My Bloody Life: The Making of the Latin King, by Reymundo Sanchez

Family Based Issues

Family is one of those words that have a significant meaning to various individuals. Family may be viewed one way to an individual and another way to someone else. Family consists of those who have played a particular role in one’s life, whether it is positive or negative. In this paper, I will assess Reymundo’s family both nuclear and extended and speak of how his family has become significant in his life and how they have played a role in his decisions. I will also speak of my personal reactions to the story as well as address ways that as a social worker I could work to impact the gang problems in Orlando.

Reymundo was born in Puerto Rico in 1963 in the back of a 1957 Chevy. His mother was married at age sixteen to a man that was seventy-four years of age. Reymundo’s father died when he was almost five years old, therefore he does not have much memory of the relationship that they had. Reymundo has 2 sisters with whom he did not have a relationship with, one sister would always watch out for him, but that was about it. After the death of Reymundo’s father, his mother remarried a guy named Emilio with which she had a daughter for. After Emilio, Pedro came in to the picture with his son Hector. Pedro was an illegal lottery dealer and Hector sold heroin.

Abuse for Reymundo started at an early age. When Reymundo was in his early years, he was brutally beaten and tortured by his aunts and cousins when his mother was not around. He was usually kicked, punched or made into a bloody mess for no apparent reason. Reymundo’s first experience with abuse came about when his cousin Alberto raped him after not keeping a promise. The second experience with abuse that Reymundo was a part of was when his mother’s second h...

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... child no matter what. I feel like this story has helped me to be open-minded to the various situations that people may face and to not make assumptions. I also feel somewhat prepared for the situations that I may face in the field of social work as I continue to unpack my baggage.

References

Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2014). Human Behavior in the Macro Social Environment: An Empowerment Approach to Understanding Communities, Organization, and Groups. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole Publishing.

Sanchez, Reymundo (2000). My Bloody Life: The Making of the Latin King Chicago, Illinois: Chicago Review Press, Incorporated.

Spergel, I., Chance, R., Ehrensaft, K., Regulus, T., Cane, K., Laseter, R., . . . Alexander, A. (1994, October). Gang Suppression and Intervention: Community Models Research Summary. Retrieved March 23, 2014, from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles/gangcorr.pdf