Puerto Rican Roots. Bronx Legacy. Global Impact
The Culture Before Disco and Hip-Hop
Born in the South Bronx in the early 1970s, the Latin Hustle was more than just a dance. It became an alternative to gang violence in a territory called Bachelor Nation. The Imperial Bachelors took a stand against the chaos in the South Bronx, at our home base, St. Mary’s Recreation Center. Puerto Rican teenagers blended Salsa and Mambo spins with turn patterns, creating a new partner dance that became a peace movement we called the Latin Hustle. The spark we lit in the summer of 1974 echoed across New York, bringing teens from every borough to St. Mary’s Recreation Center. That movement helped fuel the Disco Explosion a few years later, and Saturday Night Fever carried our creation to the four corners of the earth. We lit the fuse of creation, not the fires meant to eradicate us.
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This film tells the untold story of that summer in 1974, when one gang traded colors for dance, and the Hustle became our weapon for peace. According to those who were there, it demonstrates how our defiance in the face of the fires revealed the resilience of our people. It is a powerful story of our desire for peace and unity, driven by our Puerto Rican culture, even as the Bronx burned down and gang wars raged all around us.
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We didn’t just survive the storm; we danced through it, and with every step, we wrote our story until the world heard our rhythm and followed in our steps.
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Latin Empire Productions is dedicated to preserving Puerto Rican roots and Bronx legacy through the story of the Latin Hustle and the Great Puerto Rican Migration of the 1950s... back to the roots.
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"Willie Estrada"
Discover the origins of the Latin Hustle through firsthand accounts and my father’s historical archives, a visual record preserved by those who lived it.
Immerse yourself in the true story of how Puerto Rican youth brought peace to one of the most violent gang territories of the South Bronx through music, dance, and community activism.
Uncover the truths redacted from the pages of history in a documentary that honors our past, brings a forgotten history back to life, and reintroduces our story to the world.
Credit for orchestrating the dances that brought peace to our territory goes to the center manager, Rita Pasquelagua, who granted our request. Our gang made it happen, hosting parties led by our President Henry DeSosa, Vice President Tato Sadeyes, and Warlord Willie Estrada.
Rival gangs attended the parties hosted by the Imperial Bachelors at the center, but they did not wear colors in recognition of an unspoken truce. It became the turning point in the summer of 1974, when the 1st Division Imperial Bachelors proved that music and dance could soothe the savage beast, short-lived though it was. Those nights marked the birth of a movement that carried the spirit of the Bronx across New York City, until the killing of Jamie Rosendo in an argument over one dollar. Known as Rubberband, he was a Floor Rocker who innovated his own style of floor moves and was known city-wide as the father of that style, which would later be called Breakdancing.
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