Rodriguez begins an autobiographical account of his life in Los Angeles by dedicating it to a long list of friends (25) who had been killed by "rival gangs, police, drugs, car crashes and suicides". All of this happened during the first 18 years of his life there.

Luis and his siblings were born in El Paso, Texas, although the Rodriguez family lived across the border, in Ciudad Juarez. The parents, with plans to move into the U.S., knew that children born there automatically obtained their citizenship. The family finally ended up in Los Angeles, but had trouble finding steady jobs. Also the neighborhood they settled in was once designated "as one of the 10 poorest in the country."

It was difficult for Luis to stay in school, because Mexican students were always treated as second-rate. Both language and ethnic differences added to this, and at the same time ignited many gang wars. Whenever Luis was expelled from school, he would end up in a gang, on drugs, or in jail. His......

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Title: Always Running
Approximate Word Count: 491
Approximate Pages: 2 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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