In the context of strong social and racial tensions, the publication of the poem I am Joaquin established its author, former boxer and political activist Rodolfo “Corky“ Gonzales, as an indisputable symbol of the Chicano movement. Conceived as a revolutionary tool, the poem provides an overview of the situation of the Chicanos in the United States while also advocating for equal rights and the acknowledgment of their cultural identity.

Ten years later, the dream of a community united around its own values would take shape on the pages of Lowrider, a magazine founded by Sonny Madrid in 1977. The title of the magazine refers to the widespread and highly appreciated Chicano sport in which they modify the suspension system of a vintage car so that it can ride up and down on its wheels and run low, almost at ground level. Despite the magazine’s success, one of its most valued contributors left the editorial team in 1981 to create his own, Teen Angels. It soon became known as “The Voice of the Varrio” as it proudly reported on the daily lives of its readers who provided much of the content (photographs, shoutouts, drawings, or obituaries); the magazine was a real social network before social networks even existed — so much so that the police would read it to try to understand the codes used by gangs and decipher their graffiti.

Intrigued by the mysterious hieroglyphs hidden under bridges and covering all kinds of surfaces along the streets, Gusmano Cesaretti finally managed to meet one of their authors, Chicano graffiti and urban artist Chaz Bojórquez, who soon became his guide and friend. This special relationship allowed the photographer to be both an observer and a participant: he published the first book about Chicano graffiti, and ended up signing his own writings, just like the graffiti writers of the neighborhood did. Other photographers, such as Janette Beckman or Joseph Rodriguez, were also accepted by the community and were able to depict the complexity of the gangs living in the East Los Angeles neighborhoods.

First introduced to one of the oldest gangs, the Hoyo MaraVilla, through an article published in LA Weekly, Janette Beckman became a member in the summer of 1983. She returned to her native England with a portfolio of photographs in which 90% of the protagonists would eventually end up dead or in jail. An overwhelming reality that Joseph Rodriguez shared with a larger audience through intimate portraits and testimonies from cholos; one of them claimed that “joining a gang is like meeting a girl: at first glance, she is just a body, until you really get to know her. Once you are integrated in the group, everything is based on hatred, loyalty, and respect.” On the other hand, refusing to join a gang when you come from a neighborhood with a fearsome reputation like South Central can be risky. Such was the case for Jonathan Velasquez, whose pants considered too tight, and hair deemed too long made him and his skateboarding friends perfect targets. Ignoring all forms of provocation, Velasquez not only stood out for his appearance, but also for his taste for punk-rock and hardcore music rather than the popular Latin American songs or hip-hop music that was traditionally associated with the gangs around him. Velasquez became a celebrity thanks to the movie Wassup Rockers, based on his adventures and those of his friends from the ghetto. He eventually created his own band: reVolt.

Ultimately, if most Latinos — Chicanos included — could afford to shed a tear when listening to Morrissey — as described by William E. Jones in his project Is it really so strange? — , who could stop Jonathan Velasquez and his band from taking their inspiration from the Misfits or the Ramones to go up on stage? Both Punk (influenced in Los Angeles by other subcultures such as the skateboard or surf communities) and hardcore (its even faster, more direct, and nihilistic version) provided the Californian city with a pool of essential groups which were every bit as good as those from New York or London.

One of them, Black Flag, became a major group thanks in part to their visual identity (logo, flyers, covers, etc.) carefully crafted by Raymond Pettibon throughout their career. But it is The Germs and especially their leader, Darby Crash, who will mark several generations. Having made the front page of the cult magazine Slash, which will become the punk label Slash Records and produce their first (and only) album, Darby Crash played according to his own rules till the end. His utterly theatrical performances, closer to Viennese Actionism (an artistic movement where the body was the canvas and the blood served as paint), combined with his masochistic practices on stage, offering his body to the public or self-mutilating, reveal the most radical gesture there is: his own suicide. No wonder William Friedkin chose The Germs for the soundtrack of his controversial film, Cruising, in which a policeman must infiltrate New York’s sadomasochistic gay clubs to expose a serial killer.