The Tamale Man

In 2021, I Am An Immigrant asked Ian the Painter to honour Marino Escobar, a New Orleans icon known locally as The Tamale Man. Marino left Guatemala for California over twelve years ago and moved to New Orleans after spending a few months in the Golden State. His sales call — different combinations of “Hot tamales baybeee”, “I love you baybeee”, and “I love you all my life” —reverberates around the narrow crowded streets of the Quarter.