Content Warning: This section depicts and discusses graphic violence and murder, rape, child sexual abuse, trauma, emotional abuse, physical abuse, substance use and addiction, the deaths of children, and racism. 

Reymundo Sanchez justifies his intent to share his experiences as a former gang member in Chicago by stating that his narrative critiques societal and systemic failures. He also points toward parental neglect and corrupt justice systems as causes for his experiences. Sanchez explains that his aim is to expose the destructive dynamics of Latino gangs. He also wants to inspire change and save lives by exposing the truth about gang life and the power structure that gangs observe.

Sanchez recounts the unconventional way that his life began: In 1963, his mother gave birth to him in a car. Sanchez’s father was a 74-year-old widower who married Sanchez’s mother when she was just 16. This unusual age gap set the stage for complicated familial relationships. His father’s older children, some of whom were the same age as Sanchez’s mother, resented the union, creating lasting divisions within the family. Sanchez’s father died when Sanchez was five years old.

His mother quickly remarried. This new marriage introduced a period of severe hardship and abuse for Sanchez.