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This is Lee Habib, and this is Our American Stories. Up next, a story from Carlos Aguilar. Let's get into this story. Take it away, Carlos. I was born in San Salvador, El Salvador, during the internal conflict that was going on within the government and guerrilla warfare fighting.
It got too dangerous. The final breaking point for my family, specifically my grandfather, was the assassination of the Archbishop Oscar Romero. And he basically took all his life savings, gave it to my mother and to my grandmother. and said, Take this baby and don't come back Mm-hmm.
So we got to Chicago. Inner city. I started gangbanging when I was 12. There was numerous times where either the house would get shot up The car would get shot at. I will get shot at.
And after I graduated, I was like, well. If it took me six years of high school, it's probably gonna take me ten years of college. College is not free.
So I ended up getting three jobs, and then lo and behold, one day I just was off from all three. I was just sitting in front of my house. Little Dodge Neon comes driving by. He pulls it in the driveway and he goes, Hey. You know who I am?
Nope, no clue. And he's like I'm a marine You ever thought about joining? It's like, I probably would if I qualify, but I don't think I qualify. He goes, Well, that's my job to see if we could find that.
So, about three weeks pass, and then I get this random phone call because I filled out that form. He's like, hey, Aguilar, you aren't lying. You have a wrap sheet. You have a felony. Uh you're on probation.
If you want to join the Marine Corps, um We need to take care of that first. And I'm like, yeah, I told you, man, they didn't want to lie to you. He goes, oh no, but. We can work with that. Deep down, I actually didn't tell him the other issue that I had with the gangs.
Like, that's awesome, you know, that he was able to help me legally, but now the other part is. All right, what do I do? Because I'm starting thinking this privately and like, you know. I just Don't tell no one and just leave. Like, I could do it, but then, okay, retaliation might come with one of my siblings, or my parents, or someone I love or care about, so I'm like.
Yeah, I can't do that. I was panicking doing all this and finally I'm like, you know what? I'm just gonna do it.
So here we are, like a group of like. 40-50 people. This was in the summer. you know, having a regular little gang meeting or whatnot. I'm talking about children.
Age of 11 or 12. To like men that just got out of prison or men that were still in it in their 40s. You know, we're discussing all our gang matters, and at the end, they conclude: like, all right, does anybody have anything to say? Whatever and Might well, here it comes. All right, um, I don't know how you guys are gonna see this or take this and everything, but I decided to join the Marines.
And it felt forever, but there was a small pause, maybe about 10-15 seconds when no ages went dead silent. And everyone's just staring at me. And my heart was throbbing because I'm like, oh, here, here goes. Where either I get killed, I get jumped, or something. And then the younger kids, you know.
13, 14, I was like, oh, screw him. He's a sellout. Let's mess him up, this, that, and everything. And of course finally the older ones were like hey quiet quiet calm down like What is this you're trying to do, man? And I'm like, well.
I've lost friends. Loved ones. And you know, I've been in and out of jail. It took me six years of high school, and this is something that I just don't want. to further do and everything.
It's like Or like family, like. If that's what you want to know, we'll understand and we'll respect that, and just know that whenever you come back home. If you need us, we're here.
Okay, so I I could join? Yeah man, just Just good luck and everything. A burden had lifted over me and I'm like, all right, like... I was planning the words and I'm like, this is good, this is good. I lived that gang life for a lot of years.
I was in and out of jail to the point where my parents had to move.
So, everything and anything that I would ever tell them, they didn't believe. They're like, oh, here we go, one of your other stories.
So, when I told my parents that I was joining the Marines, they're like, oh, here we go, another scam, this, that, whatever. But the one person that never lost faith in what I said and did was my grandmother.
So when I told her of my plan and what I was doing, she's like, you know what? I've been praying to God that one day He would answer my prayers, and this day has finally come that you're gonna do something good with your life. And I'm like, Yes, ma'am, I'm gonna go.
Okay. Granted, I didn't stop cold turkey hanging around with the people that were affiliated with gangs and everything.
So, for whatever reason, I thought it was a good idea to go have one last hoorah with the buddies.
So I go out and don't come back home till like 4 4 30 in the morning I was drunk, smelling like smoke, and all the lights in the house were on. And I found it weird for that time. By going through the back as always. Everyone's awake. my brothers, my sister, my parents in the kitchen, And my mom just comes straight to me.
While you've been out there effing with your friends and everything, your grandma just died. and just smacks me across the face. Immediately sobering up, and I'm like, what? What are you talking about? I just, I just talked to her a couple of days ago.
No, no, this can't be. And I'm just going through all the emotions, punching the air, punching the wall, going mad, crazy. I call the recruiter, hey man, I know you're supposed to pick me up today, but I'm not going. What do you mean? What do you mean?
My grandma just died, and I'm going to El Salvador to her funeral and everything.
So I'm not doing it. I quit. Two, three days later, we buried her. I started calming down more, and I was like, well, you know what? My grandma's last memories of me was knowing that I was gonna do something good with my life.
So let not her life go in vain.
So when I go back home, I'm going to fulfill what I told her that I was going to do when I was going to join the United States Marine Corps. Yeah. I was already 18, so I didn't need permission from my mother.
So The following day, the recruiter comes knocking on the door. Hey, how are you doing, Mrs. Aguilar? Sarah and Gooseman, just here to pick up your son. My son?
What do you mean? Did he not tell you? By what? They was enjoying the Marines.
Well Okay. I thought he was lying. I didn't know. I thought he made it up. No, I'm actually here to pick him up.
No, no, no, don't take 'em So she starts spazzing out I didn't know this at the time. she either experienced Or had witnessed some of the atrocities that were going in El Salvador and was afraid that something like that I would be involved in, or even worse, you know, with some type of war the US will cause. She runs into her bedroom, goes into her drawer and like pulls out her savings. And she's trying to bribe the recruiter. Here, here, here's this money, take it, just pretend like you never seen him.
And Sergeant Guzman's looking at me and he's like, Aguilar, what? What's going on with your mom? He's like, and I'm like, mom, I gotta do this. He's like, no, no, please don't leave me. Your grandma just left.
You don't leave me, please, no, and everything. Then Sergeant Gooseman turns around and tells her, ma'am. I'm taking your boy away, but I promise you. I will bring you back a man. From day one.
Chaos, misery. I didn't know how to prepare for boot camp. I didn't know what it was. Here I am, ex-gang banger. Of course, I had a drone sort of come in my face and.
Start screaming at me, and Chicago mentality kicks in and pushes him: like, get away from who you screaming at him. That was the worst thing to do.
Next, you know, I have like 10 drill instructors all around me. Oh, welcome to our world. Who do you think you are? Blah, blah, blah. We're the biggest gang out there and everything.
And from there on, I had labeled myself and to drill instructors, made sure that every day that I woke up. I was demanded on. I was stressed out. It was miserable. I used to damn their names.
I hated them. I would wish and pray every night when they would leave the squad bay that they would get in a car wreck. That's how bad I hated them. But after a while, I was like, you know what? I hate them.
But I want to earn their respect more than anything else. Becoming a journalist myself. Slowly, what the Marine Corps says of breaking you down and building back up. Little did I know that it started to happen without even me knowing. Come Family Day, the day prior to graduation, unbeknownst to me at the time, I didn't even know my family had flew in to see me because kind of turned my back on everything because of the passing of my grandmother.
Because I'm like, you know what? He was a God-fearing woman that devoted her life to faith and even then when I needed her the most, she was gone. But here I see two people from afar running towards me, and the next you know, as they're getting closer, I'm like. Oh my god, it's my parents. My mom is running with this huge picture frame that she had got of my grandmother, color penciled with her in the background, and then in the bottom right corner is a picture of me in my dress blues.
So I was like wow, that that was amazing. It was one of the best feelings I ever had This is what I mean by things happen for a reason. If it wasn't for her passing, I would have never continued to be a Marine. If it wasn't for her passing, I would have done all these other additional things that have made me a better person, better human being, family member, son, father. You might not know right then and there why it happened to you, but eventually it'll come to life.
And a terrific job of the production, editing, and storytelling by our own James Josky, our intern from Hillsdale College, and his debut piece. And also to Caleb Robinson, our intern from Ole Miss. And what a story we heard: the story of Carlos Aguilar and his family escaping war-torn El Salvador, only to find themselves on Chicago city streets, and then that grandmother. and her death. Prompted a major change and is responsible for a remarkable change in Carlos Aguilar's life.
and destiny. From Gang Life to Marine Life The Story of Carlos Aguilar. Here on Our American Stories. We learned how to love dogs from the dogs that loved us and waited for us to get home from school. They were the dogs that raised us.
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