These lines from the song by The Animals serve as a kind of barrio psalm, spoken to the self in times of distress. For many Latino youth in California, the sentiments, if not the words themselves, are well known. For Edgar Mora, seventeen-year old student from East L.A.’s Lincoln High School, the struggle is one of constantly trying to convince the world that his passion is not deviance.

When I met Edgar for the first time, I immediately felt myself in the company of a Bohemian, a poet, another in a long line of artists given birth to by East L.A. At the time, I had the intention of penning an article about youth and their encounters with the notorious Los Angeles Police Department. Yes, Edgar did speak of, in his words, being "harassed" by law enforcement. He spoke of being "spread eagle" against the concrete. However, in Edgar’s narrative, his experiences with the LAPD did not occupy a central location. This is not to downplay the significance and often-oppressive nature of youth contact with the LAPD; rather it is to make the point that those incidents do not fully constitute their identity.

Edgar is, among other things and other dreams, a public artist. In California, Latino youth like Edgar are better known as "taggers." The discrepancy between the competing perceptions is where Edgar’s story falls. One of the first things Edgar told me is that "some emotions are too big to be put on paper." Similarly, I feel my words inadequate in attempting to paint his portrait. Let Edgar speak for himself about his dreams, his frustrations, and his aspirations:

Edgar Mora: I’m in the eleventh grade and I live in South Central Los Angeles. I want to go to college and study Chicano studies so I can make a class on the history of Mexicans, Central Americans, Latinos. But art is my passion. I don’t tag, to me that’s superficial. I create art about La Virgen de Guadalupe, the self and society. Sometimes, when I get inspired, I can’t wait to get home and put it on paper. How do you expect me to wait to get home to create my art? I see the winos on the street and the pain in their eyes and I suffer with them. I think ‘Damn, that would be scandalous if it was me.’ I see life in different aspects and I try to make it part of me through my art.

I go to school to be somebody. What I don’t like about school is those egotistical people who come to school just to kick. You should have a passion for school. There are people in Tijuana who would love to be here. But there are a lot of people just squandering time.

Manuel Espinoza: Who supports what you do?

EM: My mom and me are tight. She knows I write on walls but she knows it’s art. She says, ‘He’s painting what society treats him like.’ The one who has more of a problem with it is my dad but my mom tries to talk to him. He’s kind of old fashioned.

MLE: He’s worried about you.

EM: Yeah, I know. I understand that. But I have to express myself. There are kids who kill themselves because they can’t express their emotions.

MLE: What about the police? How do they treat you?

EM: A lot of them don’t see our vision. They feel us in a certain way. They understand we don’t risk our freedom just to write on a wall. It’s art. There are some who will arrest me if they catch me with a pen and pencil. There are some who will tell me ‘You got talent, don’t waste your time with this stuff.’ People think if it’s not in a frame in a museum that it’s not art. Some emotions are too big to be put on paper.

MLE: Where do you see yourself in ten years?

EM: Teaching or a politician. You cant be part of the cause if you aren’t one of the movers. I want to get there and transform things, be a governor or a senator. I want to mix the schools. I want everyone to be united, all the colors, all the flavors.