"All I Kept Saying Was They Better Hope I Die," a story of a gangfigher
We journalists tell stories and the ones that often click with us are those that show life’s turns.
And when the turns land someone on the better side of things, they are usually the most compelling.
Here is the start of such a story from the latest issue of EXTRA by Stella Nichols, one of our interns. It is about a life of trouble that has turned out okay. It’s a story that has meaning for the community that EXTRA is talking to and a story that reminds us why we count on the news media to connect us with the places where we live.
For the rest of the story go to EXTRA, http://www.extranews.net
Stephen
by Stella Nichols
John Vergara grew up inChicago’s Humboldt Park community,where gangs, drug dealingand violence were simply part ofthe norm.
Although he has made it a point to forget his past and the mistakes he’s made, having his tattoos removed has been anotherstep in his new life.
“I’m still in the process of gettingthese removed. Laser surgery hurts so bad, 10 times more thanthe tattoo itself, but I have to doit,” said Vergara, as he pointed to one of the many tattoos that engulf his body. “I try not to thinkabout it. I’m not that person anymore,”Vergara said.
“Everything I do now is to prove to my son[that] I’m a good dad.”Vergara was inducted into oneof the area’s most notorious gangs when he was only 13 yearsold.“There was nothing else to do,”said Vergara, 36, who now works with community groups in aneffort to keep Latino youths away from gangs.
“It was too dangerous to play in basketball courtsand there were no recreational centers. [There were] no role models whatsoever.”Surpassing gang life and jail time Vergara’s life revolved around the gang. A typical day in his life involved liquor, girls, drug dealingand handling more money in aweek than most teenagers see in a year.
“If I knew when I was 14 what Iknow now, I’d be really rich,”Vergara said.By his early teenage years,Vergara had witnessed more strifeand pain than most people. At 15,he was shot three times by a rivalgang member, suffering injuries inhis arm, stomach and shoulder.“I couldn’t care less aboutdying. I just wanted revenge,”Vergara said. “That was the beginningof me picking up a gun.”
From then on, Vergara’s troubles only worsened.When he was 16, he was convictedof several severe crimes and was sentenced to life in prison.
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