Author Rodrigo Ribera d’Ebre grew up surrounded by street gangs in the Los Angeles County, and as an active gang member, he was shot, had numerous brushes with the law, and was excommunicated in Mexico. Despite these challenges, he put himself through college and with every course; he further understood how politicized street gang organizations were. Ribera d’Ebre’s book, Urban Politics: The Political Cultures of Sur 13 Gangs, was just released in soft cover from the Steam Press Publishing Group. The book focuses on how street gangs originated as a social contract, and in time evolved to form political parties, city council-like structures, a prison congress, a peace accord, and progressive movement values.
“Law enforcement and public officials are still trying to understand how to reduce gangs and crime but they haven’t really taken the time to understand the political and philosophical aspects of how they function. My goal is for academics, college students, and public officials to understand street gangs from a different perspective,” says Ribera d’Ebre. “Most people are unaware or simply don’t care to understand how these gangs truly function. They’re more political than we can imagine, and yet some of those involved can’t really see that. If gang members could understand politics better, and if people who know politics can understand gangs better, then I did my job.” The book also takes a deeper look into popular media and its promotion of street gangs, the globalization pattern of street gangs due to deportation, special interest groups, and budgeting principles.
This is Ribera d’Ebre’s second published book. He lived in Latin America for four years and has traveled throughout the United States, Latin America, and Europe. He holds a degree in Political Science and lives in Southern California.
The book is available through amazon.com for $12.95. ISBN number-9781480-205024. Rodrigo Ribera d’Ebre has a blog about art, politics, history, and culture, and has recently become a contributor to the Huffington Post Arts & Culture section.
For more information please visit www.thewestsiderblog.wordpress.com
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Picture of author and book