Hundreds donate to young Mexican band after equipment damaged during scuffle with Chicago police

CHICAGO — The young Mexican band from the city’s South Side was in the middle of singing the upbeat song “Pelotero a la Bola” in Gage Park when a group of police officers with shields and sticks in their hands began pushing Mexican Independence Day revelers out of the way. They abruptly approached the band.

The police disconnected the speakers and, as band members and the crowd around them pushed back, the band’s new speakers, mixers and a tololoche — a traditional musical instrument from southern Mexico — were damaged.

“I’m so disappointed and sad,” said Pedro Marroquin, 25, manager of the group, who was hit with a police shield in the scuffle and spent a day in the hospital. “We were raised to respect authority because they protected us; that didn’t happen, they didn’t even let us speak, there was no need to break our instruments.”

An internal investigation has been initiated into the Sept. 15 altercation, according to Maggie Huynh with the Chicago Police Department.

“We have no further comment as this investigation is ongoing,” she wrote to Tribune.

It was the band’s first time taking part in the unofficial Mexican Independence Day celebrations in the city.

Calling themselves El Malo, the group wanted to share their love for their Mexican culture through music with those celebrating, but they also wanted to take advantage of the crowd to promote the up-and-coming band. It’s something that other bands have done, they said.

The group set up a makeshift stage on the corner of 49th Street and Pulaski Road and people quickly surrounded the group to dance, cheer and sing. They played for more than an hour.

It was near midnight when they announced they were playing their last song. And that’s when the police officers barreled toward them without warning, Marroquin said. He estimates there was more than $10,000 worth of damage to their equipment, which the band had worked years to buy, he said.

The brawl was caught on camera, and the video went viral on social media. A GoFundMe started to help the band replace their broken equipment has raised more than $7,000 in two days with support across Mexican and music communities.

One of the bystanders to catch the altercation on camera was Francisco Villa, who was recording live. Villa is known on social media for covering events and news in the Latino community.

“The police came and began to hit the members of the band, who were not doing anything else but singing,” Villa said while recording.

The confrontation was just one of many between police and revelers reported over the weekend, including one that injured an officer after a man hit him with a pole, as thousands took the streets of Chicago to celebrate Mexico’s Sept. 16 Independence Day.

The band members are still in disbelief and grappling with the physical and psychological aftermath. The group had to cancel several performances in recent days because they don’t have the instruments necessary, they said.

While Marroquin said he understood the officers’ need to disperse the crowd and end the celebration, he wished the police had done so peacefully.

“Officers assume we will fight back or that we won’t comply, that’s unfortunate and it makes things worse,” Marroquin said.

The six-member band, whose ages range from 18 to 25, grew up on the South Side and connected through mutual friends or school. Marroquin’s brother, David, 18, is the main singer of the band.

“It was our love for making music,” said Diego Dorantes, who plays the tololoche.

The group gathered casually before solidifying as a band two years ago. As they try to find a way to cope with the attack, they vowed to keep making music once they buy their instrument and equipment again.

“We are in awe of all the support we’ve gotten,” Marroquin said. Bands from other states have reached to offer words of solidarity and prompting them to “keep their head up.”

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