The Far Away Brothers: Two Young Migrants and the Making of an American Life

In July 2015, the Barrio 18 gang produced a bus strike across El Salvador by threatening the life of any bus driver who went to work. The government mobilized the army and police, but on the first day the gang murdered five bus drivers and one transit worker. Few bus drivers worked the evening commute, stranding workers. Commerce stopped. The gang was “sending a message: We own you. We can rip out the roots of commerce in an instant” (203). El Salvador lost $12 million in commerce each day. By the end of the strike, eight bus drivers are murdered and El Salvador loses over $60 million in commerce.

In the summer of 2015, Ernesto and Raúl live together. Raúl still speaks to Wilber, but Ernesto refuses. They have developed a routine, for which Raúl is grateful. Their debt is now nearly $20,000 and a drought in El Salvador is hurting the family’s crops. The twins send money for their debt, but they can’t pay it down. They receive green cards and can now apply for social security cards to earn the full minimum wage. They both perform well at work, but are aware of racial boundaries in United States culture.