Lucia Alvarez

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## INFORMATION

*So much promise, scarred by the realities of a broken system*

Lucia, who goes by Dreamer, is the leader of the gang Varrios Los Aztecas

## HISTORY

Los Santos has been the only home that Lucia knows. She's the eldest child in her family, having younger siblings. They are the second American born generation in the family. Her grandparents migrated to Los Santos for economic opportunities in the 1940s.

Her parents met early. Her father being a member of the Varrio Los Aztecas street gang since his teens, and her mother working and seeking an education. She joined the Chicano Movement in the late 60s to early 70s to fight for civil rights in the Mexican-American community. Lucia's mother instilled in her a strong belief to fight against the marginalization of her people. Her father taught her to embrace and help the local community, using the gang as a means of protection and connection for other chicanos in Los Santos. Lucia grew up knowing them as part of her extended family, even growing up with some of their children.

While young, Lucia often committed petty crime, which eventually turned to robbery, burglary, arson, and assaults - targeting others outside of her community, angry at the very visible injustice and discrimination in Los Santos. She found herself in a juvenile detention center after being caught committing some of these crimes.

In the mid 80s, tension grew in the family, as her mother was continuing to work towards her education and trying to get the family out of the barrio. She was increasingly upset at the family's current circumstances and connections to the street gang, as well as the influence it was having on their children. She left, taking the other children with her while Lucia was still in juvie. She was 14 at the time. After she was released, she wound up doing more work for the Aztecas, under her father, who was a veterano in the gang. He taught her how to survive on the streets, think on her feet, and protect herself. More importantly, he still held onto the values that the Aztecas were more than a street gang, and they were about preserving their Chicano culture and influence in a city that didn't want them to thrive.

With her mother's guidance gone, and the Aztecas the only family she currently had, Lucia found herself leaning closer to the gang, working nearly twice as hard to prove herself, especially if she wanted to set herself apart from her father's shadow. At 16, she dropped out of school completely, and was blooded in, earning the name Dreamer.

### The Riots

In 1992, when the riots happened, everything changed. Other gangs attacked, taking over turf and killing many of the VLA gang members. Her father fought back with others, but ended up losing his life in the gang violence. Lucia also fought, trying to protect her home and what little she had control over. Once the dust settled, Lucia was alone, and there was no time to properly mourn the loss of her father. She moved in with a family friend and distracted herself with helping VLA, and local community members, pick up the pieces after the riots.

In the next year, the Aztecas shifted around in leadership multiple times, taking continuous hits and losses to their numbers and turf lines as they continued to shrink down towards the North Rancho area. What was one of the more visible chicano gangs in Los Santos was now suffering - smaller and less powerful than ever before.

In 1994, Dreamer stepped up to take leadership as Jefa of Varrio Los Aztecas, showing steadfast dedication to the gang against encroaching enemies. She's hoping to rebuild the VLA to its former glory and status - but the odds are stacked against her, and she knows it.