The Education of Sonny Carson

Sonny and three friends attempt a break-in at a local market to steal food and money. Sonny is subdued by police and, at the age of thirteen, sentenced to three months in juvenile detention. While incarcerated, he meets Willie, the leader of the Lords, and is initiated into the gang.

In prison, Sonny is mentored by Willie and formally inducted into the Lords. The initiation marks his official entry into gang life and its code of loyalty.

Years pass and an older Sonny becomes deeply involved with the Lords. The gang enters a brutal rivalry with the Tomahawks (the Hawks), leading to frequent street brawls.

During a fight, a Lords member named Li'l Boy is fatally wounded by a stiletto. Sonny and the Lords attend Li'l Boy's wake, and he tries to buy a bouquet from a nearby shop but cannot afford it.

Sonny robs a white man who is carrying a telegram with change of $100. With the money, he buys the flowers and places them on Li'l Boy's casket.

For this crime Sonny is arrested and brutally interrogated by the police. The brutal treatment foreshadows the harsher realities of his future life.

He is sentenced to between one and three years in prison and begins serving his term. The sentence marks a turning point as Sonny leaves the streets for the confinement of prison.

In prison, Sonny unexpectedly reunites with Willie, who teaches him about the brutality and survival strategies inside. The meeting reinforces the grim realities of prison life.

Sonny's father visits him in prison, letting him know that the family will continue to support him. The visit reinforces that family ties remain despite his fall into gang life.

The guards brutalize Willie, beating him nearly to death as Sonny watches. Sonny's horror at the brutality underscores the system's cruelty.

That night, Willie is dragged from his cell by the guards and dies after being thrown over the railing. Sonny processes the loss and the implications for his own path.

Sonny serves the remainder of his sentence and is released to return to his family. He steps back into a world that has changed since his imprisonment.

Returning to the neighborhood, Sonny learns that the drug trade has claimed many of his old friends. This realization hardens his resolve to change his life.

With renewed purpose, he fights the drug trade under a new alias, Mwlina Lmiri Abubadika. He begins to chart a path away from street violence toward a different kind of impact.

The film ends in the 1970s, signaling a turn toward Abubadika's public life. It hints at a larger arc that would unfold far beyond the events shown.