Blood Gang Member Exposes The HORRIFYING Conditions On Rikers Island | The Connect

The Connect- with Johnny Mitchell

Johnny Mitchell

True Crime

4.3 • 563 Ratings

🗓️ 10 February 2024

⏱️ 156 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Use CONNECT to get 55% off your first month at Scentbird https://sbird.co/3S97oZX This month I received... Sugar Leather by Une Nuit Nomade https://sbird.co/47N4JLh French Defense by Mind Games https://sbird.co/3SsriAC Cross River Gorilla by Sanctuary https://sbird.co/3u6mIyA Vidal Guzman was a troublemaker as a young kid in Harlem. His knack for stick-ups and robberies landed him in Rikers Island at the age of 16. When he went back at the age of 19 he was a member of the Bloods Gang. While he spent years in Rikers before serving his time in prison he was subject to inhumane conditions by not only the other inmates but by the faculty and the state of the facilities. Once he got out for good he became an organizer working to shut Rikers down for good. He’s here to tell us about his experience on the island and the SUCCESSFUL campaign he’s been a part of! Go Support Vidal! Organization: https://www.americaontrialinc.org/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/iamvidalguzman/?hl=en To donate to AOT visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/AmericaOnTrialFundraiser/donate?ucdirect=1 00:00:00 - Surviving Rikers Island 00:07:34 - Criminal Upbringing and Family Influence 00:14:51 - Living in Washington Heights 00:22:40 - From the Hood Vikings to the Bloods 00:30:19 - The Beginning of Neighborhood Protection 00:37:56 - Growing Up in a Dangerous Neighborhood 00:45:39 - Introduction to Rikers Island 00:53:27 - The Rocking Spots and Gang Violence at Rikers Island 01:01:12 - Survival in the Violence of the Streets 01:09:25 - Surviving In Jail 01:16:46 - Facing Harassment and Trouble with the Law 01:24:30 - Life in the Hood and Joining the Bloods 01:32:11 - Bloods and Street Organization 01:40:12 - Discussing parole and probation violations 01:48:17 - The Phone Business in Prisons and its Dangers 01:56:00 - Violent Incidents on Rikers Island 02:04:06 - Life in Gangs and Solitary Confinement 02:12:08 - Losing Good Time and the Impact on Parole 02:19:56 - Violations and Dangers of Rikers Island 02:27:45 - Closing Rikers and the Impact 02:35:46 - Sponsorship Announcement Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Someone came to me on Rikers, you know, came to visit me and was like, yo,
0:04.6	it's time for you to get on the set and let me know, like, this is a real lifestyle.
0:09.9	This is not starting to play with, right?
0:11.7	So I didn't know what I was getting into until OG was like, hey, man,
0:17.8	your young bucks, get ready for Gladiator school.
0:20.5	I had to either figure out who I was going to be,
0:23.8	was I going to be a sheep and be slaughtered,
0:26.6	or I was going to be a wolf and try to survive.
0:30.8	What's up, everybody?
0:31.6	I'm here in New York City today interviewing Vidal Guzman.
0:35.0	Vidal is a former blood gang member from Harlem who spent years on Rikers
0:39.6	Island in and out of jail and then upstate in prison. He's here to tell us about the horrible
0:44.2	conditions on Rikers Island, how he survived it, and how today he is fighting to get that jail
0:50.5	closed down. This is a wild story, you guys. We've talked to guards on Rikers before,
0:55.5	but this will be the first time interviewing a former inmate on that infamous island. And of course,
1:01.7	if you want to hear bonus content with Vidal, go over to patreon.com slash the Connect show. Without
1:07.9	further ado, I give you Vidal Guzman right here on The Connect with Johnny
1:11.8	Mitchell. And I seen somebody else that I knew and started hanging out with them.
1:16.7	They closed the visiting floor down and told all of us to leave. I found out that he went into
1:25.3	the bathroom. They started cutting him up. Crips taking turns with his face.
1:31.3	I woke up with nightmares.
1:33.3	No matter how tough you are, like, you know, there's a point of fear or a point where you just
	...

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