Mad Day Out
The Barrio Gangs of San Antonio, 1915-2015
Barrio Gangs is the most comprehensive academic case study of barrio group dynamics in a major Texas city to date. This is a sociological work on the history of barrio gangs in San Antonio and other large Texas cities to the present day. It examines the century-long evolution of urban barrio subcultures using public archives, oral histories, old photos, and other forms of qualitative data. The study gives special attention to the barrio gangs’ “heyday,” from the 1940s through the 1960s, comparing their attributes to those of modern groups. It illustrates how social and technological changes have affected barrio networking processes and the intensity of the street lifestyle over time. Intergenerational shifts and the tension that accompanies such changes are also central themes in the book. Few other places are so conducive to such historical exploration as is San Antonio. Street ignobility in the barrio no doubt mirrors processes found in other Chicano communities in Texas and the Southwest. The gang contexts in major Chicano population centers have lengthy historical bases rooted in weak opportunity structures, oppression, and discrimination. This work shows that participation in street violence, drug selling, and other parts of the informal economy are functional adaptations to the social structure; the forces propelling the formation of barrio gangs are not temporary social phenomena.
The Religion of the Samek
Voices in Wartime
The Voices in Wartime Anthology explores the experience of war through the literary arts from ancient times to the present. The anthology includes the voices of US veterans of the Iraq war; experts on war trauma and the history of war; and poets from around the world. It includes poetry, essays, and narratives based on interviews conducted for the feature-length documentary film Voices in Wartime. The book features active-duty soldiers, veterans, torture victims, war correspondents, the families of the disappeared and the dead, poets, peace activists--the compelling responses of unique, individual human beings to the experience of war. Their poetry springs from unrelenting honesty, personal grief and deep compassion, and is infused with an understanding of hardship and suffering.The Voices in Wartime Anthology explores the experience of war through the literary arts from ancient times to the present. The anthology features the voices of US veterans of the Iraq war; experts on war trauma and the history of war; and poets from around the world. It includes:Jose Diaz, US Army Reserve military policeman and father of two. He returned to the US in the fall of 2004 after serving a year's deployment in Iraq as a military police sergeant in the Army Reserves. Brian Turner, who earned an MFA in Creative Writing (poetry) from the University of Oregon, and then served in the US Army for seven years. He was an infantry team leader in Iraq for a year beginning November 2003, and served with the Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division. Lt. General William Lennox, superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point. He wrote his Ph.D. dissertation on American war poetry. Paul Mysliwiec, US Army First Lieutenant who led his unit through the invasion of Baghdad in spring 2003 and then spent months searching for Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. Jonathan Shay, psychiatrist for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs in Boston. Shay treats combat veterans with severe psychological injuries and is the author of the best-selling books "Achilles in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and the Undoing of Character," and "Odysseus in America: Combat Trauma and the Trials of Homecoming." Emily Warn, a poet, teacher, and activist--and the author of "The Novice Insomniac" and three other collections of poetry. Chris Hedges, a former "New York Times" war correspondent with 15 years of experience in places such as El Salvador, Kosovo, and the Persian Gulf. He shared a 2002 Pulitzer Prize for coverage of global terrorism. Andrew Himes, Executive Producer of Voices in Wartime and director of Beyond Wartime. David Connolly, poet and veteran who served honorably in Vietnam with the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. Wilfred Owen, British soldier-poet during the First World War. Died in combat a week before the Armistice in 1918. Alix Wilber, novelist and Co-Executive Producer of Voices in Wartime. Jonathan Schell, author of Unconquerable World, and Fate of the Earth. Craig White, NBC cameraman, embedded with the 3rd Infantry Division, one of the first US Army units to enter Baghdad in April 2003. Sinan Antoon, Iraqi poet, filmmaker, and human rights activist. Chris Abani, Nigerian human rights activist and refugee. Nguyen Duy, widely considered the most important Vietnamese poet of his generation. Antonieta Villamil, Columbian poet, peace and human rights activist. Sheila Sebron, disabled, African-American Air Force veteran living with chronic PTSD and severe pain. John Henry Parker, veteran and founder of Veterans and Families. "If history and literature have taught us anything," said anthology editor and film producer Andrew Himes, "it is that in the midst of trauma, violence and death, it is the poets who help us make sense of the senseless. In a world turned upside down, listening attentively to the stories of others can open our hearts, our minds, and point the way to change."
