Former Gang Member Makes A Big Change In His Life

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

Richard Gamarra, a former member of the Latin Kings gang, will soon be earning his master's degree from the prestigious Columbia University. After spending seven years behind bars and facing weapons possession charges, the 28-year-old Colombian made a radical change in his life. "Education rehabilitated me," he told the New York Daily News.

"I will not believe it until I have that diploma in my hands," added the expansionist. "I don't want my past to define me. I want to undo that stigma of having been in prison. I know there are many other Richards out there.”

The young man grew up in Flushing, Queens, in an immigrant family and in high school joined the Latin Kings bargain under pressure from his other members. At age 16, the police arrested him for illegal possession of a firearm. Since then the arrests and misdeeds continued until he was jailed at age 19 for seven years. “It was a very difficult time. It was very hard,”he recalled of his time at the bargain.

Her life changed when she met Robert Fullilove, a professor at Columbia University who was going to give prisoners public health classes. "I no longer wanted this to continue to be my life," said Gamarra, who excelled as a student in prison.

A great source of motivation was being a better father to his daughter Izabella, now 10 years old. Coming home with her and building a better future for her offspring encouraged him to continue his education. So when he was released in 2013, he called his former teacher to take classes at Columbia. In 2015 he received his baccalaureate and in a few days he will have his master's degree. Gamarra wants to use his master's degree in public health to teach and advise other prisoners. "Where there is a will, there is a way," he concluded.