The Almighty Vice Lord Nation (abbreviated AVLN) is the second largest and one of the oldest street gangs in Chicago, Illinois. Their total membership is estimated to be between 30,000 and 35,000. They are also one of the founding members of the People Nation multi-gang alliance.

Origin and growth

In 1958, the Vice Lords gang was founded by several African American youths originally from the North Lawndale neighborhood of Chicago. These youths met while incarcerated in the Illinois State Training School for Boys in St. Charles (also known as the St. Charles Juvenile Correctional Facility). At the time, they were led by founding member Edward "Pepalo" Perry. The name "vice" was chosen when a gang founder looked up the term in the dictionary and found the meaning as "having a tight hold".

As the original Vice Lords group were released from incarceration, they quickly began to recruit other youths from their neighborhood and began engaging in conflicts with other "clubs" from various Chicago neighborhoods. By 1964, they had grown significantly and law enforcement named them as a primary target for their various illegal activities, including robbery, theft, assaults, battery, intimidation, and extortion. They were noted for their violent behavior