Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    El Barrio Remembered
    El Barrio Remembered
    El Barrio Remembered
    Ebook105 pages1 hour

    El Barrio Remembered

    By Victor Lopez

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    These stories depict true occurrences reflecting how teenagers dealt with the changes arising during these crucial times in our nation's history. A new world was arising and we had a front-row seat to political changes as well as racial and gender issues. As we traversed these issues of family, culture, and racism, we were bolstered by such things as music and art as well as religion and trying desperately to hold on to our traditional values. We clung to one another and our families as we made our way in an ever-changing landscape; and we progressed, we innovated, we adapted, and succeeded in becoming part of the mosaic that became New York City.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPage Publishing, Inc.
    Release dateJan 4, 2022
    ISBN9781662458095
    El Barrio Remembered

    Related to El Barrio Remembered

    Related ebooks

    Children's Social Themes For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Growing Up Sansei in LA

      Jun 23, 2020

      Growing Up Sansei in LA
      9 min read

    • Article

      Letter from Lafayette Square

      Dec 7, 2021

      One Sunday in February my mom telephones at eight in the morning to remind me that the bishop of Maryland is coming to Saint James at Lafayette Square, the African American Episcopal church where I was baptized and confirmed. There will be a single s

      15 min read

    • Article

      Dust to Dust

      Jul 29, 2021

      Dust to Dust
      11 min read

    • Article

      A Hxstory of Renting

      Oct 1, 2023

      A Hxstory of Renting
      3 min read

    • Article

      Projections of Life

      Jun 1, 2023

      Projections of Life
      14 min read

    • Article

      Locals

      Jun 11, 2021

      Locals
      26 min read

    • Article

      Obreros Unidos

      Mar 7, 2023

      Obreros Unidos
      13 min read

    • Article

      The Outsiders

      May 31, 2020

      The Outsiders
      7 min read

    • Article

      Readers Write: Finding Progress Despite Violent Histories

      Aug 19, 2023

      How brave and honest of the Monitor to uncover the deeper reasons for American violence and mistaken thinking in the June 5 cover story, “Exposing the roots of violence.” I spent my early childhood in Wilmington, Delaware, where my family housed and

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Art of Nonfiction No. 11

      Dec 7, 2021

      The Art of Nonfiction No. 11
      26 min read

    • Article

      Past The Edges Of Town

      Jan 27, 2022

      Past The Edges Of Town
      10 min read

    • Article

      An Intimate History of America

      Dec 18, 2017

      An Intimate History of America
      4 min read

    • Article

      A Place Before Words

      Aug 27, 2020

      A Place Before Words
      10 min read

    • Article

      Where Teens Used to Hang Out

      Dec 12, 2023

      Where Teens Used to Hang Out
      7 min read

    • Article

      Everyday People Were Civil Rights Heroes, Too. This Is The Story Of One Town's Fight

      Oct 23, 2022

      In 1970, the murder of a Black man in Oxford, N.C., led ordinary people to take extraordinary action. In a country that still struggles with race, stories like theirs show that the past is not dead.

      5 min read

    • Article

      Keeping It In The Family

      Aug 11, 2023

      Iwas told that my maternal great-grandmother, Annie Newman (b.1871, Coleby, Lincolnshire) was one of seven sisters who grew up in a tiny two-up twodown cottage, in Coleby near Lincoln. My nan, Mabel, was Annie’s only daughter. In 1985, I started rese

      2 min read

    • Article

      I’m Still Saying Her Name

      Sep 15, 2020

      I’m Still Saying Her Name
      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for El Barrio Remembered

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      El Barrio Remembered - Victor Lopez

      cover.jpg

      El Barrio Remembered

      Victor Lopez

      Copyright © 2021 Victor López

      All rights reserved

      First Edition

      PAGE PUBLISHING, INC.

      Conneaut Lake, PA

      First originally published by Page Publishing 2021

      ISBN 978-1-6624-5808-8 (pbk)

      ISBN 978-1-6624-5809-5 (digital)

      Printed in the United States of America

      Table of Contents

      The Three Strike Rule (1962)

      Don’t Skate (1963)

      Mr. Breaststroke/Palisades Park (1964)

      The Incident at the Checkerboards

      Hooky Party/Hickey Party (1965)

      Embarrassment on the Number Six Train (1966)

      The Candy Incident (1967)

      The Delivery Job (1968)

      Pilfering at Alexanders Department Store (1968)

      Big Tony to the Rescue (1969)

      East Harlem Heroes (1970)

      Insult to Injury/My Dad Dies (1971)

      The Attack of the Half Man (1972)

      To my wonderful parents—Mary C. and Joe Pepe López—who, through their constant guidance, sacrifice, and unconditional love, shaped me into the man I am today.

      Gracias, mis padres queridos.

      To my loving wife, Ruth. Because of your love and support, I am a better educator, father, and grandfather but, most of all, a better person.

      Te amo, mi amor.

      To Andrea for two decades of support and caring.

      To all of you raised in the inner cities of this great country of ours, who drank from fire hydrants and played endlessly on asphalt playgrounds. Those that were labeled as poor but didn’t realize it because you were happy. This book is respectfully dedicated.

      Introduction

      The purpose of this book is remembrance and education. It is written to recount a golden decade in the history of New York City, from 1962 to 1972, and the lives of those teens growing up during these much simpler times in a neighborhood called Spanish Harlem or, in Spanish, El Barrio.

      The 1960s and seventies were important years in the life of New York City. Change was in the air throughout the United States and indeed the world. Among those objects of change were racial and gender inequities, as well as everything from music to fashion. A new world was arising and those of us who were teens during these times had a front-row seat to these proceedings whether we wanted it or not. Men such as John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King were leading the way regarding how we looked at war, violence, and race. Women were finding their voices and through the use of newfound media outlets, these changes now occurred in your living room through the ever-changing medium of television. Yes indeed, the revolution was televised as families saw firsthand everything from the Vietnam War to race riots and the blackout. The Beatles arrived and changed life as we knew it. And the music, oh! The music. Artists such as Marvin Gaye, Bob Dylan, and others too many to mention redefined what we listened to. Motown created a vehicle for African Americans to create a new sound and social commentary. Salsa, a new type of dance music made up of a mélange of Latin rhythms mixed with a New York sound and attitude, was growing in popularity.

      These stories will depict some of the personal occurrences that transpired to me and teens like me in my neighborhood, a small patch of cement called East Harlem. El Barrio stretched from 96th Street to 125th Street and Fifth Avenue to the East River. It was the destination for many Hispanic immigrants as early as the 1930s but came to be the favorite destination for those coming from the island of Puerto Rico. These travelers, who were American citizens by birthright, flocked to East Harlem in New York City for the same reasons that millions of immigrants before them had come—they sought better lives, economic opportunity, and advancement for their children, and the American dream.

      These stories chronicle a life before cellular phones, the internet, and video games. They delve into how teenagers lived their daily lives, interacted with their parents and other authority figures, and attempted to make their way in a changing world. They speak to young romance, overcoming racism, and how we studied, played, and grew during some of the most turbulent yet beautiful years in memory. Finally, they speak to how teenagers during these times held fast to their customs, beliefs, and language in an ever-changing landscape where they were always trying to fit in while still staying true to their culture and old-world beliefs.

      The Three Strike Rule (1962)

      Dreams get you started… Discipline keeps you going.

      This morning was like no other in recent memory for me. Our move from the Bronx to the East Harlem section of upper Manhattan had gone well and we were now residents of the Franklin Plaza Apartments. This cooperative development stretching from 106th Street to 108th Street and Third Avenue to First Avenue was newly built and my family had managed to acquire a two-bedroom apartment there. My dad had insisted on returning to El Barrio from the Bronx after my mother was mugged coming home from work in our supposedly safe neighborhood.

      Twenty years in ‘El Barrio’ and nothing happened, he said. We move and look what happens. We are going back to where we know people.

      I had been taken out of Joy Town School, a private school in Fordham Hill that catered to gifted students. My parents were paying a lot for my education, but they believed it would give me a good start. I was learning French and part of an advanced reading program that introduced phonics and decoding at an early age. The school also featured the latest in early childhood instruction as well as an Arts and Music Program. My questions about where I would be going to school were answered this day as my mother broke the news to me.

      You start school tomorrow, she said. You’re going to Saint Cecilia’s across the street.

      I looked at her with a mix of amazement and panic.

      A Catholic school, I thought. I had heard stories about Catholic schools and they weren’t good. Beatings, all-day prayers. Wow. I thought you said I could stay in Joy Town until June? I asked.

      Too expensive! my dad blurted out over his morning coffee. Besides, it’s right across the street and the neighbors all say that it’s a good school, good teachers, and strict.

      Besides, Dad continued, the fifty dollars a month we save will come in handy.

      My mom continued to tell me about my placement as I looked out of the window toward the school building. There it was, directly across the street. It was an old building with clearly marked separate entrances for girls and boys.

      They looked at your report cards and have placed you in the fourth grade, Mommy stated.

      But I’m in the third grade, I replied.

      "Well, mijo, they must think you’re smart. We are going shopping for your uniform this afternoon, so be ready. Uniforms too."

      I thought, That can’t be good.

      Unlike my previous school, uniforms were mandatory at Saint Cecilia’s. They consisted of an ensemble of corduroy. Corduroy pants, maroon in color, followed by a gray corduroy jacket, white shirt, and maroon tie emblazoned with the letters SCS on it. They even suggested shoes which my mother eagerly purchased. Our purchase was complete and the remainder of my day was filled with being fitted for the uniform. My mother, being a sewing wizard, hemmed my pants and jacket sleeves on her Singer sewing machine. I remember how stiff the corduroy felt on my skin.

      How could we wear this in the hot months? I thought.

      I would soon find answers to this and all my questions.

      The next morning, dressed in my complete school uniform, my mom and I headed out. Instead of a direct path across the street, as I had anticipated to the school, we headed west toward Lexington Avenue.

      Where are we going, Mom? I asked.

      Oh, I forgot to tell you, the students attend mass every day before school. We are going to the church. That’s where the entire school meets.

      Wait, what? I thought, The school day begins in church? How does that work?

      "The students attend mass every day from eight

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1