*Calvin — PICTURE: DARIUSZ DZIEWANSKI Calvin* and Mikey* were introduced to gangs when they were very young. Mikey began his initiation into gangsterism shortly after his father was stabbed to death in a gang dispute. His father was part of the 28s prison gang.Calvin’s older brother was also a 28, as well as a member of the Mongrels street gang. He was shot when Calvin was 13. Calvin joined the Mongrels to seek revenge, later also becoming a high-ranking member of the 28s while in Pollsmoor.By 26, Calvin had already served ten years for murder. It is then that he met and started recruiting Mikey, who was ten at the time. “I just came out of prison… [and thought] I’m just going to do what I have to do,” he says. “So I recruited Mikey. I recruited so many people… You know, for me it was like, they recruited me when I was young. So I will just do the same.”The power associated with gangsterism has an intense appeal for youngsters who are socially and economically marginalised. “They a...
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