This Is For The Mara Salvatrucha is the first non-fiction narrative about the MS-13. It tells the story of Brenda Paz, a young street gang member who betrayed her gang and became an informant, revealing a previously unknown threat across America.
by Samuel Logan
I was on the Peter Boyles show this morning. He’s a great guy, rides a motorcyle, and has had many well known guests talk on this show, from Hell’s Angels leader Sonny Barger to Hell’s Angels infiltrator Jay “Jay Bird” Dobyns, author of No Angel. I’m hopeful I can be on his show again in the near future.
News channel 8, in Washington DC has asked me to come in on Tuesday, 18 August at 10AM. It’s a local news station, but if you’re in the area, tune in!
I took a call today from CNN in London, and they’ve asked me to be on the CNN Int’l show, Connect the World with Becky Anderson. I’m told it will be a 4 - 6 minute segment, starting at 4:30PM, EST.
I’ll be talking about the presence of Mexican drug trafficking organizations across the world, focusing on India and China, the Americas, the US, and Europe.
Hopefully they’ll plug my book!
Tune in if you can…
So much fun!
The guest host, Susan was wonderful. Sarah Garland, my co-guest, was very articulate and smart. I enjoyed meeting her and chatting with her before we went in the studio for the show. And they let us keep Diane Rehm show gifts - a plastic mug and writing pad.
The callers were great. A lady from IL called, asking why we hadn’t talked about her small town, located 20 miles outside of Chicago. Another caller, who had worked in El Salvador monitoring deportees once they arrived in the country. He alluded to the fact that at the time, in the late 80s, early 90s, some deportees were killed when they arrived in the country - a very interesting perspective.
Have a listen, here!
This morning’s show ran for 1:15! When I asked him how long he thought it would run, at the beginning of the segment, he said, “we’ll have you on for about 10 minutes if you suck.” Apparently he thought it went well too.
We had a couple interesting callers. One guy claimed to have been a member of the Southside Locos for about six years. He recalled that when he was a member living in Alexandria, he and his homies were fighting against the MS-13 all the time.
And another caller said that he went to middle school with Denis Rivera, one of the characters in my book. The caller said that he and Denis had actually gotten into a fight and both were suspended.
Live radio shows in the studio are fun! I’m looking forward to Diane Rehm tomorrow.
It’s 5:45AM, and I’m preparing for the Elliot in the Morning radio show - DC101. It will be an hour-long live discussion, and my first in studio appearance so far. I’m sure we’ll talk about the book and MS-13, and I suspect we’ll talk about MS-13 activity in the southern Maryland area, especially around Langley Park.
You can listen live beginning 7:30AM, here.
Tomorrow, I’ll be on the Diane Rehm show with Sara Garland, author of Gangs in Garden City. I think they’ll have some FBI officials on the line as well, so it should be an interesting conversation. You can find the show here. We go live at 11AM EST.
Q: Gang violence is a daily reality for some Americans, but certainly not all. Why should everyone be concerned about gang growth in this country? What can we do to control and limit it?
A: The MS-13 no longer limits recruitment to Latinos. There are many cases of Caucasian members. Cops across the country consistently say that parents are the last to know. The best way to limit street gangs is to invest in young people with more parental attention. The next best option is to create after school programs that keep young teens off the streets. Prevention goes much farther than intervention or rehabilitation.
Q. What are the best prevention strategies?
A: Awareness and after school activities are two of the most effective strategies used today. Facilitating classroom discussions and raising street gang awareness among parents go a long way toward helping children and their parents recognize a street gang presence in their lives. More importantly, parents who know the signs of street gang involvement are in a better position to address their child’s participation before it becomes too late. Oftentimes, however, parents work until late, creating a gap in time between school and when parental supervision in the evening. This after school period is when most gang recruiters strike. After school programs, such as team sports, are very effective at filling this gap and giving kids an organized outlet away from the enticing influences of gang members.
Q: Several of the law enforcement officers involved with Brenda Paz’s case made an heroic effort to help her escape gang life. Why, in the end, was it not enough?
A: Brenda was the first teenager in the history of the US Witness Protection program to enter without adult supervision. The program, which was designed for middle-aged mob informants, not pregnant teenage girls, failed to provide Brenda with the love and attention she so needed. She was alone too often, and eventually, at the deepest moment of her loneliness, the only person she thought to call was her boyfriend, an MS-13 member. He eventually betrayed her, which is ultimately what led to her death.
For all you Spanish speakers out there, here’s an interview published 14 July by Colombian newspaper, El Espectador. I’ve pasted the entire (short) interview below:
“Sospecho vínculos con Colombia”
Por: Elespectador.com
Samuel Logan es periodista, autor del nuevo libro This is for the Mara Salvatrucha (Esto es para la Mara Salvatrucha) y habló con El Espectador.
¿Qué significa ser miembro de la MS?
La MS-13 es una familia; ser miembro es como ser hermano o hermana. Una vez que uno esté iniciado, a través de un rito de 13 segundos de abuso físico, el amor y el apoyo que recibe son reconfortantes.
¿Qué tan preocupante es su poder en las cárceles?
Es muy preocupante. Los miembros de las pandillas entran y luego salen sin reformarse, pero con un vigor renovado. Dentro de las cárceles, los líderes quedan protegidos y pueden reinar desde una fortaleza fácilmente defendida; no son prisiones, son castillos.
¿Qué cambios hay que hacer en las políticas?
Se requiere toda una gama de cambios en Centroamérica y en los Estados Unidos. Pero la MS-13 y la violencia que trae son síntomas de problemas subyacentes. Las causas fundamentales son la pobreza, la educación inadecuada, el desempleo y un sistema de emigración y de remesas que recompensa a los que salen del país. La comunidad internacional tiene que ayudar con algo más que los pesitos ofrecidos por la Iniciativa Mérida (la versión del Plan Colombia para México y Centroamérica).
¿Las cárceles de los EE.UU. son más eficaces?
Hasta cierto punto. Comparadas con las cárceles en Centroamérica, la corrupción y el contrabando son mínimos. Sin embargo, la tarea más difícil es controlar la sociedad carcelaria, que está dominada por la necesidad de afiliarse con un grupo —en muchos casos, una pandilla— para sobrevivir o tener una vida decente.
¿La MS-13 tiene vínculos con Colombia?
Lo sospecho.
¿Cómo ve el futuro de la MS-13?
No ha llegado a su pico. Me causa curiosidad ver qué tanto va a evolucionar hacia algo que represente una organización criminal, como el Cartel de Sinaloa o Los Zetas. Estoy mirando detenidamente El Paso, Texas, donde la pandilla carcelaria Barrio Azteca ha sido golpeado por fallas legales. ¿La MS-13 tomará su espacio? Quizás. Hay una docena de otras pandillas locales que podrían competir por el territorio, pero no son tan violentas o tan motivadas como muchos miembros de la Mara Salvatrucha.
