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Youth gangs in the urban slums across this country are a
constant of life for the ghetto poor.
You know, you have to look at where these kids come
from, why they do the things they do.
You know, you just don't-- I-- I don't know know how I could get
my point across, but you just don't get up in the morning and
say, "This is what I'm gonna do with my life: I'm gonna land up
in jail for the rest of my life.
I'm gonna shoot-up drugs.
No, I think I'll join a gang."
smooth funky music
Camera.
My name is Blakie.
- My name is Blackie-- - Try again.
My name is Blackie.
I was President of all Savage Skulls,
which we started in 1969.
Uh, this is 16.
I'm Lorine.
I'm Blackie's wife.
- Start again. - That's what you want?
Yeah.
When I became the Prez's woman,
then I automatically became what they used to call "the
First Lady."
A lot of people will say, "She wasn't a Skull 'cause she never
wore patches."
But I say to you: I was,
because I spent a whole lifetime...
doing...
for them what needed to be done.
Motherfucka!
I was in rumbles, I got arrested,
I did some time in the name of the club.
So if that don't make me a member,
I don't know what the fuck does.
Yeah, Black Benjy, President of the Savage Nomads.
Blackie was a very nasty individual.
I'm not that sure that he's not still nasty if he wanted to be.
These films that have been made about gangs,
I've been in these films, and yes,
I have spoken, but there's so much more.
The part that women played, that's not shown.
And it's really us -- the women -- that held it down.
Hi!
Hi, Mama!
Hey!
Listen, but didn't I tell you the other day...
- Don't get a photo! - No, take it out!
Why you think my name is "Jay-J?"
I am so grateful that you guys came over,
and I'm so grateful that we are still together,
and I am so grateful that I'm still here to enjoy the presence
of my sisters, 'cause we are more than just friends.
Mm-hm.
Absolutely. Amen!
Me, when I first met you,
I was like 12.
For me, you guys became my family and became everything to
me because I didn't know what family was.
I was a young Skull.
Lorine was...
She was a Skull!
So to be honest with you, I was scared to talk to Lorine.
A lot of people was!
Listen!
You was unapproachable!
We used to call her "Mama Lorine."
- Everybody. - She's still unapproachable!
There were different ways that women got
into gangs.
Some of them jumped in, meaning you went through the Apache
Line.
Some of them because they started going out with one of
the gang members.
It's also important that I mention that some of them were
sexed in.
That part, it's-- it's-- it's never mentioned,
but it did happen.
upbeat jazzy music
The First Division, all the women there fought like dudes.
How many here, back in the days when we were growing up,
carried guns? Could you raise your hand?
Okay, Millie.
I'm not admitting to nothin'!
Millie, raise that hand.
I used to love them; I loved that feeling of...
No, I hated them; I was very afraid of them.
But I had to carry them because, you know,
I was one of the girls, and there was no female cops at that
time to be checking on us.
They'd try and you'd say,
"Oh, hold up, hold up, I just came to by a--"
Yeah.
"A container of milk, do not touch me."
Yeah.
"Do not touch me." And I was packed!
Yup, yup!
Exactly.
I was fully-loaded.
I'm like, "Don't--"
Exactly.
We look at the Skulls and what do we have?
We've got guys and they're sitting around.
They think they're outlaws.
I think they're bums.
It's a well-known fact that they pass the gun to the woman.
Woman's not gonna-- you know, she's not gonna get touched.
Most of the gang women, they'd have their mouth,
they'd sound off.
Matter of fact, they figured they were somewhat-- they could
say a lot of stuff because they're not gonna have any
repercussions because you're obviously not gonna take it out
on a woman.
You couldn't pat me down.
We weren't completely in the dark.
No.
Of course, you were my enemy -- all of you.
The 41st-- Fort Apache, that was our enemy because we're gang
members, we're in the streets, you know.
We had our differences.
Yeah, let's just put it like that.
You know what I oughta do?
I oughta take this fucking bike and shove it up your ass.
They always be checking on something,
you know?
They always be checking on something.
When I started hanging out with the Savage
Skulls, we had a lot of stuff going on.
We came from just different types of dysfunction --
dysfunctional families.
My mom always told me, "You're gonna be a bitch 'cause it was a
bitch giving birth to you.
smooth lounge music
I always say I was born with gangsterism in my blood.
My mom was a Dragon and one of her brothers was a Dragon,
and then I had an uncle that was a Viceroy.
My mom was a divorcee...
in 1955, which is not a good thing.
Then, she got pregnant of me, so I'm out of wedlock.
My father, I have never met him, I don't have a picture.
As the story goes, my mother and father went to see a movie that
was pornographic.
And the actress in the movie, her name was "Lorine."
And so they thought it was a beautiful name,
and hence...
that's my name.
I was born in the barrio, right in the heart of East Harlem --
103rd Street between Lexington and Park.
And my block, it was familia.
You'd leave your doors open, everybody knew everybody.
We had a funeral home across the street from where I lived.
eerie ambient music
This was a playground for me and my friends.
We used to play hide and seek.
We found the coffins, like, so exciting,
so beautiful.
When it got too scary, we'd just...
My preoccupation with death started when I
started seeing the spirits at the Ortiz Funeral Home.
The first spirit I saw was the old lady.
And she was standing by a coffin,
right back here.
I remember as a kid that I had premonitions;
I would tell my mom things about people.
There was a older woman that lived in my building named
Josefina.
I told my mom that I had a dream that I was at her funeral.
And she died a couple of days later.
My mom thought something was not right with me because of all
these dreams that I was having and all these things that were
coming out of my mouth, but after everything came out that
there was nothing wrong with my brain and how it works,
that's when I started working what's called "Mesa Blanca."..
which is, you know, being a spiritualist.
African percussion
You can grab the African one.
- I like that one. - I know.
Put one arm down.
I have godchildren in my religion in Santeria.
But I have all sorts of godchildren.
Good, I heard you got something new, right?
People who come that are not understood,
whether it's by their spouse, their children,
you know, their club...
can talk to me.
And then, I have a lot of people who know me from
my time in the streets and know my receipts,
know that I have them, know my reputation.
sparse ambient music
Because I was the oldest girl, I had to iron my brothers' clothes
for school.
I also had to clean, cook.
I had to take care of my brothers.
My oldest brother, they called him "Waxy."
I had another brother; his name is Randy.
We slept on a Castro Convertible,
which was a sofa couch, and in that couch slept my brothers,
my two younger sisters and myself,
and a Great Dane.
My mom went to nursing school, and she dropped out in order to
raise us.
It was my mother's birthday.
My sisters wanted to bake a cake for her.
We baked a cake and we frosted it,
and I dressed my sisters.
smooth Spanish music
My mom was at the club on 106th Street and Lexington;
it was called Midnight's Club.
She was a drinker.
She liked to party.
So I come in with my two little sisters and I tell her,
"Ma, happy birthday, we made you a cake!"
So she turned around...
and she said, "What the fuck are you doing here?"
And she just...
put her hand in the cake and then just...
slapped it.
Walking back, my sisters were crying.
We went home and I sang to my sisters until they went to
sleep.
I was at a school down by the 80s in Manhattan.
My brother and I were the only Latinos there.
dreamy harp
I would take, like, a thick strand of my hair,
and I would wet it, just to let it hang on my face so I could be
able to do this, like all the white girls in the class.
They would, you know, just...
And I wanted to do that too.
Like, I thought doing that would make me part of them,
because I was so...
ostracized, I was so put aside by all of them.
There was a teacher who told me I would never be anybody.
She said, "You'll never contribute anything to society."
But actually, I was a very smart student.
I aced all my exams.
There was a dean, Mr. Torres.
He saw something in me.
He said I had a gift and that he knew that I would do very well
in a private school up in Ossning,
New York, and there was a scholarship.
So we had meetings with my mom and myself.
Papers were signed, everything was set.
tender piano music
When school finished and they came over to talk to my mom to
get the final-- final papers and what have you,
my mother told them no, that they couldn't take me because
she needed me because she was pregnant and she needed me to
help her with this baby.
I did have dreams and goals, and I felt she had fucked it up for
me, so, you know, my way of getting back at her was not
going to school.
I quit school in the seventh grade.
I just went into the streets; the streets became my home.
cool jazzy music
I joined a gang, and that was on 102nd Street.
They were called The Demons and I became a Demon Deb.
This was around that time I started cutting myself.
I knew that every time I cut myself and I saw blood and it
came out, I felt good.
So my mom was on welfare, and the welfare checks that
were supposed to...
pay the rent came in, and they were cashed by someone else...
in the family, and so we were evicted.
My stepfather, his family lived in the Bronx.
I landed up on 149th Street and Southern Boulevard.
When I stepped off that train and I saw the streets -- how
dirty they were...
I cursed my mother.
I cursed her for bringing us to the Bronx.
I hated it.
A minority group member in the South Bronx...
at 15 to 18 years old, had a better chance of being killed in
the Bronx than they did a combat unit in Vietnam.
Yeah.
And that's how bad it was at times.
When I was in the gangs in East Harlem,
we had silk jackets.
When I came to the Bronx, they had cut-off jean jackets,
long hair, pants that looked like they weren't washed,
motorcycle boots.
It was like a culture shock to me.
It was like, "What the fuck is this?"
The first guys I met were in the Savage Skulls;
they lived in my building.
You don't step on my toe, I don't step on your toe.
We go outside, we do our thing, we come back here,
and we party.
Whoo!
funky music playing in club
We became really good friends.
They really took me in as a sister.
And then my brothers started hanging out with them and my
brother's became Skulls.
upbeat funky music
I can't with this bitch!
When I came to the club,
I became the caretaker.
Like, I was the one that went to the restaurant when they were
closing and take all the food that would have been going into
the garbage.
I'd take that back to the club and everybody ate.
I made sure everybody ate.
Buildings were burning.
I mean, there was buildings that were empty 'cause they had been
burned.
Normally, it'd be the landlord or owner of the building...
who wanna try to get out of the building and you'd realize you
can't get any money out of it, so what he does is he tries to
collect on his insurance.
Well, I remember some of the landlords would invite you in,
all right?
And-- not you particularly but--
Yeah, the gangs.
A gang would be invited in...
you take over and drive the rest of the tenants out.
That's right, they did that too.
And then once you did that, sometimes,
the gang turned around and said, "Nah,
I'm not gonna leave."
And now he has another problem.
I think a lot of them would like to work.
A lot of the gang members in the South Bronx -- or anywhere in
New York City -- would like to work,
but there's no jobs.
I have to admit, you know,
I was part of arson.
I was part of it.
You're living in the streets, you know,
you're living in the club of a gang.
You wanna eat?
You wanna drink beer?
The landlord comes with $300.
That's a lot of money at the time.
Yup.
Did we know we were destroying our community?
- No! - No!
'Cause it seemed natural.
- Right. - It seemed normal.
It was so normal, I was waiting for my building to burn down.
- Yeah!
I think I was 12 or 13.
Because I had rheumatic heart disease,
the doctors were talking about surgery.
ominous ambient music
I was in a pediatric ward.
It was my first real experience with lots of death.
Almost every day, a child was dying.
One day, I was awoken by somebody.
It was a priest.
He prayed, and he told me, "You're not gonna die.
And you're not gonna need the surgery."
I told my mom when she came to visit me.
I told her, "Mommy, I'm not gonna die,
don't worry about it.
They're not gonna even have to operate because the priest came
and he prayed."
And so I said that to my mom, and she was like,
"God, Lorine.
Por favor.
He's not a doctor, he's a priest."
I said, "Watch, watch!"
And exactly, I was discharged, I did not need surgery,
and that was that.
African percussion
Maybe months later, we pass a botanica.
I'm looking at the statues, and I tell my mother,
"Ma!
That's the priest that came to see me!"
And she said, "Lorine, that's St Martin de Porres,
he doesn't live anymore."
I was crying; I really wanted her to understand and really
believe that he came to me in the hospital!
And he told me I wasn't gonna die and I just-- I lived with
that.
Like, I think that's what allowed me sometimes to do some
of the crazy stuff that I did in my life.
I didn't feel invincible, but I felt like I'm not gonna die yet,
it's not my time.
My brother got busted.
My brother was in Riker's Island.
When I would go see my brother, I would take a group of girls.
Like, I would take my brother's girl,
so she would talk for a while with him,
and then when he wanted to talk to me,
she would go and talk to one of the brothers and I would talk to
my brother, like that, and I ended up talking to Blackie many
times and, you know, we met-- that's how we met.
My brother sent me a letter home and he had said to me,
"Sis, I just want you to be careful because my prez,
Blackie, he said he likes you."
Godspeed.
Blackie came home, and he had sent a poem to me,
and that kinda, like, "Wow," you know?
We got married, and we produced our own biological five
children, we adopted my nephew and we helped raise his son.
One day, I'm in one of these buses.
All of a sudden it hit me that the bus was full of Blacks and
Latinos...
and maybe one or two white women,
and we were going to prison to visit Black and Latinos.
I just couldn't put my finger on it but I felt it in my stomach
that something wasn't right.
The Young Lords used to meet in the barrio when I was growing
up.
Remember, we relate to an international struggle.
So it may sound ridiculous...
but this all links up to what's happening from Vietnam,
Puerto Rico, to Watts.
'Cause we in the belly of the monster.
And people all over are waiting for us to take care of business.
One day, they had some kind of a protest up
Lexington Avenue, and I just joined and chanted with them.
I felt like I was part of them.
I think I was a lot gangster, but that seed was already inside
me.
And so when I hit the visiting room,
it stirred an anger in me.
It stirred...activism.
We're gonna see Mr. Chancellor!
Support education!
Being an activist, it was in me, I had to.
Like, I couldn't sit there and not do something about
something.
Two, four, six, eight, we the parents will not wait!
We had a problem over here at 150!
Now, you know that's an elementary school;
it only goes up to the sixth grade.
And they put a GED program in there!
And you had guys -- 16, 20, 22 -- smoking reefer,
you know, hanging out in front of the schoolyard and all this.
There was nothing that anybody could do.
This is what was in the people's mind until I got hold of it.
And I said, "No!
It doesn't have to be this way.
We'll start here...
and we're gonna work our way up to here,
and if that's not suffice, we remove our children from school,
and we will continue to remove them every single day until they
listen to what we have to say."
Don't you know that those people-- that program was
removed from the school?
Why?
Because we came out in masses, Ben.
You know what I'm saying?
We came out in masses, we voiced our opinion,
and we refused to take it.
Okay, I was wrong.
I'm not saying you're wrong, I'm just saying that,
you know, you shouldn't think that way.
No, you beat me down, you beat me down.
You got it, you beat me down.
Nah, not beat you down.
You a bad bitch.
mellow ambient music
The guys that wear "Savage Skulls" and the girls that wear
"Property of Savage Skulls," they're,
like, considered our property, you know?
And we take care of our girls, you know,
they're like our property, they cook for us,
and they, you know-- they take care of us, you know?
The patches always said "Property of,"
and deep within me -- deep within my spirit and my soul --
I could not wear those patches.
"Property?"
I don't think so.
I am no your property.
I'm your wife...
but I'm not your property.
So Jay, you know, as you were saying...
Jay-J, it's your turn.
I am still faithful to the Savage Skulls.
Comin' up -- hello -- they took care of me.
When Blackie was a teenager, he always kept me on the side.
You know, like, "This is my little sister,
my little, you know, cousin."
He treated me like a little princess all the time.
Dealing with the guys...
at that time was difficult, because they were so into their
life and so unpredictable that I never felt secure.
Whenever you do something wrong,
they hit you too.
You do something that you're not supposed to,
I mean...
you gotta learn, you know?
- You either love it or leave it. - I mean, even he could do it.
Love it or leave it.
Either you in there with all your heart and soul or
you're not.
There was a lot of bullets I had to duck, man.
There was a lot of shit that I had to duck and--
That's true.
I would say, you know, "Am I gonna...
die this way?"
Because I thought I would never make it this far,
to be honest.
Absolutely.
We were not only just fighting the war in the street,
but we were fighting wars at home.
When I first met Blackie, he was in the Skulls,
he was dirty...
he was mean, he had all the traits that come with being a
gang leader.
And I had a hard time.
ominous ambient music
There were times where I had black eyes and some
of the guys -- and girls -- would laugh.
Like, "Yo, you got a fucked up eye again?
What the fuck you did?"
I knew that it was wrong 'cause I was going through it and I
definitely felt it was wrong, but I also was that person that,
you know, if you had a fight with your man and he hit you,
you know, like I wouldn't get involved.
I can listen to you, I could talk to you,
but I would-- you know, that was your laundry,
keep it in your house.
One time, I was hit with an axe handle.
It broke my knee.
I crawled for two days.
Crawled to feed my son...
um...
to bathe him...
to do the things I had to do for him and,
uh, Jacob, 'cause it was Philip and Jacob.
And one day, I went to see my mom,
and she saw me...
with the cast.
And she said, "What the fuck happened to you?"
And I told her.
And she said, "What did you do?
What did you do?
You have a mouth on you, so what did you do to make him get
that angry?
The funny thing about this is that my children's father was
very against any of his members hitting their women.
Their women came to him, and he would make sure that those dudes
were penalized.
But it's okay when he hit me.
That was cool.
- Seven. - Okay, here we go.
Action.
Dialogue.
You see the TV?
Yeah.
What you think, this guy gonna get the jackpot or what?
We have to see the way he ba-- the way the ball goes.
Nah, but we gotta do like before;
you take a guess and I take a guess.
No.
All right.
You gonna cheat on me this time, right?
Ma, look at Jacob!
He's okay.
No, it's-- I can't see!
He's spitting, that's all.
Oh, you can't see? I'm sorry.
They .
tender piano music
Thank you.
What you making?
Rice and beans.
That was you, right?
No.
That wasn't me.
You think it's done?
Oh, yeah.
- I don't think so, it look pale. - It's overdone.
- You think so? - It's dried up.
- I have it on low. - I put it on low.
Did you change his Pampers?
- Yeah. - Did you feed him?
Yeah.
Did you put him in the room--
Everything, I know.
I know, come on.
Come on, Philip, let's go.
You sure?
Yeah, everything, he's all right.
All right. You know what?
- What? - Put some Vaseline on his ear.
Yeah.
Maybe that's what's bothering him.
And cut.
Next Wednesday, so that's the big travel day right before
Thanksgiving, and I'll show you that...
Who is it?!
Wassup, Comai?!
Yeah! Gimme kisses!
What the matter with you? You don't give me kisses?
Mwah!
Dios te bendiga.
What's going on, Ma?
Ooh!
Yeah, one for you, one for me.
Okay.
They're not both for you because--
Yeah, you have to tell me ahead of time!
- Okay? - That for me?
How you feel after, you know, being told that Yemaya's your
mother.
Like, that's your guardian angel.
Oh, man...
Maybe you didn't know it was Yemaya--
- But you always felt-- - I felt something.
You had a guardian.
So when Yemaya came out and it came to me that I am Yemaya's
daughter...
I felt that-- I always felt that warmth,
you know, because I felt safe through her,
because of all the stuff I went through,
especially the time when I got kidnapped.
What do you mean "kidnapped?"
Like...
Remember that time we were talking about, um...
how far have I come?
Yeah.
And I said, you know, I felt like I wasn't gonna make it?
Right.
I mean, I know a little bit, but I don't really know.
Oh, okay.
We never really touched it because--
- And stuff like that. - Right.
And I didn't know, and her name exactly like mine: Elizabeth.
The same name.
We looked alike, freckles and all.
There was only one difference: she had light green eyes.
Mm.
She had the red hair, everything,
and she would tie her hair back like me, everything--
Wow.
Same height, we used to hang out together,
and that's what happened.
I didn't know what was going on until one day,
I'm walking and there was a white van.
And they say, "Oh, mira!"
And they call my name, and I'm like,
"Okay, hi!
How you doin'?
Oh, no, !"
You know, and back then, I used to be dealing and stuff like
that -- you know, in my "stupidity,"
I call it now.
And...
I went in.
I went in, they attacked me.
They bounded me, you know, they tied me up,
they covered my eyes.
And it's how many people?
Like, this is all men or women were there?
Men.
Four men.
They hit me, they-- trying to get information from me,
like where's the stuff that I took,
and I didn't even know what they were talking about.
They were talking about a bunch of jewelry,
thousands of dollars, and I'm like...
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Then "Yes, you do, because look at the picture."
They showed me pictures!
So when I looked and I told them that was not me--
Right.
They wouldn't believe me.
They pistol-whipped me.
- Mm. - Okay?
They-- they-- they freakin' raped me with a gun...
you know, they-- they did so many horrible things.
Right.
But then, because I wanted to numb the feeling...
of what I went through at that moment,
so I kept on doing--
Doing what?
My drugs, doing drugs.
I kept on doing heroine, started smoking crack,
and then I lost my brothers...
three months apart...
and I just...
felt like that was it.
"I'm not gonna make it to 25."
That's what woke me up and made me see,
like, there has to be something better than this.
That's what, like, started your road to recovery?
Yeah.
The only reason I can speak about it this way -- the way I'm
speaking about it today without breaking down that I wanna-- you
know, that I can't handle it -- the only reason I'm doing that
is because of this counseling, because of the therapy,
because of the stuff like that, and I had to face reality for
what it was.
It happened, it happened, okay.
I cried about it, I dealt with it,
I fought about it, I dreamt about it,
but today, this moment...
I win.
I feel good.
And I cheer for me.
This is something that I haven't told you--
Right.
And I needed you to know it for me.
Right.
You understand?
'Cause I wanna feel like I show you and I acknowledge...
the appreciation that I have for you.
It's not-- nothing special in me,
it's that I am the vessel to which you were supposed
to come--
Mm-hm.
To be a child of-- you know, be crowned a child of Yemaya.
But because of you being my godmother,
and I am so grateful for that...
it's woke me up to a lot of stuff that I'm starting to
remember from when I was this high.
Right.
You know, when it comes to the religion.
And Chango knows what I'm talking about 'cause He got me
all chilled up.
You know, and I'm starting to see more,
and I'm so grateful and I'm so thankful that you are still in
my life.
This is why I fight with you when you got a cold.
This is why I fight with you when you don't-- "Oh,
I don't wanna go to the doctor."
"Yes, you are!"
You know, because I need you in my life, Ma.
And I gotta start getting it together.
Lemme give you my hug 'cause you know...
I just need to--
mellow ambient music
When I was pregnant of my first son,
Philip, my then-husband went to prison.
I was living with my mom on Tiffany,
and I lived there until I gave birth.
My mom and I got into some kind of argument and,
uh, she threw me out.
I had nowhere to go, absolutely nowhere to go.
I was not gonna live in the clubhouse.
I really didn't want to have my son in that environment.
I mean, there was people sniffing glue,
you know, shooting up, drinking.
I went to the building next door,
and I was sleeping under the stairs there for about two weeks
with my son.
In the first couple of days, nobody knew I was there.
There was an open hydrant, and I would just take that water.
I would have gone to the restaurant,
gotten some sugar, and that's what I would give my son.
This was about...for three days or something -- three or four
days.
And my mother lived in the building next door.
She didn't know I was there either.
This woman realized that I was sleeping there with my baby,
and she took me in.
I just grabbed my son and I said,
"Never again, Papi.
Never again will we be homeless."
They were rebuilding the South Bronx.
We became part of it.
upbeat funky music
Don't let these dirty streets get you down!
Like Jesse Jackson says: "You can live in the ghetto,
but don't let the ghetto live in you!"
Change came about because of my boys.
I had two children now.
I lived in a building that was dilapidated.
A few years ago, this neighborhood was on the verge of
total collapse.
But a group called SEBCO -- the South East Bronx Community
Organization -- has struggled to bring better housing and a
better life to many of its residents.
See, the city doesn't believe that
any human being with any sense
would wanna live in the South Bronx.
Well, if the opportunity comes, I'll buy a home here to stay
here, because I think it's one of the finest neighborhoods to
live, and the people are just together,
and we're enjoying, uh, life together here.
They started building on Simpson,
and the buildings looked, to me, like Manhattan,
because there was buildings with balconies.
Like, in the Bronx?
Are you kidding?!
I'm like, "I gotta get in there."
I began to work with people that were involved in setting up
those places, like Father Gigante -- he was very
instrumental.
And so yeah, that's what happened;
I got an apartment.
Shh!
Surprise!
Look at this!
Thank you, Papi!
mellow jazzy music
- Oh, dang! - How are you?
How are you?! Look at you!
Oh my God!
I need one!
I love it!
Although she had her own children,
she was everyone's mother.
The parade for Halloween...
she was there for all of us.
She was part of the school system,
so when we went to school, she was there.
I mean...
Everywhere you turn!
Yeah, she was just a part of everyone's life growing up.
Why did you form a posse to begin with?
They try to rule our own block...
they can't do that.
We fight with them.
He lived with me.
Yes, I did.
They lived on the first floor, and I took them in...
because, you know, he was having some...
issues.
I was a bad boy.
Yeah.
She did hit me one time...
so hard that it was piccante.
Te amo, Papi.
So, I was like, "Wow!"
I thought she was related to Jackie Chan for a minute.
I was like, "Oh my God, you felt that?"
And I came out pretty good...
between her and my moms.
They straightened me out.
I-- I already felt like...leaving school already
and not telling my mother or my father.
The person that helped me out a lot was my godmother,
all right? But...
just my Aunt Lorine.
'Cuz when I had problems, I used to come to her.
I used to ask about all questions about my mother,
my father...
I used to tell her the way I feel,
she used to help me out, I used to go home feeling better.
Your door was always open to me.
You door was always open to me, and always open to everybody.
Like, sometimes I would come in and be like,
"Who's that?" "It's your uncle!"
I'd be like, "I've never met him before,
but, hey, Bendicion."
Because if he's in Titi's house-- if he-- if he was in
your house, he was family.
There you go.
Always made sure she wrote my father when he was
in prison.
Always made sure she went to see go see him as much as she could.
And he always said it, "If I'm not there,
you go talk to Titi.
Titi's there."
Her name rang bells just like the guys' did.
Action!
Okay, tell me after school, you guys...
pensive music
Tell me a typical day after school.
Phillip, you think it's worse now, why?
Because, now, you look at somebody wrong,
and they try to kill you.
There's no more, you know, fighting,
it's just, like, they try to kill you for looking at them,
like...
Okay, here we go...
action!
Hey, son.
- Wassup? - Nothing.
What's goin' down?
I went to the store...
see your ass here.
What are you doing?
They're filming.
What now?
Rolling...okay.
What did you write?
Kilo...that's my street identity.
T-O-D..."Team of Destruction."
Okay...cut.
I'm out.
Why are they getting a ton of attention,
like, what the fuck?
They're not celebrities, they're not movie stars...
like, we still live here, you know what I mean?
I couldn't grasp it, but, I guess-- the lure.
I guess people look at it, and it's exciting.
There are a lot of things that happened that I'll tell you,
like, shootouts, car chases, fights -- like,
some of the shootouts they had was outrageous.
That's one thing, it was always they'll come and be like,
"Yo, y'all got to get out of here!
Let's go, let's go!"
And meanwhile, they shooting at people like...
and we're like, "Oh, shit, what we gonna do?!"
I'm with my little brother and my little cousins,
and I'm like, "Oh, I gotta get them to safety,
let's go!
Guys this way! Jump over the fence...
run across the block, the park, wherever,"
just to get them out.
He's the leader!
He's the leader of everybody.
He's a master.
pensive piano music
My father influenced me to be a different
kind of man.
When he first went to jail, that was his thing:
"You the man of the house, you take care of everything."
So, that was it.
I was the man of the house.
I don't want to get shit from nobody,
nobody tell me nothing.
I was first, and I was there for everything.
And it's not only that...
you suffered my trials and tribulations with me.
pensive music
But it's because of him, like, I don't hit women and shit like
that, and my moms...
like, told me how women should be treated.
I mean, she's a lady, she know how she want to be treated.
So, she tried to instill that in all of us.
Thank you. That's all you got?
Yeah.
Everything for him, what about me?
I'm your mother, everything's for Daddy?
Thank you.
I mean, in retrospect I look back at stuff like, yeah.
Like, there was times that I needed help with something,
and you was too busy helping other people,
and I had to figure it out-- figure this shit out for myself.
Right.
That's the newest edition...she's, uh,
three months.
Her name is Leiani Nova...
Caridad.
But I call her "LeiLei."
Braelyn...
Lorine...
Oyola.
And this is Luis...
Junior...
- Antonio... - Antonio...
- Oyola - Oyola
You leaving?
Dios te bendiga.
Be careful, okay?
I will.
Pick up those pants.
They're too low, Jay.
I see your underwears...pick 'em up!
Peace out, but pick 'em up!
upbeat Latin percussion
A woman I knew from the elections told me,
"Why don't you go to college?"
I told her, "College?
I don't even have high school," and she says,
"Oh, no, honey. You need to get your GED."
Hostos Community College had a GED program,
and I passed with a very high score.
pensive piano music
I enrolled at community college as soon as I got my GED.
So I was going to school, raising a family,
being a wife, working, being an activist,
and getting my ass whipped...
We already were not together, we were just living in the same
household, and I kept telling him he had to leave.
He didn't actually leave the household until my last child,
Misty, was almost two years old.
And then, you know, he left.
And, uh...
my life began.
I remarried.
I married what I consider -- and know to be -- the love of
my life.
This was a guy I dated way back in the day...
Muah!
Anniversary, it's our anniversary.
He was the male version of me.
He loved dancing, he loved old music...
there was no putting hands on me.
Go Maggie, it's your birthday.
Okay!
Who the fuck would ever think that with everything we did,
everywhere we hung out, all this shit we did,
I'd be a social worker and you'd be a teacher.
And now I'm doing your feet.
Ah, that feels so good!
I know you need it.
Ahh!
That's Listerine in there, I put Listerine.
Listerine?
Yeah, it's supposed to...
Como es?
It's an antiseptic, so you like--
- Yeah. - Okay, 'cause I got a fungus?
Yeah, it's real good.
It softens your skin and stuff.
I never knew that.
If I had little fishes, I would have put it in there too,
but I don't have--
- Fish!? - You put fish in there.
Little fishes that eat your little--
- No, no, that's never gonna-- - Eat your skin.
No, don't ever even think about it.
It's never gonna happen.
In 1986, my first brother,
Randy, died of AIDS.
He was in the hospital, and his food would be left outside.
They would not clean his room, because everybody was fearful of
the AIDS virus.
That really, really got to me.
I'm doing my internship now at Bronx Lebanon,
and I'm working with people with AIDS...
and one of my biggest problems is the incarcerated.
I would like to someday see a legislator where those who are
full-blown AIDS where there is some policy made that they can
come home and die.
I don't feel that just because you're an inmate,
you shouldn't have the dignity to die.
And then my brother, Waxy, died of AIDS.
I've always had that special things with you because you're
my only connection...
to my brother.
That real connection, like, you know...
He left nothing else behind, you know?
I don' think I would be,
right now, where I'm at right now.
I got like 14/15 years in the union.
Uh-huh.
Never been arrested...
never got in trouble, clean record,
finished high school.
Whenever...
you...
have an accomplishment...
I always say, you know, "Bro...
we did good."
I always say that.
I never ever got to tell you that,
the greatest gift you gave me...
was when I called you, and I told you
that my brother was not gonna make it.
Mm-hm.
I remember when you walked in,
and I asked him, "Bro, you know who's that?"
And he said, "The love of my life."
And then you kissed him.
And remember?
And you did.
That's the way I am, I'm family.
Right.
- You know? - Right, right.
When he died on us...
I was-- I went there before you...
So what I did was -- and I started feeling him-- feeling
his feet, 'cause, you know, I loved his feet -- so,
I opened the...
the thing, and I saw him naked.
And I touched his huevos...
and I touched his feet, and I kissed his feet,
and I closed it back.
I wasn't aware of that.
You know-- you know what my brother meant to me -- and still
does.
But I never knew that.
That gives me comfort because...
I know he knew you did that.
Yeah.
And so, you know, I know wherever he is,
he's happy.
That's what sealed more the love that I have for you.
Mm-hm.
And that's why I will always call you "my sister-in-law."
- Me too, I love you too. - You know...yeah.
And I love you...
and I want you to know that.
emotional music
I did go into the field of domestic violence after AIDS.
A woman should never be asked, "Why didn't you leave?"
Or "Why don't you leave?"
There are many different reasons why a woman stays...
economics, fear,
children, culture,
religion, immigration --
they're undocumented, so they'll stay.
There's also love -- you really think you love this man.
The hope that you can change him,
that this is gonna pass, that, you know,
sooner or later it's gonna stop.
My children's father...he did apologize.
When I told him that I forgave him,
he got angry and he said, "You don't fuckin' need to
forgive me!"
You know?
"I need to forgive myself.
I need to work on this."
Will you eat the flower?
Yeah, I'll eat that.
- Thank you. - You're welcome.
Only recently...
I began...
my journey to peace with my mom.
My mom was very stubborn...
like, she didn't say sorry, I did.
I said, "If I've ever offended you,
hurt, whatever, disrespected you,
I'm sorry, but I was me at that time,
and you was you."
And, um...
She said, "Ay, mi hija, no, no, no, no...
forget that.
You was a good daughter, you never disrespected me,
you never yelled..." and so on, and so forth.
And I'm looking at her like, "No,
that's not true, but I'll take it."
For the past months, like, I would call her,
and she'd be, "Don't come over.
You know your legs are bad, you know, stay home.
I'm okay, you could just call me."
My mom died...
Sunday.
She just left.
And I feel angry because, like, I didn't have you long enough,
so...
Why'd you do that, like, why'd you just...
you know?
Become my mommy and then...
and then just leave.
Yeah.
If anybody wants to say something you can because once I
go into pray and I'm finished, that will be it.
That's it, I'm just gonna pray.
Go ahead.
She was my second mom...
and that woman always tried to guide me to the right path.
No matter what I'd done, she never judged me.
And if it wasn't for her that I had my last daughter,
and I was in prison at the time, when I got home,
I gave her my daughter's birth certificate,
paperwork, everything to prove that that was my child.
She told me,
Until you need 'em.
And I remember, I said, "Oh!
Ma got my papers."
If it wasn't for having those papers,
I would never have my daughter back.
And I know you in the right place,
and you okay -- you ain't hurting no more -- because I
don't want you to hurt, that's how much I love you.
Bendicion, may you rest in peace.
Our Father, who art in Heaven,
hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come;
thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread...
Great...
somebody don't want me to smoke.
I was cleaning up the desk, and I found this, right?
Oh, man, that was our sister.
Yeah. Like, Mija and Evelyn--
Don't get mad.
No, why would I get mad?
You know she was in love with me.
Yes, she told me.
She told me, "Oh my God, Johnny called,"
and I told you, she said, "Johnny Cool?
Oh my God, do you know I have a crush on him?"
I said, "Well, it ends now."
It's like, every time I turn around,
somebody else dies from the old school,
you know what I mean?
And it's a lot of people.
I made a list...
look.
It's Nuni, Satch, Mingi, Hippie,
Carlito, Julito, Hollywood, Giganto,
Marlo, Robot T, Dulce, Lil' Outlaw,
then Gary, Chino -- his brother, Chino --
then is Wilson, my compai, Beef...
Yeah, yeah.
Franco, my brother Waxy,
my brother Randy, Shadow, Smokey.
That's Savage Skulls alone -- men...
that have died.
The women, I got one, two, three,
four, five, six.
Yep.
We lived through a really...
violent era, John.
We really did.
Yeah, yeah.
And for you and I to still be standing...
and being able to...
to be in the lives of our grandchildren,
our children...
- We are blessed. - Exactly.
- I'm glad you're alive. - You too.
Me too.
ominous music
A scary scene in one Bronx neighborhood as two people are
shot -- one of the victims, a three-year-old child.
dramatic music
My grandson calls me "Nona."..
and he was crying and calling my name.
He was like, "Nona, help me!
Nona, it hurts!"
And I couldn't do anything.
I couldn't even go in the room.
I held a press conference.
We discuss what we can do to make the laws tougher.
They cannot shoot where there's a school,
where there's a playground, wherever children gather...
then you should get an automatic sentence.
I believe you should get 15 years.
We decided to call the law "Luisito's Law" after my
grandson.
After that, I haven't heard a word from anybody.
hopeful music
And the shooter was apprehended?
What's your son?
All right, of course.
We'll talk soon.
- Hello. - Buenos dias.
Have a seat, and get a seat for your aide.
So, the way that it works is that you have an Assembly and a
Senate, right?
Both of those have to pass the same bills -- so it's called a
"same as" -- and then it gets-- once-- once it pass-- it's
passed by the Assembly, passed by the Senate on the same
version, then the Governor signs it,
and it becomes a law.
Or the governor vetos it, and it doesn't become a law.
So in the case, right now, there is no same as.
Right now, the version in the Assembly and the Senate are not
the same ones, so it seems that Klein and Sepulveda have
stopped talking to each other about this particular thing.
So it tells me that it's not really a priority.
Mm-hm.
And that--
But it's gonna be.
Okay, this-- and that certainly--
Is gonna be a priority, because I don't play.
Smile, you're on 'Candid Camera.'
Show Titi Lena -- Josie.
Ay, que linda!
pensive piano music
I don't know if you remember what I told you,
like, you know, I never knew who strong you were,
or had to be until-- until I had to be.
Right.
I know inside somewhere,
she's hurting that she couldn't avoid
that trauma for my grandson...
- but it's a trauma that happened - - not only to my grandson --
but to the family.
You know, I appreciate everything -- everything you
taught me -- and...
I am who I am today because of you.
Yeah, thanks.
I love you.
I love you more.
You're my spirit...
always will be.
I'm really glad we're doing this...it is cold, though.
I am too.
I know.
How are you, nice to see you again.
Good to see you.
It's good to see you.
She just wants you to know that, yes,
she-- I do represent her.
- Okay. - Oh, all right
Whatever I say goes.
All right, Mami, dios te bendiga.
I'll see you later, okay?
All right.
Let me begin by saying that I appreciate
that you're taking the time to
really put some time into this particular,
um, bill.
So what I want to know...
is there an update?
Is there anything that we're going to do,
we need to do?
You know, I want you guys to fill me in.
Okay.
Well, I have passed the bill before in the Senate.
I think we need a strategy to get it done again,
but most importantly, in the Assembly.
Another problem we face in the Assembly is,
historically, uh...
criminal justice penalties have been
unfair to communities of color, and there is a built-in
resistance to increase penalties in the Assembly
Chamber for this kind of offense.
I know how it has been unfair to us,
but I think that the message we have to give is that this is not
about what color you are or what community it happens -- although
it's happening so much in our communities.
My daughter has-- um, is suffering from anxiety attacks
- - something she never had.
We'll put together a plan.
As I said, we want to start getting letters to newspapers,
and then, finally, let's organize a trip,
you know, to Albany, and tell your story to legislators.
That's how you're thinking too?
That's what we're thinking, absolutely.
anxious music
Yeah, I've been in the same apartment 35 years.
They're building four new buildings...great.
But now there's not even a patch of grass for the kids to play.
You're gonna put a dog park, and you're gonna take the kid
park away? That don't make no sense.
They took the playground.
They took the two basketball courts.
They took the basketball courts.
How are you, Lorine?
Hey, yes, how are you?
This is the legend...it's a pleasure to finally meet you.
Ah, no, you're the legend now. You're the legend now.
Can I have a hug? You're a constituent, so...
- Sure, sure, sure. - Good to meet you.
You know, I'm gonna tell you something...
Please.
I didn't vote for you.
I'm shocked, why?
- Ima tell you. - Yeah.
Um, during your interviews and all that, um...
I really thought you was like this uppity Puerto Rican that
came from Riverdale or...
- Somewhere like that.
You know, they said Obama was uppity.
He didn't do too bad, right?
I don't know, but we're not talking about Obama.
- We're talking about you.
And, um...
so, you know, I said, "I can't vote for this guy.
Who he think he is, Captain Save-a-Ho or something?
He's gonna come into my--
By the way, I'm not from Riverdale .
No, hey, I read your bio.
Projects-- I'm from the projects.
After I read your bio, you know,
and then I-- I started to kind of watch you and follow you and
that kind of stuff -- you know, on the news and stuff -- and I'm
pretty happy, you know, with what I see,
especially because you're-- I don't know,
what is it?
You're chairman or something of housing?
So, originally I was Chair of NYCHA.
Right.
and now I'm Chair of Investigations, so...
Oh, very good.
All this you're walking on, I was part of rebuilding.
So you're living in something you created.
I created.
- Isn't that-- - This was-- well--
This is your legacy.
Kind of, yeah.
And this is Frankie.
I'm Ritchie, how are you?
- How are you? Welcome. - Good to meet you.
He's one of the few original tenants here.
Hey, Ma, bendicion.
Que Dios te bendiga, mi hijo.
How are you?
I'm good, dear.
What do you think of politicians?
You can...
In the most part, you want me to be honest?
Yeah, be honest with me.
- I think they're full of shit. - Yeah.
In the most part.
You know, they promise you a rose garden,
and when you get there...
it's dead weed.
You have to be in the streets.
You have to be with the people.
You have to really listen.
You have to walk around, look around,
and-- and-- listen to their-- what their passionate about.
There was a shootout the other day,
my daughter, she's getting out her car to go into the
supermarket, and the shooting began.
This is the same mother of the child who was shot.
You know, poverty in America, poverty in the inner-cities
often means the experience of trauma...
because when you're living in poverty you're not only lacking
access to healthcare, and to housing,
and to fresh food, but you're often experiencing the trauma.
dramatic music
I worry for my son.
My son goes to school, and sometimes,
you know, I listen to the conversations he comes back home
with about what the stuff his friends talk about,
and the things that they're worried about.
You know, my son is nine years old,
and they're worried about bills.
He's worried about if I have enough money to buy him a
birthday gift.
Why should he worry about that?
That should be the furthest thing on his mind.
But he's worried if we have enough light on in the house so
that anything left over on the side,
he can get some.
Look at the earrings Brandon gave me everybody.
They're gorgeous.
See, everybody likes them.
They're jealous because they don't got them.
You have a daughter and you have this handsome dude over
here...
and, um, and you're not working.
Yes.
Sometimes I feel this sense of desperation.
Now, granted, I have a mind to know better,
but not everybody can, you know, maintain their emotions,
which is what causes somebody, uh,
to act out in society.
Meaning violence.
People are in desperation -- violence, yeah.
People act out in violence, people feel the need to steal,
to take.
People are just lookin for a resort;
they're looking for a solution to a problem.
My son walks from el barrio to the Bronx,
and so he sees those condos down by -- I think it's 138 --
I don't know, some waterfront.
You've got the piano district...
Yeah.
What the-- what the fuck is that...piano district?
Bullshit.
Yeah, you know what I'm saying?
We're screwed. We're screwed.
We're gonna become, you know, Brooklyn.
I've watched you bring neighborhoods where
neighborhoods didn't exist.
I've watched you bring school programs where schools didn't
exist.
I've watched you bring the district to a-- to a brighter
light for the community.
I've seen you bring the relations between the school
districts and the community themselves together,
and I've watched-- I've also watched it crumble.
And it gives me a sense of, again,
the word "fear" for my future, but I haven't lost hope...
because there's still people out there who's fighting for us.
There's still people out there who believe strongly in
community.
dramamtic music
I ran for office when I was 24....
I'm 30 -- what's your advice for me?
My advice...
continue to fight -- you fighting now -- but reach out to
that young generation, and look, look around.
Really listen to them, look around,
and find that person or people
that you can mentor --
bring them into your office, show them how it works.
Yeah.
And you came from the projects,
and you come from a single home.
Yeah.
So, you've been in those trenches.
You know, when I was young and people would try to get me out
of gangs and all this stuff because they saw what I see,
um...
if you didn't-- if you didn't walk the walk,
then you can't talk the talk to me,
you know?
Don't come from Riverdale, talking about,
"I want to help you, let's do..."
No, I don't want to deal with you.
You don't know.
Or country club.
Yeah.
You don't know.
You're not here in the pit...
in the, you know, the bowel of the city.
This is the South Bronx, you know?
So, connect with that.
But I'm here.
- And you have hope. - And I have hope.
- And you're fighting. - And I'm fighting.
And I'm gonna fight until I can't breathe anymore -- and I'm
a smoker, so I don't know when that's gonna be.
But, uh, I'm gonna fight.
anxious music
Okay.
- Going up? - Mm-hm.
For the purposes of an introduction, Mr. Sepulveda.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for allowing me
this introduction.
I've been here six years now, um,
and I've brought many people to this chamber,
but none more important than the young man that I'm bringing
today, Luisito Oyola.
He's a survivor.
His grandmother has been an activist in the South Bronx for
many years, she has helped fight for just causes throughout our
community, and today she's here with her grandson who was the
victim of the senseless gun violence.
She's here to advocate for justice for her grandson...
We welcome both of you here to the New York State Assembly.
We extend to you the priveledges of the floor,
and, Grandma, thank you for being there to support and grow
with him.
Thank you so very much.
That's for you!
Thank you.
An incident broke out between a couple of induviduals,
and one of them discharged his weapon -- this was by a
playground -- and Lucito was, uh, injured.
He was shot in the arm -- thank God it wasn't fatal -- and you
can see he's a healthy, handsome...
Much better-looking than you, man.
Not hard to do.
He's wondering-- wondering here what--
And I think that you can see in his eyes that,
you know...
- He's emotional. - Come on, baby.
Come with me. Come with me.
Sit next to grandma.
Come, come, Nono.
- Sit next to grandma - - as you can see...
Come, Nono.
It's okay.
As a result of the incident that Jeff Klein in the Senate --
myself in the Assembly -- we, uh,
are trying to pass a bill called Lucitio's Law,
which creates a specific Class-B Felony for anyone who discharges
a weapon by a playgorund, by a school,
anywhere where you know there's a tendency to be a lot
of children.
We understand that-- that the criminal justice system in
this-- in this state, in this country,
is extremely unfair to comunities of color,
but when it comes to people discharging their weapons in an
area where you have children, I have no sympathy.
And so I'm going ot ask all of you for your support.
So, thank you all. I have the bill here.
I have a-- the letter.
If you want more information, uh,
I'd be happy ot give it to you.
Senate will come to order.
Uh, yes, Mr. President, can you please recognize Senator
Klein for a brief introduciton?
Senator Klien.
Thank you, Mr. President.
I rise today to introduce, uh, a very speical,
uh, young visitor.
Today visiting Albany is Luis Oyola Jr,
and his wonderful grandmother, Lorine.
I first met the two of them after an unfortunate incident
that took place in a Bronx playground in 2013.
Him and his granmother, uh, have been a fighting force to pass a
very important piece of legislation,
uh, called Luicito's Law.
Messages from the Assembly...
I will always live with one foot in the activist world,
and the other foot in the outlaw,
street-gang world.
It's my life, I cannot separate the two.
Oh my God, always good to see you, my love.
Bendicion.
Santo, Dios te bendiga.
Come here!
And even though our kids grew up with this,
our kids came out fine.
They are fine. And our grandkids.
Oh! Even better.
Our grandkids are gonna be even better.
Absolutely.
Circles!
No, this way.
This way, you're coming this way.
I hope that everybody gets to hear me.
- Yeah, you've got a big mouth!
Oh, you shut the fuck up!
Lord, you know that we are all gathered here in the name of
Jerry, our sister.
Just remember that we all brothers and sisters -- no
matter what club, no matter uh, whether it's a card club or
a outlaw club, a MC club -- it doesn't matter -- or
a street commando -- we're all brothers and sisters,
and let's all look out for each other,
respect each other, and love each other...in the name of
Jerry, I ask you.
And now we should let these balloons go.
"I Wish You Love" performed by Joe Bataan
I wish you bluebirds in the spring
To give your heart a song to sing
And then a kiss, but more than this
I wish you love
And in July, a lemonade
To cool you in some leafy glade
I wish you health
But more than wealth
I wish you love
My breaking heart & I agree
That you & I could never be
So with my best
My very best
I set you free
I wish you shelter from the storm
A cozy fire to keep you warm
But most of all when snowflakes fall...
Where are you? You see him?
Hi.
You see her?
It's weird.
It's weird, right?
I wish you love
I wish you bluebirds in the spring
To give your heart a song to sing, girl
And then a kiss, but more than this
I wish you love, girl
And in July, a lemonade
To cool you in some leafy glade, girl
I wish you health, but more than wealth
I wish you love, girl
My breaking heart & I agree, girl
That you & I could never be, girl
So with my best, my very best
I set you free, girl
I wish you shelter from the storm
A cozy fire to keep you warm, girl