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The Republic Of East L. A Stories Book Review

Decent Essays

Emily Pichardo
The Republic of East L.A. Stories, Luis J. Rodriguez, Published in 2002 by Rao
“The Republic of East L.A. Stories” captures the heartbreaking experiences Mexican-American’s were forced to endure. Escaping poverty, alcohol abuse, drug use, and gang violence was an everyday struggle for many families during this time. African American and Latino gangs were initially created as a response to white racism. They were restricted as to what areas they could live in and where constantly harassed. As their populations increased, so did white gangs, in order to take control of their “territory”. African Americans and Latinos had no choice but to protect their families by fighting back. As time went on, the violence only continued. The Civil Rights Movement led many gang members to join organizations like the Black Panther Party, but the government quickly responded by breaking them up and soon enough, street gangs quickly returned. The violence escalated, alcohol, …show more content…

Stories,” mainly because I personally live in the Los Angeles area and my parents grew up in parts of South Central and East Los Angeles as children. I found this this book would be most relatable to myself, since I am a Latina and my parents who have experiences a tremendous amount of discrimination, poverty, and violence in the past. They have over came these obstacles and were determined to provide my siblings and I with a brighter future. While researching a little more into the subject matter, I found that my initial perceptions on this book were true. Luis Rodriguez wrote this book to give his neighborhood of East Los Angeles a voice, in order to bring awareness to the unfortunate experiences that many, like my parents, have had to go through. My parents have shared many of their personal experiences while growing up in such a tough neighborhood and I was extremely interested in listening to the stories of

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