I came across the below poem while researching about MS-13’s origins. It was written by a member and the events described below are purportedly those that lead to their founding in Los Angeles.
Worth noting in the below translation is the word Guanaco. Here in Colombia – and in other parts of Latin America – it means someone that is of low intelligence that lives in an undeveloped, rustic area. “Country bumpkin” is probably the best rendition into English. In Central America this refers to Salvadoreans. Whether or not it has the same connation there as here, I am not sure.
War and misery forced them
to leave their land,
And they departed motivated by their dreams and illusions,
But on their way in search of happiness,
They found sadness and disappointments …
Through suffering they had to discover
That in a far country they had to cling to brotherhood to survive …
Tired of discrimination and humiliation,
One night a great legend emerged,
After a shootout where three people died,
Some young people hearing the sirens of the police,
Between alleys and avenues disappeared …
At the scene of the crime written in blood,
A graffiti that said: love overcomes fear.
It was the beginning of a struggle, the birth of the
Mara Salvatrucha.