what would become one of the single most successful and yet feared and hated gangs in the world, The Crips.

Print length

244 pages
Language

English
Sticky notes

On Kindle Scribe
Publication date

February 20, 2015
File size

10074 KB
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Written in a conversational, no-nonsense manner, Zach Fortier's latest work, I Am Raymond Washington, reads like the best of modern detective fiction. However, this is no novel. It's an extensively researched work of journalism on par with Truman Capote's In Cold Blood. The book begins with the author explaining his motivation, and his intentions, namely, to uncover his subject's true identity in a fair, impartial manner. That said, Fortier lives up to his promises. Indeed, despite being a former cop, he subtly empathizes with Raymond Washington, the original founder of the Crips. The book is equal parts biography, character study, historical background, oral history and sociology. The author discusses the political, social, and socio-economical conditions that inspired Washington, providing a rich background to the action of the story. Several chapters deviate from the main thrust of the narrative, and read more like critical essays than stories. Nonetheless, they are every bit as engaging as they are devoted to debunking myths surrounding the Crips and its founder, that outsiders have ignorantly--and somewhat comically--accepted. Additionally, they question--and answer, no less--many fundamental mysteries about gang life, one such being the reasons why people join gangs. Fortier supports his conclusions with his exhaustive research (consisting of official documents, newspapers clippings, interviews, etc.) and allusions to classical Western literature, like Homer's The Iliad or the works of Joseph Campbell. However, Fortier leaves ample room for the reader to make his or her own conclusions. Apex reviews. 5 stars

About the Author

Zach Fortier was a police officer for over thirty years specializing in K-9, SWAT, gangs, domestic violence, and sex crimes as an investigator. He has written several books about his life in police work. CurbChek won the bronze medal for True Crime in the 2013 Readers' Favorite International Book Awards. Street Creds and Curbchek Reload won a gold and silver medal respectively for True Crime in the 2014 Readers' Favorite International Book Awards. His other works are Hero To Zero, which details the incredibly talented cops that he worked with that ended up going down in flames, some ended up in prison and one on the FBI's ten most wanted list. Landed on Black described the toxic culture of the police department and streets, ultimately leading to the realization that Zach has been diagnosed with PTSD. I am Raymond Washington is the only authorized biography of the original founder of the Crips and has been awarded bronze medals in 2015 by both IPPY and Readers Favorite International book awards. Baroota: The Hunting Ground is Zach's first fictional work, and is the start of this series, followed by Cachibache, Izadi and Chakana. All books in the Director's Series are award winning. If you are looking for gritty, true crime stories, be sure to check out all of Zach Fortier's novels. Zach currently lives in the mountains of Colorado, with his wife Christina.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00RUQEP6M
Publisher ‏ : ‎ SteeleShark Press (February 20, 2015)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ February 20, 2015
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 10074 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 244 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #760,314 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1,317 in Biographies & Memoirs of Criminals
- #3,076 in Crime & Criminal Biographies
- #4,025 in Historical Biographies (Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews:
4.1 415 ratings

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Zach Fortier
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2013 Readers Favorite Bronze medal winner
2014 Readers Favorite Gold and Silver medal winner
Finalist in 2014 Chanticleer Book awards contest
2015 IPPY Bronze Medal winner
2015 semi finalist Kindle Book Awards (X2)
2015 Finalist in the IAN book awards (X2)
2015 Readers Favorite Bronze medal winner
2015 Readers Favorite Finalist true crime/non fiction(x2)
2015 Finalist Kindle Book Awards
2015 Finalist USA Today book awards (x3)
2015 Finalist in the Chanticleer Clue book awards contest(x3)
2015 First Place award winner in the Chanticleer Clue Book awards contest in True Crime.
Winner of the 2015 Book Pipeline competition.
Winner of the 2016 NIEA Book awards contest for African American Non fiction
2017 Winner Next Generation Indie Book Awards in Suspense category
2017 Finalist NIEA Book Awards contest in Suspense genre
Finalist in Biography General in the 2017 American Book Fest International book awards
Finalist in the 2017 Kindle book awards in Horror.
Finalist 2017 Book Excellence Awards for thrillers.
Short list finalist in 2017 Chanticleer Clue book awards contest.
Awarded Official selection (x2) in the 2017 New Apple Book awards contest.
Awarded a Bronze medal in the 2017 Readers Favorite Book contest in Suspense genre
Awarded Silver medal in the 2018 eLit Book Awards contest in the Mystery/thriller genre
Finalist 2018 Book Excellence awards contest in Biography Genre.
Awarded a Bronze Medal in the 2018 Readers Favorite International book awards contest in the Fiction/thriller genre
Long list finalist in 2018 Chanticleer Clue book awards contest.(x2)
Semi finalist in the 2018 Chanticleer Clue Book awards contest.
Solo medal winner of the 2018 New Apple Book awards contest in the Psychological Thriller category.
Solo medal winner in the 2019 Book Excellence book awards contest in the suspense genre.
Bronze medal winner in the 2019 Readers favorite international book awards contest in the fiction-suspense genre.
Named as an Official Selection in the 2019 New Apple Summer E book awards contest in the Psychological Suspense genre
First Place winner in the 2019 Top Shelf book awards contest.
Winner of the 2020 Book Excellence book awards contest in Sci Fi Genre
Named to the Short List 2020 Chanticleer Cygnus Book awards contest for Science Fiction
2020 1st place in the Chanticleer Cygnus book awards contest for Science Fiction.
2021 Finalist in Sci Fi genre in the Book Excellence book awards contest.
Zach Fortier was a police officer for over thirty years specializing in K-9, SWAT, gangs, domestic violence, and sex crimes as an investigator. He has written several books about his life in police work. CurbChek won the bronze medal for True Crime in the 2013 Readers' Favorite International Book Awards. Street Creds and Curbchek Reload won a gold and silver medal respectively for True Crime in the 2014 Readers' Favorite International Book Awards. His other works are Hero To Zero, which details the incredibly talented cops that he worked with that ended up going down in flames, some ended up in prison and one on the FBI's ten most wanted list. Landed on Black described the toxic culture of the police department and streets, ultimately leading to the realization that Zach has been diagnosed with PTSD. I am Raymond Washington is the only authorized biography of the original founder of the Crips and has been awarded bronze medals in 2015 by both IPPY and Readers Favorite International book awards. Baroota: The Hunting Ground is Zach's first fictional work, and is the start of this series, followed by Cachibache, Izadi and Chakana. All books in the Director's Series are award winning. If you are looking for gritty, true crime stories, be sure to check out all of Zach Fortier's novels. Zach currently lives in the mountains of Colorado, with his wife Christina.
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Zach Fortier
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Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5

415 global ratings

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Michael Weinstein

I Am Raymond Washington

Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2015

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Five stars! This book gives an inside look into the life of the real founder of the Crips, Raymond Washington. I'll get into the pros and cons as I see them

Pros:

Addresses many long-time myths - where the name "Crips" originated, the Black Panther influence, Raymond's split with the Avenues, etc

Never before seen photos of Raymond and the Crips circa the 1970's, and exhaustive documentation (birth records, death certificate, letters etc)

Sets the record straight about Raymond's relationship with Tookie, and the fact that Tookie was not a co-founder but a leader that came on board later.

The 'power of the myth' chapter adds a nice sociological touch, and gives good insight into why kids join gangs and how Raymond was so successful at recruiting members.

Personal anecdotes from those closest to Raymond, from his childhood to adult years. These are stories you won't find anywhere else.

Cons:

The book is written entirely from the perspective of Raymond Washington's family (particulary his youngest brother Derard), and close friends. In this regard, almost everything in the book about Raymond is written with a positive slant. It would have been good to hear from some more objective sources.

Raymond's good characteristics are constantly highlighted while his dark/violent side is glossed over. When it comes to describing the violence, the writing style is slightly vague and suffers from much of the same ambiguous language as Tookie's autobiography, using gang jargon like "putting in work" and "going on missions", without getting into specifics.

More could have been said about his police record, his experience in juvenile lockup and there's minimal information about his prison stint

It doesn't cover as much about the rival neighborhoods to the Crips or address who Raymond's biggest enemies were at the time

Even though it's not perfect, I still give 'I Am Raymond Washington' 5 stars. It's an excellent resource and captures an important piece of LA gang history that has remained largely uncovered until now. I would consider it one of the best and most accurate books on Crip history so far.

25 people found this helpful

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Ramon Mayo

Authentic eyewitness account

Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2018

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For someone who grew up in South central in the aftermath of the Crips formation this is valuable history. There are so many stories you hear as a kid but none of it makes sense. The author took the time to interview eyewitnesses and create a compelling story of a national phenomenon. It's great reading.

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Rebecca K.

sympathetic but factual; plain-spoken and direct rather than academic

Reviewed in the United States on December 25, 2018

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Most of what I’ve read about gangs before (admittedly not a lot) has been from the external view: told from the perspective of police about these violent groups threatening the welfare of the established class. Despite Fortier’s history as a policeman, however, he clearly respects Washington and a significant amount of the book is recounting interviews with Washington’s friends and family. This gives the reader the interior perspective of the gang, where the violence is merely a necessary defense of what the gang really provided its members: a sense of structure in a chaotic community and a sense of protection from threats.

Fortier is clearly impressed by Washington. It’s also clear that Fortier’s experience is as a cop rather than as an academic writer. The writing is very plain-spoken and direct, in some ways it feels more like an oral history than a written one. But he doesn’t buy into the mythos surrounding the conflict between cops and gangs; trying instead to get to the actual facts of the situation and the facts are fascinating. This is a really fascinating look at the impact of the racial tensions of LA in the 1950s-1960s on a child, and the impact in turn of the young man that child grew up to be on the world around him.

2 people found this helpful

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Brand Neeew

A Brief History of the Crips & Their Founder

Reviewed in the United States on September 29, 2015

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Occasionally you encounter a book that leaves you with mixed feelings. This was one such book for me.

Raymond Lee Washington, the subject of this brief biography, was the founder & leader of the Crips, a fearsome American street gang. The author (a former police officer for 30 years interestingly enough) writes of Raymond from the stance of an individual with insight into & ideas about the street life. He does a very good job of staying impartial & viewing his subject as just a human being. This is of course difficult for the readers.

What stands out the most is that for better or worse, Raymond was a naturally gifted leader who has an innate insight into the human soul. He knew how to not only win people over to his set, but how to keep them loyal to him. He has a duality of character to him that is such a tarot of the human soul. He can be a savior or killer in an instant.

Perhaps the most telling of one side of his duality is what the caretaker of the grave yard in which he's buried comments: “A lot of people come & sit, talk, and then leave. Raymond is one of the most visited graves in the cemetery. He must have been somethings special because people keep coming and he has been here a long, long time.”

This is a story of a life shaped by environment around it coupled with willful choices made. A study in how every choice has a consequence who's impact can be felt long after we’re gone.

21 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

bookaddict

Disappointing

Reviewed in Canada on October 26, 2015

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Found this book very repetitive and dull. Did not really give a sense of who he was or what he faced in his life. As a biography I think it failed; as a rehash of other items written about the Crips and the rumours associated with them, it was just that, a rehash. I expected more personal information from his family other than he stood up for his own.

robert

Great Read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 31, 2016

Verified Purchase

Lets start with the only thing that I do not like about this book, the quality of the pictures inside the book for the most part is terrible, they are very dark, barley visible, black and white and very hard to make out the faces of the people on them. Some of the pictures are also on the covers of the book in color but smaller. You can make these pictures out a lot clearer than you can the ones inside the book, that are bigger. Who ever was in charge of putting the pictures inside the book should have been fired because in my opinion it is a unforgivable mistake and should have been corrected before this book was released. Now getting to the actual story of Raymond Washington and the origins of the Crips, I thought that the author did a great job at telling this story and made the right choice by talking to people that new Raymond personally and some were members of the original crips. like every bio it does not go to in depth into the crimes that Raymond was involved with and focuses more on telling the story of his childhood, growing up, his personality and the formation of the crips. This is a very insightful read and does a great job at debunking the myths surrounding the formation of the crips, where they got there name and who the original members were, given that there is a lot of people out there who claim to be founders of the crips. I have heard a lot of these stories myself and some of the people claiming they are the founders are just delusional, you now who you are. All in all if you are interested in this type of genre and in the history of one of the biggest and most recognizable gangs in america's history, then this is a must read. 10/10

2 people found this helpful

robert a haak

Five Stars

Reviewed in Australia on December 2, 2015

Verified Purchase

what a fantastic read

Calverton Bent

As described

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 10, 2019

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Very happy with purchase and condition.

Tambok

There's a good book in Raymond Washington's story.................

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 29, 2019

Verified Purchase

........but sadly this is not it. While the book is exactly what it says on the cover with first hand revelations from friends and family of Washington and it is a good read it badly needed a ghost writer. Zack Fortier is an ex-policeman and as such he's made a good effort but the same material retold by an experienced writer would have been so much better. I don't like to trash the book as the information in it is very interesting but it often loses its way,for example when Mr Fortier relates the story of Achilles at length,several pages, to reinforce one of his opinions. It's worth a read if true crime or gangs are your thing but I really wish he'd collaborated with an experienced crime writer when it could have been something special. A bit of a missed opportunity but still a decent read,

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