From trouble to triumph
Subtitle: true stories of redemption from drugs, gangs & prison
By: Alisha M. Rosas ; introduction by Luis J. Rodriguez
Contributors: Rodriguez, Luis J., 1954- writer of introduction
Publisher: Tia Chucha Press
Published: 2017
Language: eng
Number of pages: 107
ISBN-13: 9781882688548
Copyright date: 2017
Subjects: Drug addicts; Mexican American gangs; Ex-gang members; Ex-drug addicts; Violent crimes; Gang members; Rehabilitation; Biography
Other titles: True stories of redemption from drugs, gangs & prison
Description: The San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles County was a vibrant citrusand-nut growing area for much of the twentieth century before it became a suburban and industrial sprawl east of Los Angeles. Hidden among Mexican migrant camps and barrios were street gangs that from the 1960s to the present made this area known as “The Valley of Death.” Gang injunctions -- where law enforcement targeted select gangs for curfews, stop-and-frisks, database gathering, arrests, and more -- were first initiated here. By the 1980s, Chinese, Koreans, Japanese, and other Asians with money bought out whole neighborhoods. Streets with shacks and unpaved roads now have mansions and town houses. Poorer residents were pushed further east -- to the Inland Empire, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, and the deserts.  This book tells stories of six former gang members, drug addicts, and incarcerated men who lived through intense incidents of violence as well as shifts in populations, industry, and means -- and how they overcame the odds.  Good for use in prisons, juvenile lockups, schools, and community organizations to show that change is always possible, it is an argument for restorative justice, drug treatment, mental health services, spiritual practices, jobs training, and the arts instead of mass incarceration. -- Provided by publisher.
Table of contents: title: Introduction: Owning One's Life / Luis J. Rodriguez; title: Narciso "Chuco" Espinoza; title: Antonio "Tonito" Fierro; title: Jess "Lil'Yul" Montecino; title: Mike "Chino" Moreno; title: Freddy "Coyote" Negrete; title: Jesse "Chuy" Olivas