Father and Son

As I watched “Pablo Escobar: El Patrón del Mal” I realized how little attention was spent on the life of Pablo Escobar’s son. I understand the goal of the telenovela was to shed light on Escobar’s story and how his actions influenced the lives of the Colombian people, but I believe there is an important story that remains untold, the story of Pablo’s only biological child. I began trying to imagine how growing up as the child of one of the world’s most notorious criminals would be.

A father is such an important and crucial individual in every young boy’s life. A father should be a strong role model; someone who a boy can look up to and idolize. My own brother has an extremely strong relationship with my father, and sometimes I am even jealous of their strong bond. It is for this reason why I have such a hard time grasping what the childhood of Pablo’s son, Sebastian Marroquín, must have been like. Sebastian Marroquín, who was born as Juan Manuel Escobar Henao, changed his name after fleeing Colombia and moving with his mother to Argentina. His mother also changed her name.

I wanted to know more intimate details about the life of Sebastian and where he is today, so I did some research. I found a couple of very interesting articles, and I learned I am not the only one who has questions about this topic. When asked about his childhood in an interview, Sebastian said, “My father was like any other father – the only thing he didn’t do was get up early for work. When you’re very young you don’t know exactly what it is your father does for a living but as I got older I started noticing that he was in the news a lot, that my freedom was restricted and that I couldn’t lead a normal life. All this made me curious.”

            

Later in the interview, Sebastian also explains how his father always used violence as a way to solve problems. He goes on to say that as a result of the crimes his father committed, he now has strong views against violence. He has used his father’s offences as a learning experience, and believes it has made him a better man today.

  

Recently, Sebastian has produced a very controversial clothing line called, “Escobar-Henao.” It has gained popularity in Mexico, Spain, and Austria. The fashion line features images such as Pablo Escobar’s ID card, driver’s license, and bank account ledgers. However, Sebastian has made it very clear the clothing line will not be sold in Colombia, but the factory producing the clothing is in his hometown of Medellín, to “help stimulate the economy.” Many people think Sebastian is simply profiting off of his father’s fame, and believe it is morally wrong. It will be interesting to see if the clothing line will be successful, despite the strong resistance it is receiving.