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This story is fiction, any resemblance to actual persons or locales is purely coincidental.

PANACHE REPORT ORIGINAL

BEATDOWN:

Hector Garcia lived in El Paso, Texas on the Rio Grande River bordering Mexico.  Hector loved hip-hop.   He and his cousin Chi-Chi loved to rap along to the records. They also read Vibe, The Source and XXL.

Hector told Chi-Chi, cuz, one day I’m going to be on these pages, flossing and glossing for the Latino community.  I need to represent.

Hector was big for his age, built like a linebacker; he was also the school bully, always in trouble.  He came from a violent environment; his father was a drunk who beat his mother.   When Hector intervened, his father beat him.

A big Hip-Hop concert was coming to El Paso, Hector and Chi-Chi washed cars and mowed lawns to earn enough money for tickets.

They were excited as they entered the arena, you could feel the buzz in the air.  The show was off the hook.

When Hector and Chi-Chi were leaving the arena, Hector spotted a pretty girl; she looked like a petite angel.   She saw him staring and began blushing, Hector approached her and her sister, he started talking to her like he knew her, was that show the bomb or what?  She agreed.

Hector introduced himself and she introduced herself as Maria Lopez.  She lived in Juarez, Mexico.   Meanwhile, Chi-Chi talked to her sister Delores, they all traded numbers.

Hector was ecstatic; he went to a bomb concert and met a beautiful girl.

Maria encouraged Hector to pursue his dream.  She also gave him massages late in the evening.

Maria was an excellent cook; she shopped at the local Carnicerias, where she got the ingredients to prepare authentic Mexican food. Tostadas topped with pickled pigs feet, fried chicharrones with chile and lemon and omelets stuffed with chorizo.  Hector was in love, after a whirlwind romance they eloped.

Maria would give birth to twins within the next nine months, she named them Rita and Hector, Jr.

To support his family, he got a job at a warehouse, stocking boxes.

He never adjusted to fatherhood, the babies kept him up throughout the night and he began competing for Maria’s attention, he grew to resent them.

Meanwhile, Hector hooked up with a local producer and paid for studio time, he used the stage moniker “Slug.”   He finished the demo, he sent it out to all the independent labels, they responded with rejection letters.

It took three years before an independent record company expressed interest.  Hector received an airplane ticket the following week, he informed his mother, she hugged him tight, I am so proud of you, she went in her drawer, I have been socking this away, your father knows nothing about it, she gave him $800 dollars.  Maria took him and Chi-Chi to the airport.

They arrived at the meeting, a representative told Hector, we are interested in signing you to a contract with a modest advance, you have skills and you have the potential of being the first Latino superstar rapper, Hector smiled and asked for a copy of the contract. He told the rep, I will consult a lawyer and get back to you; Hector and Chi-Chi left.

They spent the day taking in the sights of New York, they went by Central Park, went by MTV studios, ate Nathan’s chili dogs, went to the Statue Of Liberty and stood outside Trump Plaza.

When Hector got back to the hotel, he called a producer friend in El Paso, he recommended Hector to an attorney located in New York.  Hector made an appointment.

The attorney looked over the contract, made a few suggestions and agreed to accompany Hector to the next meeting.

The contract was signed and Hector was due in the studio at the end of the month. They flew back to El Paso.

Hector promised his mother, after we get settled, I am going to send for you, he ignored his dad.

Chi-Chi and Delores planned to move to New York the following year.

Hector and Maria arrived in New York and the record company advanced them money for a nice apartment.

Hector titled his CD “Crime Scene.”  He was in the studio night and day.

The next day, Hector and Maria got into a argument, he surprised himself with he struck her in the face, her hand shot to her face, Hector apologized profusely, she eventually forgave him.   Hector felt a power rush after the incident.

He began disrespecting Maria openly, calling her a bitch and a ho and slapping her around, she would threaten to leave but she wanted the marriage to work because she was Catholic.

Hector started getting high in the studio, his mood changes became evident.

When Maria informed him that she was pregnant, he beat her severely.  She had to be hospitalized.  She would recover but she lost the baby.

She told Hector, I’m leaving, what kind of man are you?  Beating a woman is wrong but beating a pregnant woman is sick, you killed our baby.  He cried and begged her to stay, he promised, it would never happen again.

The CD was released to critical acclaim and sold 3 million units.  Hector was ecstatic.  Hector became arrogant and cocky, full of bravado.

The record company rushed a second CD out, “Crime Scene II,” it shipped platinum

Hector and his family returned to Mexico where he was given a hero’s welcome and a key to the city.  They hung out with their families and partied with Delores and Chi-Chi.  Hector loved the attention and signed autographs everywhere they went.  They returned to New York a few days later.

Hector went on a promotional tour, when he returned, Maria noticed a change in him, he was distant and moody.   He was also mean to the children, he would argue with his kids over sweets, he called them mothafuckers and constantly told his daughter, you will never amount to anything.

It became obvious that Hector was having an affair, when Maria questioned him and told him that she wanted to learn how to drive, he closed the curtains and beat her.  She laid in a fetal position crying on the floor.  Hector slammed the door as he left the apartment. Maria took the kids and moved out.  After an argument, the man usually moves out so the woman and children would have a roof over their heads, not Hector.  Maria had moved out on several occasions, one time, she walked in the rain until she came upon a motel.  Hector would always find her and lure her back with empty promises.

One day, Maria left Hector with the kids, she went to get her nails done.  The twins started crying, Hector flew into a rage, grabbed a metal coat hanger, undid it and started whipping the kids.  For lunch, Hector prepared a porterhouse steak for himself.   He fed the kids cereal.

When Maria returned, she noticed the welts on the children and questioned Hector, he said, I never wanted kids, why did you have them?  They cramp my style.

The disrespect and abuse escalated.   Hector didn’t bother to hide his affairs.  When he had rappers over, he openly disrespected Maria by slapping her around in front of guests and he threw hot food in her face.  Afterwards, he showed his guests a tape of him having sex with another woman, when the movie was over, they viewed the movie “Whats Love Got To Do With It,” they cheered when Ike beat Tina.

Hector and Maria went to a industry function, Hector left Maria sitting at the table while he worked the room, when she got up to go to the ladies room, Hector lost track of her. When she returned, he made a scene, “you fucking bitch, where have you been?   You fucking around on me aren’t you?  Before she could respond, he punched her in the face, people gasped.  Hector and Maria were escorted out of the function.  As they drove back in the car, he kept punching Maria in the head, when they arrived home, he grabbed her by the roots of her hair, got her indoors and proceeded to beat her.

The next morning, Maria was covered in bruises.  Hector was gone.

She called her mother for advice.  Her mother told her, a man will be a man, we are Catholic, there has never been a divorce in our family.  As soon as she hung up, the phone rung, it was Delores, Hector had sent Chi-Chi money, they were moving to New York in a month, Maria was ecstatic.

When Chi-Chi came over for dinner; Delores was unable to attend, she had to work.

Chi-Chi noticed Maria’s black eye, Hector had beat her the night before.  Chi-Chi told Hector that he needed to talk to him.

He told him, cuz, I’m not trying to get in your business but I hope you not beating on Maria, real men don’t hit women, only cowards, and I would hate to think you a coward, after all, you twice her size.  Hector avoided his eyes.  Chi-Chi continued, if I am going to get in a fight, it’s gonna be a equal fight, my father told me, if you ever get the urge to hit a woman, it’s time to leave that woman.

Also, last week when you and Maria and the kids came over, you got up and left to get some food, you came back with a burger and fries, ate your food in front of your children, never brought them anything back or offered them any of your food, man, what’s wrong with you?  Hector said nothing as he walked away.

After Delores and Chi-Chi left, Maria decided to take a shower, Hector startled her when he opened the shower door, without warning he picked her up by the neck dripping wet, he threw her down in the living room and said, you been telling Chi-Chi about me beating you, huh?  Maria shook her head no, the kids came into the living room, Maria tried to cover up but Hector threw the towel off her and proceeded to beat her naked in front of the kids as they screamed in the background.

Hector was finishing up his third CD “Commit Another Crime.”  That same day, Maria and Delores were trying on blouses, that’s when Delores noticed the bruises covering Maria’s back, she said, oh my God, did he do that to you?  Maria started crying as Delores held her.

Delores said, leave that bastard! Maria didn’t respond.

Hector, Jr. started imitating his father, he began hitting his sister and Maria was called to the school on more than one occasion because Hector, Jr. was hitting his female classmates.

Hector’s third CD was released, it barely shipped gold; he was depressed and angry.  He increased his ecstasy use.

Hector and Maria went to a party. He became more and more irritable because no one was paying attention to him, he ordered Maria to get him a drink.  When she came back with the drink, he asked her, what took you so long?  Before she could respond, he slapped her, unzipped his pants and said, bitch, suck my dick.  He got the attention he desired.

Maria had enough.  When he left the following morning, she contacted the Battered Women’s Shelter in her area.  Over the next month, they formulated an escape plan.

The day finally arrived.  Hector headed out to the studio, she packed her bags and the children’s clothes.  She hailed a cab and went to the shelter.  The shelter put her in touch with the Underground Railroad.

The Underground Railroad helps battered women and children throughout the country with shelter and safety, this network cannot be penetrated.  It is similar to the Witness Protection Program.

Maria and the children stayed in Arlington, VA for a few nights, moved on to Oregon and ended up in Seattle.

Hector was frantic, where was his family?  He grilled Delores and Chi-Chi about Maria’s whereabouts, they knew nothing.  He mumbled, wait till I get my hands on that bitch!

Hector would never see his family again and the record company dropped him.  He began selling drugs, he would be killed by a rival drug dealer.

Maria came out of hiding and moved back to New York with her children.  Delores and Chi-Chi were waiting.

EPILOGUE:

The physical and mental abuse over the years had taken a toll on Maria; she would die at the young age of 39.

Hector, Jr. was like his father, he began beating his live-in girlfriend on a regular basis; police were called to the residence on several occasions.  His girlfriend would kill him in self-defense.  She got off on the Battered Women’s Defense.

Rita received royalties from the re-issue of her father’s CD’s.  She used the money to open a battered women’s center in memory of her mother.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

More women are battered on SuperBowl Sunday than any other day of the year.

There are more animal shelters than battered women shelters in the United States.

A woman is battered every 30 seconds in the world.

Battered women are the majority of ER cases in hospitals across the country.  There has also been a significant increase in 'pregnant' battered women being admitted to emergency rooms across the country.

We have received reports of teenage boys in high school beating their girlfriends.  The statistics in this category are rising every year.

Since the death of Nicole Brown Simpson, the laws have tightened against domestic violence.

If a background check for employment reflects a domestic violence history, the potential employee will be rejected even if it is a misdemeanor.  The military and law enforcement also screen for domestic violence.

If the woman decides not to press charges against her abuser, in many cases, the state will step in and press charges on her behalf.

Just the allegation of domestic violence can ruin a career, especially in the entertainment and sports industries.   Endorsements become non-existent.  Also, after retirement, a career as a coach, a color commentator or  a job in front office administration becomes non-existent.