| Chapter 1: | Introduction |
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asking if you need any form of identification. This is where Juan Carlos can become John or Maria Elena can become Mary.
A typical transaction to change one's identity and begin a new life in the U.S. takes about one hour to complete. A miquero will approach, gesturing with his right hand the universal sign of an ID (a “C” with the right hand). If you agree to the transaction, he will ask you what you want your name to be or suggest some names for you. You agree on a price, about $100 for a California driver's license and double that for a new green card or social security card. You then proceed to one of the immigrant-owned photo shops in the area, where you can develop your roll of film or obtain the passport photos needed by the Mexican, Guatemalan, or El Salvadoran consulates just down the street to issue you your formal immigration documents. Or you can wait while the store owner turns the white photo background into a blue one for your new driver's license. You then return about forty-five minutes later to the same corner where you first met the miquero to retrieve your new identity and begin your new life in the U.S.
MacArthur Park during the mid-1990s was an area infamous for its informal sectors and the easy accessibility to these sectors, not only for the local immigrant community but also for the city as a whole. The miqueros were just one type of informal activity in the area. Street vendors sold anything from tamales and pupusas3 to cigarettes and drugs. Day laborers seeking informal work in the construction industry, scattered on the street corners, competed against each other for that day's work. There were, of course, problems with prostitution and violence. The area was the epicenter and hub of drug activity, had the highest homicide rates in the city, and saw the emergence of many street gangs within the neighborhood, including the now transnational Mara Salvatrucha-13 (MS-13) gang.
The formal institutions in the neighborhood were also deeply troubled. The local city councilor was arrested in the park for cocaine possession. The famous Rampart police station scandal made national headlines, culminating in the arrest of six officers and an FBI investigation into the criminal activities of the division. The local public schools were very