Gang Life in Always Running: La Vida Loca – By Luis Rodriguez
Gang culture has been around for a long time in history and can be seen in different parts around the world. Examples include the Japanese yakuza, Chinese triads, Italian mafia, crypts, bloods and Latino gangs. While every group in America has some sort of gang, affiliated to their race, gang culture is seen to be more prevalent in the black and Latino communities. Additionally, Los Angeles accounts for many of the gangs that exist in America, as gang culture is rife in the region. Luis Rodríguez is a former member of several LA gangs and gives a great insight into gang culture in the region in his memoir ‘Always Running –La Vida Loca’. In his memoir, Rodriguez outlines the various reasons why most teenagers join gangs in the area, the experience of being a cholo – gang member-, and the effects of such a life. Despite being forced to join a gang as an escape from racial inequality and police brutality, Luis Rodriguez is able to escape the gang life through inspiration from Chente Ramirez, a mentor he meets later in life.
Police brutality and racial discrimination against the Latino community are the leading causes for gang involvement. In east LA, Rodríguez and other Latinos form or join local gangs from a young age to gain protection from the brutality of the LAPD. After witnessing the death of his friend Tino during a police encounter, Rodríguez together with his friend Miguel Robles form their first gang – Thee Mystics while in middle school. The main objective of the gang was to offer protection to the members from the police and other dangers of the city. Rodrigues states “Miguel and the rest of us started Thee Impersonations because we needed protection” (pg. 41). Although the little club, as they called it, offered little protection from the police, it became a gateway to involvement with larger and more violent gangs such as the Lomas. Furthermore, the racial oppression of the Latino community in LA was also a prime motivator for the involvement of Rodríguez and other Latino youth in gang culture. The memoir contains numerous instances of discrimination of Latinos by the police and other white racists through beatings and use of racial epithets such as ‘beaner’, ‘spic’ and ‘greaser’. Therefore, the gangs offer most Latinos an escape and protection from these injustices by giving them a sense of belonging.
Although Rodríguez was fully immersed in the gang culture, he was eventually able to break free through the help of his future mentor, Chente Ramirez. Rodriguez credits Ramirez for saving him from the cholo life. After gang violence, police killings, drug abuse and crime escalated in the region, a few community centres were established to help the youth and save them from gangs. It was at one of the community centres that Rodríguez met Ramirez. Chente showed him that there were alternatives to gang life, and the choice was his. He states “There are choices you have to make not just once, but every time they come up” (pg. 132). Despite coming from the White Fence barrio of East LA where gang culture was rife, Ramirez had managed to avoid gang involvement, been educated to university level and become an established activist for change for the Latino community. These achievements attracted Rodriguez, and he states “Chente impressed me as someone I could learn from. He was calm, but also street enough to go among all those crazy guys and know how to handle himself” (pg. 113). Chente becomes his mentor and inspires him to become more politically engaged in advocating for better conditions for impoverished and exploited communities. The involvement with Chente Ramirez helps Rodríguez to escape gang life.
Gangs are appealing to most people as they give them a sense of identity and belonging. According to Rodríguez, the involvement of youth in gangs springs from the need to claim an identity. This was the case during the formation of his first gang, Thee Impersonations, when numerous other gangs/clubs, e.g. Thee Ravens, Latin Legions and Los Santos were popping up all over. Rodrigues states, “All of a sudden every dude had to claim a clique” (pg. 43). Moreover, the clamour for identity and belonging is seen to be even more important at the time as it provided protection from the dangers of the city, such as police brutality and racial oppression. Therefore, the feeling of belonging offered by gangs makes them highly desirable for most people.