We Love You, Gustavo Robles, aka “Kaboom,” and raise your name before all of our Neighborhood

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Gustavo Robles, second from the left, with life-long childhood friends mourning the sudden loss of another giant in our community, Sergio Rios, in 2024.

“Every Pueblito has a coranzito, an inimitable essence for its people. A deep glow from above and below.”

Wherever Gustavo went, raucous laughter tended to ensue, along with an unmistakable camaraderie for and from the people around him. The fact is that it was a special gift how he went so naturally from goofing off with the homeboys to sliding off in front of the homegirls, then still finding time to offer a helping hand to the Señoras of our Pueblito. Together with his entirely contagious smile, these qualities made him a central figure anywhere in our neighborhood one of us was fortunate enough to find him.

Love is a flame; one that kindles more love from everything it touches. Gustavo embodied it every day and in every direction, so now in every direction we mourn and hold and uplift each other as he would have us do. In a world still dividing our families between borders and tearing away at our roots at every turn, it’s a gift to connect with those who still abide by everyone they meet as a sacred code of conduct; that’s what this young man was and what he will live indefinitely in our memories for.

We will have even more to recount in the wake of this champion’s sudden passing via Making a Neighborhood. Please subscribe to the Newsletter to be sure you don’t miss it.

Above all, our deepest condolences go to his friends, family, and everyone else who treasured Gustavo with us.

J.T.

A mural along Melrose avenue depicting Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna Bryant

A reflection on Father’s Day for every working-class father, and all the working-class mothers who also play the role in Los Angeles

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(Pandemic in Los Angeles: Day 94)

On this day–during this most critical year for our nation–I hope it’s only becoming clearer that if our nation has respect for the concept of the family, then it should show that respect in its treatment of families everywhere by uplifting them, as Kobe “Bean” Bryant was celebrated for uplifting his daughter Gianna Bryant.

In the days and months following the untimely passing of this first-class pair, the city of Los Angeles, along with people all over America, mourned their sudden loss with many words, moments of silence, and testimonials. Though it may seem just a faint memory now, one can still recall that in the short time before the coronavirus, almost every other day in L.A. was marked by some kind of space for mourning the unthinkable loss of the Bryants and other families above the hills in Calabasas.

Today, when mothers and fathers march for the deaths of their sons and daughters–or those who could be their family members–especially following their deaths at the hands of law enforcement–which, don’t forget: are preventable deaths–they’re only participating in the same collective grieving that arose for these far more famous figures not long ago.

But every human life, no matter how rich or how poor, is absolutely worth the world, worth fighting for, and worth demanding a better world for, as so much of the working-class is now calling for, once again, in America. When state and public officials thus choose to meet such demands with indifference, force, or disdain, they are openly betraying–once again–one of the ideals they claim to want to uphold. Hence why we mourn, Los Angeles, and why we must continue to rise again.

The battle is long. But it is still our duty to win. Kobe Bryant knew this. And that’s why we loved him. Or at least, why we claimed to do so. The time has now come to extend that love to people just as human as Bryant and his 13 year old daughter. We march for justice.

J.T.

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In Passing

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It’s been three months since Dear Leo was published, and the name still rings across the city. It also still maintains a candlelight vigil at Virgil and Burns, where everyone from the local homies to the local hipsters, police officers, and others in the neighborhood has mutually respected the humble memorial set up by Leo’s friends and family.

Whether in South Central or East L.A., or even just around the corner in Echo Park, gang violence is still tearing across the streets of the city. At the same time, the stories which don’t make it to the news desks –of individuals within the community organizing, building, and breaking bread with each other– continue changing the cycle for a new generation of young people. I’ve seen it steadily since Leo’s passing, and as a result I’m more hopeful today than ever about contributing to the peace in Los Angeles.

If even through so many heated days and windy nights, Leo’s candlelights could still maintain their ‘peace’, then so can I. So can all of the neighborhood; from South Central to East Los, and from Echo Park to Pasadena, and everywhere in between and beyond, The L.A. Storyteller believes in the strength of each block and the people who honor them.

With More Soon,