For many Latino disabled youth, talking about and coming to terms with their disabilities often brings mixed emotions. Some experience feelings of happiness, sorrow, anger towards family, and at times self-hate.

In this article I offer a story of two Latino youths whose lives were changed by coming to terms with their disabilities. These youths shared their experiences of how they reached their dreams and aspirations of becoming economically independent.

For them, the economic independence part of self-sufficiency translated into the ability to position themselves into the right frame of mind. This helped them learn how to empower themselves and enjoy life to the maximum while evolving within a society full of ignorance and prejudices.

When talking to young people about their disabilities I often get responses like, "I do not want to talk about it," or "If I tell you, please keep me anonymous." I agreed to this request as I recognized that sharing this experience and respecting their wishes would help speed healing and recovery.

Consider the stories with Mario and Roberto (not their real names). These young adults came to understand that their personal aspirations for self-sufficiency were not going to be fulfilled unless they came to terms with their emotions and their disabilities.

The bottom line was that they were having problems transitioning into the workforce at a time in their lives where they needed it the most. They were moving into adulthood and needed to quickly gain economic independence from their families.

Mario and Roberto both have learning disabilities that are aggravated by medication. Mario's condition is congenital and Roberto's was produced by chemical dependence. Both rely on the medical field for support and balance their lives. Paradoxically, the support that kept their lives going also left them with emotional, physical and mental scars.

For Mario, who just recently turned 18, the treatment had made him isolated and he had developed issues with self-esteem. For Roberto, chemical dependency was at once a comfort and the cause of his disability. Chemical dependency prevented him from attaining a key component of self-sufficiency; steady employment. Isolated and/or looked down upon, they decided that they were going to go after society as they began to get into trouble with law enforcement.

Mario and Roberto's stories are complex because working to achieve dreams can be a treacherous road. Both young men went through the juvenile criminal legal system. At times they were restrained and entrapped by stereotyping notions of the juvenile legal criminal system. Their involvement with the juvenile criminal legal system posed a challenge for them in gaining meaningful employment because automatically they had become unattractive to potential employers.

Mario said, "It's not like we were breaking the law. I would just be walking down the street listening to my head phones minding my business and the police thought I was on drugs or dealing drugs." The police harassed Mario for not only being disabled, but for being Latino as well. "Everyone thought I was a bad kid," he explained. Mario went on to say, "When I resisted arrest, everyone gave me that 'I knew it' look. I took my frustration out on people. At times, I was conscious of my actions and at others I wasn't."

Roberto, 20, shared a similar situation. "Other youth sought me out with admiration, thinking that I was cool because I was taking so much medication," he said. Roberto explained that he just started hanging around with other youth who had developed addictions. The police did not differentiate between Roberto and his friends. They assumed that just like his friends, Roberto was involved in illegal activities and drug trafficking. They predetermined that he was guilty by association.

Both youth remember their childhood with sadness. Kids would often tease them about their appearances. "It was like they enjoyed making me miserable and uncomfortable," said Mario.

According to Mario, "I thought, if law enforcement and school officials thought I was a troublemaker, I was going to give them hell. I went after them with physical violence. I went after those who made fun of me," he said. But this toughness that came out of nowhere came with a heavy price tag, drug dependencies, and a criminal record.

An eye opener for them came once they began to seek employment. Countless employers denied their applications for work. The boys knew they could not control how others perceived them. They put their energy into positive activities that helped them achieve their goals. People and society had stigmatized them into two evil characters. They recognized that they were going to have to work to change those images before they would be given responsibility and employment.

Roberto said, "I realize these negative people were not paying my bills. They were putting me down were not my friends. So, what did I care about their opinion?" Roberto knew that his association with people who were getting in trouble was purely a need of socializing with others that had similar issues.

He and Mario decided that if they needed emotional help, they needed to talk to other youth who were experiencing similar situations. Both young men joined peer support groups.

Roberto understood that this was difficult but necessary. He sought to find at least one person to talk to. He also talked openly to his family about his frustrations. Mario considered it necessary to associate himself with positive people.

Mario recalled how he felt after talking to an employment case manager in a local youth program. The meeting served as a positive support and a burst of confidence. He said, "The case managers listened to my needs... I didn't think anyone cared up to this point."

Mario and Roberto realized they needed to continue their education, which was abruptly interrupted by negative factors, ignorant people and personal anger.

Mario and Roberto learned that their disabilities were not going to go away. "Life is too short," expressed Mario. He added, "Nothing is free in this world. I have to look out for me, and my feelings."

Ironically, these two youth had never crossed paths and that is what makes their stories remarkable for they had to address their needs in order to achieve their goals. They had to deal with their pasts before looking toward their futures.