ipl-logo

Always Running: Gang Days In L. A, By Luis Rodriguez

908 Words4 Pages

Challenged Book: Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days In L.A. In the book, Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days In L.A, written by Luis J. Rodriguez, the main character Luis Rodriguez, experiences a crazy early teen life of being a gang member in East Los Angeles. Luis Rodriguez describes La Vida Loca, which means “the crazy life”, through the gang culture, the endless shootings he witnessed, beatings, arrests, and also through murder, drugs, and suicide. Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days In L.A has very sensitive, explosive details about the acts of crime in the streets, drugs, murder, and sex, which resulted in this book being challenged. Luis Rodriguezs’ details are extraordinary, haunting, and yet very unique. Always Running: …show more content…

For example, in chapter 2 of Always Running, Luis Rodriguez says, “A deputy restrained me as the other one climbed onto the roof. He stopped at a skylight, jagged edges on one of its sides. Shining a flashlight inside the building, the officer spotted Tino’s misshapen body on the floor, sprinkled over with shards of glass” (Rodriguez, 37). This was the very first time Luis had witnessed his close friend die in front of him all because they trespassed the sign that read “ NO ONE ALLOWED AFTER 4:30 PM, BY ORDER OF THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT.” Death is a scary scene to see and especially that the fact it can haunt you for the rest of your life. Some young adults may already be trespassing places they are not suppose to be and this specific example will teach young adults about thinking smarter and about following the laws. If Luis and Tino never passed the gate, Tino would have been still alive. Another sensitive, detailed topic that Luis Rodriguez describes is about sex. “The penis sank into the bristle of pubis, then slid into the oil vagina, covering it in flesh and juice and rhythm of pelvis” (Rodriguez, 128). This detail is very descriptive, and is another reason teen pregnancy is happening. One little move on a girl or guy can turn you into becoming a mother or father. This isn't the only “pornographic” detail Luis states in his book, there are much more. He writes these details in his book because it is the reality of what teenagers do and he wants to teach teenagers life lessons about sex. Luis faced discrimination, arrests, gangs, drugs, and all kinds of street crimes. But, within all this Luis continued to go to school and opportunities popped up for him. Everyone is struggling but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give up. Luis didn’t give up and in the book he stands up to what

Show More
Related

Always Running Luis Grillo Character Analysis

406 Words | 2 Pages

Always Running: La Vida Loca Gangs Days in L.A. by Luis J. Rodriguez. As a teenager , he was active in the Lomas gang, one of the largest Latino gang in Los Angeles. As a teenager, he witnessed different type of changes in his life and knew only a life of violence. Luis J.Rodriguez title his novel Always Running because Grillo the main character run away from drugs,violence and gang.

Read More

A Brief Analysis Of Street Life, Gangs By Victor M. Rios

1905 Words | 8 Pages

Victor M. Rios was born in Mexico. When he was two years old he immigrated with his mother to Oakland, California. He went through a tough childhood and he and his mother moved several times throughout poor neighborhoods such as West Oakland, The Fruitvale District, and Elmhurst. As a result of growing up in this kind of environments he was forced to be part of Latino East Oakland gangs. Stealing cars, selling drugs, getting into street fights and having problems with police was all he would do until he was 15 years old.

Read More

Analysis Of Always Running By Luis J. Rodriguez

531 Words | 3 Pages

(p.2). The author gives information that is clear to the audience to further show Luis’ mindset. Luis believes that he is obligated to stay and be focused on Lomas because he has grown in it. Chente replies by asking him to point out where Lomas is on a globe which conveys to Luis that, “Lomas is so tiny, nameless,” (p.7)

Read More

Theme Of Courage In La Misma Luna

290 Words | 2 Pages

In the movie "La misma luna," multiple themes are presented. The film revolves around a young boy, Carlitos, trying to travel from Mexico to Los Angeles to find his mother, Rosaria. Two of the main themes that are shown in the movie are courage and determination. Throughout the film, the theme of courage is displayed in multiple instances.

Read More

Trials And Tribulations In Enrique's Journey

674 Words | 3 Pages

As the story comes to a close i can see how this will continue to happen in future events. Enrique wants to believe that his family won’t be too hurt by his decision but he cycle of disappoint will most likely continue in my opinion. He tells mayor Carrasco that he does not think it is worth the time and money for doctors to save travelers like Enrique “This is what they get for doing this journey,” He says of migrants. Yor carrasco disagrees.

Read More

The Death And Life Of Aida Hernandez Sparknotes

788 Words | 4 Pages

A Journey of Identity and Resilience: Exploring Latino Cultural Context in "The Death and Life of Aida Hernandez" by Aaron Bobrow-Strain Aaron Bobrow-Strain's "The Death and Life of Aida Hernandez" is a stirring memoir that explores the traumatic events and individual journey of Aida Hernandez, a young Mexican-American woman traversing the difficult social, political, and economic landscapes of the United States. We may understand the author's purposeful decisions to expose the Latino/Latina/Latinx cultural background and its tremendous influence on readers by examining the themes, character development, language, and imagery used in the novel. Bobrow-Strain discusses a number of topics that are important in the Latino cultural setting. The

Read More

'Code Of The Street' By Elijah Anderson

400 Words | 2 Pages

Elijah Anderson, a Yale professor, developed the concept or theory entitled the “code of the street” which explains the reasoning for high rates of street violence among African-American juveniles in a Philadelphia community. The “code of the street” is the way of life for many living in poverty-stricken communities which attempt to regulate behaviors. Anderson observed that juveniles in inner-city neighborhoods who are exposed to racial discrimination, economic disadvantages and alienation from mainstream society may lead violent behavior. The strain, social learning, and labeling theories are all directly related to Anderson’s work.

Read More

Poverty In Enrique's Journey By Sonia Nazario

1664 Words | 7 Pages

Poverty is a crippling situation which can stagnate the development of individuals. Insufficiency in a society can affect persons in more ways than one. Those experiencing a substandard way of living may not be able to obtain quality education which can cause a lack of sufficient employment. Lower paying jobs will more than likely not include quality health insurance for the employee.

Read More

The Power Of Power In The Catcher In The Rye

1268 Words | 6 Pages

All books that young adults read have power. Their power results in their ability to sway and to change the reader in so many ways, not the least of these is morally. These books can create a moral sense in the young by demonstrating what is morally right and what is morally wrong. They can raise and resolve ethical issues. The reader may not agree with each resolution, but is certainly forced to think about issues he or she may never have thought about before (Smith 63).

Read More

Mexican American Culture In Bless Me Ultima

1414 Words | 6 Pages

Through Antonio and Ultima, readers identify the creation of a culture that has been forge by war, discrimination, and common hardships. With Ultima being a powerful curandera, the story shows the importance of the female character within Mexican culture. Today, this is prevalent in many Mexican-American households, as the elderly women are held in the highest respect. Another aspect of Mexican-American Culture is masculinity, which is shown in Bless Me, Ultima when Antonio’s father says, “a man of the llano does not run from a fight” (Anaya, 1999, p.37). There are countless examples of Mexican-American masculinity in this novel, like when it mentions that Gabriel’s two eldest sons are fighting in WWII.

Read More

The House On Mango Street

1224 Words | 5 Pages

Sexuality in adolescence Sexuality is the most notorious and common sign of development in adolescence. “The House on Mango street”, by Sandra Cisneros is a coming of age novel, where Esperanza transitions from a girl into a young teen. In her journey, Esperanza comes across many challenges, she is forced to grow up by life’s adversities. In the short story “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid, a mother advises her daughter and scolds her into becoming a decent woman. In her guidance, the mother is worried about her daughter’s sexual activity and warns her about the consequences of improper behavior.

Read More

Essay On Historias Del Kronen

1451 Words | 6 Pages

This essay will seek to examine how contemporary Spanish youth identities are portrayed in the two films Historias del kronen and Abre los ojos. To fully understand the youth sub-cultures of the 90s embodied in the two films, it is pivotal to understand the historical context. Historias del Kronen is set in the 1992 post-Franco era where sudden excessive freedom after the dictatorship, especially the legalisation of drugs for recreational use from 1982 to 1992, led the youth culture into apathy and resistance towards responsibilities and morals and concurrently made the Spanish youth more inclined into trivial matters such as sex, drugs and constant partying. The –pasotismo- the characters feel, especially Carlos, is emblematic of how

Read More

Summary Of La Adjetivacion De La Viencia Del Narco

542 Words | 3 Pages

She notes that these vocabulary encourages feeling of revelation against social norms. Furthermore, the exaggerated fashion used in this genre, is the result of a combination between rural fashion and rural assumptions of high-class fashion. De La O Martínez connects that by associating these values and stories to current drug lords such as El Chapo Guzmán, Chino Antrax, El Mayo, they take the role of the heroes and “the voice of the people.” The author concludes that this genre is the result of a community that is trying to keep their morals and own verion of rules in a violent and corrupted state that allowed many generations to fall into poverty without a future in which to

Read More

Wrongful Convictions In Criminal Justice

539 Words | 3 Pages

Every week the viewer gets an episode of maybe two or three homicides when, in reality, the rate of crime has been dropping. This skews the viewer’s idea of real-life death, thinking it happens more often than it does. Furthermore, crimes are always solved at the end of the film or movie and in the majority of cases the bad guy is always brought to

Read More

Summary Of Monster: The Autobiography Of An L. A. Gang Member

1840 Words | 8 Pages

Sanyika Shakur tells his life story in detail in his book, Monster: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member. He tells how he lived from a very young age and survived the gang life in South Central L.A. during the 1960’s and 1970’s, which was during the startup of the Crips. He was born Kody Scott and he was born into a very poor family. He had an absent father and was therefore raised by a single mother. At the very young age of eleven Kody Scott turned his life over to the Crips.

Read More

More about Always Running: Gang Days In L. A, By Luis Rodriguez

Open Document