ABSTRACT
Folklorists and ethnographers seek to understand gang cultures, but presenting this material to the public often runs the risk of appearing to celebrate a dangerous and destructive lifestyle; conducting fieldwork can be hazardous. Joseph Rodriguez’s documentary photographs of Latino gang life in East Los Angeles, for example, have been exhibited at the Museo Nacional de Cultural Populares in Mexico City, as well as the International Center of Photography in New York City. He presented the photographs with stories as gang members related them. Information from such documentaries and ethnographies are used in community programs to educate youth and parents about the lures, as well as tragedies, of gang life.
