The Draw of 'Dead Town' - A Newsweek article

Go there for a full version of the Newsweek article.

1. Who is Gabriel Hinojos ?

Gabriel Hinojos is the main character in this article. He is the father of four children. But first, he was an ex-gang member. His gang was F13, or Florence 13, it is actually, as the article say "one of the largest street gang in Los Angeles." His whole body is covered of tattoos, either from the time he passed in prison, like the teardrop under his eye; or "the name of his gang ... written all across his necks in huge block letters".

2. What is " Ya' Stuvo". Explain the symbolic meaning of the name.

"Ya' Stuvo" is a tattoo removal center. It stands for the Spanish slang "that's enough, I'm done with that".

We could interpret it as if someone who had hi tattoo removed, was speaking about it to someone, and said the tattoo "Ya' Stuvo aqui" (=It was already here, but it' gone now). It is in Spanish, because of the position of the local: It's in L.A, where thee are a massive number of Spanish speakers. Also because a big number of the people who go there, to get their tattoo removed, are hispanics.

3. "black teardrops". Explain the meaning of this phrase in the context of the article.

When someone has a black teardrop tattooed under his eye, sometimes means that this person has killed someone. Even though most of times, it means that the person having it has passed time in prison. Like Gabriel Hinojos, who got his teardrop from doing time at Folsom State Prison.

4. "This is his 45th visit". What does this short sentence imply about Gabriel Hinojos.

  This sentence means that Gabirel Hinojos is willing to leave the gang life behind him and start a new life with his family. The fact that he is already in his 45th visit to the tattoo removal center, means that he really want to do the right thing.

5. Is getting out of a gang easy ? Quote to back up your answer

Getting out of a gang isn't always easy. "Escaping the pull of gang life is extremely difficult" (L.22) To be able to walk free, gang members have follow a few steps: "If he has served time in prison and <done the work>"(L.20).  It is also a really slow procedure. "Getting out of a street gang in L.A is about like getting a tattoo removed: slow, painful, scaring." (L.17)

6. Is it always possible ? Quote to back up your answer.

Getting out of gang lifestyle is an opportunity, that only a few know how to take and handle. Even though it is extremely difficult to achieve, people who are convinced that they want to leave their gang, they succeed to do it. It is true though that not everyone prosper. "In street lore, a gang banger can never leave a really brutal gang" (L.19) A  big percentage of people who really manage to get out, never really leave, because at one point their gang was a part of their life, they could feel like leave behind them their families. All in all, leave a gang depends also of the brutality, and the size of it.

7. On what conditions is it feasible ? Explain in your own words.

Leaving a gang depends on a series of things. One cannot leave a gang like they can leave the supermarket. To leave a gang like F13, Gabriel hinojos, had to serve time in prison and "done the work", with doing the work they refer to dealing with drugs, and using a gun. Wich indirectly means that to leave a gang, you have to served in it during a couple of time.

8. What is "extremely difficult" (lines 22-23)? Explain in you own words.

Escaping the temptation to return to their former gang life is extremely difficult. They were used to live their daily life full of adrenaline. They’re were used to live an "attractive" life, so the fact that by leaving their gang, they live a boring lifestyle, make them miss their old time passed with their gang.

9. Explain the last three line of the article in your own words.

Gabriel, with the process that he followed to leave his gang life behind, with his appointment to the tattoo removal centre, became a model, an honorable person to follow. To celebrate all the thing that he archived, he was invited to the white house, to have a drink with the former first lady Laura Bush. But sadly a few months later, he was sent back in Jail.

10. Briefly describe the photograph and exlplain how it illustrates this article.

In the photograph we can see Gabriel Hinojos, in the tattoo removal center. He is wearing black sunglasses to protect his eyes from the laser's lightning. We can see that he is feeling a lot of pain because of the grimace he is doing. His body is still covered of black ink