Former poet laureate of Los Angeles (2014-2016) Luis J. Rodriguez is the author of many works of fiction, nonfiction, memoir, poetry, and children's literature, including Hearts and Hands: Creating Community in Violent Times and the acclaimed bestseller Always Running. Visit him at luisjrodriguez.com.
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By age twelve, Luis Rodriguez was a veteran of East L.A. gang warfare. Lured by a seemingly invincible gang culture, he witnessed countless shootings, beatings, and arrests, then watched with increasing fear as that culture claimed friends and family memb... SEE MORE