The Friday night sky had not yet fallen dark over South Los Angeles, but outside Chuco’s Youth Justice Center there is already one black man being interrogated by police. Not even minutes later, another young black man faces the police in this South Los Angeles neighborhood, on the border of Inglewood. This comes just weeks after Ezell Ford, a young black man, was shot and killed by police just a few blocks away from the doors of this youth center. The Chuco’s Youth Justice Coalition Center itself is named after Jesse “Chuco” Becerra, an activist who was killed when leaving a house party on September 24, 2005.

Youth leaders come to Chuco’s, a space filled with social activism, community art, Aztec and African-American murals, to purposefully teach life skills, social activism, and community awareness to the young students of this neighborhood. Inside, there are groups dancing samba, students learning self-defense, and in the very back of the building--with almost no light at all-- two young Latino students are playing basketball.

The Chuco’s Youth and Justice Center serves the community with passion, also housing FREE LA High School (Fighting for the Revolution to Educate and Empower Los Angeles), a charter high school that provides a “own history” says Youth Organizer, Emilio Lacques. He explains how the center aims to empower students through education and activism:


The center aims to teach youth about the school to jail tract system, describing the severe lack of resources within schools in African-American and Latino district.

STUDY: TRACKED AND TRAPPED

Many students of color realize the public school system within their own communities are underserved and poorly organized, leaving students with minimal resources necessary to succeed. A Chucos youth leader, Dre, shares her struggles as a teenage student within the public school system:

Inside there is an altar which pays tribute to the people that have been involved with Chuco’s Justice Center and have been killed due to gun violence, police brutality or other.

Juan explains how public school did not work out for him due to the heavy policing that created a hostile education environment for him. He describes why he enjoyed FREE LA, the alternative charter high school and some of his past experiences with law enforcement:

Juan, also shares his experiences and his worries for the future:

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