Assassinations, suicide, death were all apart of the game to Escobar in order to obtain the bigger picture. Escobar was so determined to expand his business that he did not know any limits. Soon, Escobar’s hunger for respect turned into a loss of humanity. He wanted people to know who he was and to not cross him, or else they would have to deal with the consequences. Instilling fear into people was how he gained the respect he craved. If he didn’t get what he wanted with bribery, he would respond with a retaliation or even death. 3This helped describe the kind of influence he had with people. Escobar had a saying, “Plata o plomo,” meaning, silver or lead. With Escobar being so powerful and impactful, he had to be very persuasive in order to get his way. He would bribe numerous powerful people to get what he wanted, no matter the cost. He was one of their own, someone who came from nothing, but became something big. He was glorified as a saint by the whole community and people worshipped him for everything he did. Pablo revamped the recreation center, and this was what really captured the hearts of the people.

The old recreation center had been destroyed over time and was never kept up, and the community didn’t have the money to fix it. Escobar’s most famous “robin hood” act was building a new recreational center for the community. He also gave his money away to citizens throughout the community to help people who were financially unstable. Pablo helped construct new houses, pools and stores for the community. Escobar knew this was going to gain him a big advantage in the political world when he decided to give back to his own people. And what better way to do this than to go back to the community he was raised in. Escobar knew that in order to continue his business and even have a shot of becoming a political leader in Colombia, he had to gain the hearts of the people. But first, he had to start small to build himself up to his dream. Every little kid’s dream is to become the president or an astronaut, but to Escobar, this wasn’t a dream, it was going to be his reality. Escobar’s dream since he was a young kid was to become the president of Colombia. 1Īs fun as Escobar’s drug empire was, he knew he could not continue to take the throne without getting involved in the political world. His power hunger grew so much that he ended up killing Fabio in 1975, and immediately he took over all of his operations and expanded an empire that took the world by a storm. He became his “right hand man,” but that wasn’t enough for Escobar. Escobar worked under his wing, and quickly learned and retained everything that Fabio taught him. He escalated to smuggling and trading business for cigarettes, but then later ended up working for Fabio Restrepo, one of the most respected drug traffickers of his time. However, these crimes did not satisfy his desire for more power and respect. He started with minuscule crimes such as grave robbing and car hijacking. His family was unable to support him and his siblings financially, so he took matters into his own hands. Pablo Escobar was born in Rionegro, Colombia where he developed his criminal mindset at an early age. Pablo and his son Juan Pablo in front of the White House | Courtesy of Business Insider To truly understand how Pablo Escobar became the person he was, his family background, economic stability, and financial struggles have to be taken into consideration. Many have heard of Escobar through stories and articles, but what people don’t understand is how he became the person he did and what struggles led to his ultimate defeat. That’s what a majority of people think of when they hear of Pablo Escobar. Winner of the Fall 2018 StMU History Media Award for Best Article in the Category of “International Studies”ĭrugs, money, girls, power.

SC 3300 – Special Topics: Public Health.

HS 1302 – United States History since 1877.

HS 1301 – United States History to 1877.

3 Post-Classical History (600 CE-1492 CE).

6 Contemporary Latin America (2000-2030).

1 Pre-Columbian Latin America (to 1492).

4 Late Middle Ages-Renaissance-Reformation Europe (1300-1648).

6 Great Depression and WWII (1929-1945).

5 Emergence of Modern America (1877-1929).

4 Civil War and Reconstruction (1850-1877).2 Revolution and Early Republic (1754-1801).1 Colonization and Settlement (1500-1763).

Pablo escobar white house