 Calogero Anello is a 9-year old child living in the Bronx - notorious for gangster bars, racist people and aggressive nature. Calogero witnesses a shooting in the street involving local big shot gangster, Sonny (Chazz Palimentri), but refuses to grass him to the police. Sonny grows fond of the child and begins to teach him how things are conducted on streets. Calogero s father (Robert DeNiro) is a working man who wants his child to grow up and make his money honestly, and does not want him to mix with Sonny. Despite his father s disapproval, for eight years he continues to see Sonny, and receives a  street  education from him. Despite being a gangster, Sonny loves Calogero and teaches him that being a gangster is too risky and dangerous. However Calogero misinterprets Sonny s message, and still gets involved with racist fights with his friends. Things get worse when he falls in love with a black girl. This story of the Bronx, as a child grows up with two educations, one from school and one from the street. As the child grows closer to a gangster, he begins to grow away from his family.