Crips gang members make peace on the softball field
LOS ANGELES - No one remembers exactly why the Ten Year War started.
Was it a fight at a Tupac Shakur concert? A dispute over a woman? After the first killing in the late 1990s, the cycle of revenge began.
In 2006, there was a truce. Now, on a cool Saturday in October, the two Crips gangs, once mortal enemies, were again battling for supremacy - not on the streets of Los Angeles, but in a softball league like no other.
The league's eight teams wear uniforms that are predominantly Crips blue - never red. Jerseys are emblazoned with street names, some amusing - Shortsac, Casanova - and others, like Kill Kill, more ominous.
Many of the men have gone from hustling dope to working regular jobs. They have overcome bullet wounds, prison terms, the deaths of friends.
On game day, they savor the simple joys of swinging a bat, the thud of a ball in a leather glove, barbecuing with friends and family. They hope the youngsters who are watching will see how well their elders are getting along.
The hatred between Crips and Bloods is ingrained
