Stop Snitchin'

Stop Snitchin’ is a call for informants not to cooperate with law enforcement. The movement parallels a perceived refusal of police officers to testify against each other, called the blue wall of silence.

T-shirts bearing the phrase "Stop Snitching" first appeared on the streets of Philadelphia in 2002.

The Stop Snitchin’ campaign first gained national attention in late 2004 in Baltimore, Maryland, when a DVD released by Rodney Bethea titled "Stop Snitching!" began to circulate. However, the slogan "Stop Snitchin’" and many other variations have existed in the United States long before the campaign became popular.

In some footage, a number of men claiming to be drug dealers address the camera, and threaten violence against anyone who reports what they know about their crimes to the authorities. This threat is directed especially towards those who inform on others to get a lighter sentence for their own crimes. NBA star Carmelo Anthony briefly appeared in the video. In subsequent interviews, Anthony claimed that his appearance in the video was a joke, the product of his neighborhood friends making a home movie. Anthony claims that the film's message should not be taken seriously.

As the DVD spread across the country, corresponding shirts became popular in urban youth fashion. The shirts typically show a stop sign emblazoned with the words "Stop Snitchin’." Some shirts bear bullet holes, implying that snitches should (or will) be shot, thus referencing its associated catchphrase "snitches get stitches". The shirts have been more widely circulated than the original DVD.

The Diplomats, a Harlem-based rap group, made their own version of the Stop Snitchin’ shirts, with their logo on the end of the short sleeves. Another such shirt says "I'll never Tell". A new breed of shirts appeared for sale in flea markets and bazaars in south Dallas, Texas, in mid-2010. The new shirts extolled the benefits of "keeping yo' mouth shut" in regards to a trial involving one "Fifi/Lisa" and one "Baldy/Red". Further details of the trial, including a list of various charges set forth on the couple, are listed on the back of the shirt.

The video's creator, Rodney Thomas, a.k.a. "Skinny Suge", pleaded guilty to first-degree assault on January 17, 2006, in Baltimore and was sentenced to 15 years in prison, with all but three years suspended.

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Wikipedia