My Bloody Life: The Making of a Latin King by Reymundo Sanchez (Paperback, 2003) for sale online

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Looking for an escape from childhood abuse, Reymundo Sanchez rejected school and sport in favour of drugs, alcohol and sex. Aged just 13, his mother and stepfather returned to their native Puerto Rico, leaving him to fend for himself - he really was a lost boy. He found himself by taking refuge with the Chicago Latin Kings, one of the most notorious street gangs in the USA. He was initiated into the gang by performing his first gun hit and soon earned a reputation for crazy violence - 'Lil Loco' was just 14 years old. The gang became his world but its inherent violence cost him friends, freedom, his self-respect and very nearly his life. This raw and powerful odyssey through the ranks of the new mafia graphically describes a way of life lead by a particular group of American youths. A group where the only people more dangerous than rival gangs are members of your own, who in one breath will say they'll die for you and in the next will order your demise. This was how all Latino youths seemed to classify each other - gang member first, human being second. Ironically, Latinos complain that police treat all youths as gang members first and human beings second.