La Nuestra Familia Gang Summary

The dynamic of a business is very difficult to know or see standing and watching from the outside. A business can seem noble and just from the outside but in reality could be corrupt and immoral. Gangs work very much like businesses, both have the same main goal, make as much money as possible. They are also very different on the inside, compared to what we see or hear about from the outside. Manuel Jaramillo, an ex- gang member, posses something that most people do not have. He has the inside perspective and experience of being a gang member. An inside that only active gang members themselves have and will most likely carry that information with them to their casket. Manuel was a member of La Nuestra Familia gang for three decades. This man

Although he does not always use scholarly source, most of the things he talks about I could relate to some personal experiences. I grew up very close to my parents and crossing a gang never crossed my mind but I have family members who have almost joined gangs. For those few family members I saw a common trend, all of them had either a single parent or non-supportive parents who were never there for them as a child. It was a sad side to see because although they knew what they were going to have to do, the bonds they made with some of the gang members were the strongest bonds they have ever created. This being the strongest bond they ever made made it very dangerous and clouded their judgment incredibly. It was sad because the parents most of the time were working long hours for little pay to provide for their families. People of poverty may find it difficult to meet basic physical and psychological needs of the children (Jaramillo 110). This makes sense and you can always see how poorer neighborhoods usually have stronger gang presences. In my family this was the case too because the parents were never there, not because they didn’t want to but because they needed to support the