You Got To Be Kidding Me

Have people truly lost their minds? It seems that people find more and more pleasure in the suffering of others. If it was not for mean spirited jokes, there might not be any comedy at all. I am no different than anyone else, I have certainly laughed at a friend that took a spill (after I helped them up of course), but I wouldn’t try to record it and profit off of a low point in someone else’s life. Unfortunately for people who get locked up in Franklin County, everyone does not feel the same.

There is a weekly publication in my city called Slammer which displays anyone who has been jailed in the county in the previous seven days. For only $1, anyone who has the whim can pick up a copy of Slammer and know who is in jail and for what. There are even stories in it that highlight popular cases and they are often written in a humorous tone.  So I guess we shouldn’t be surprised to walk in any corner store in the ghetto and see some young brothers laughing about one of their boys having his face on the front page; each of them knowing that it could be either of them in next weeks.

I guess the problem is not the paper but the trend that makes the paper possible. The question is how to get those young brothers to start getting angry about their friend being arrested for whatever reason. What they do not realize is that they are the ones that can turn this entire thing around, my only question is how to get them to realize it.

Posted by:

Kwesi Low

Note to the Hood: Don’t Count on Prisoners

Prisons in Texas are said to be “big business”.  We have many rural towns that have large prisons that serve as the major economic drivers for the schools, hospitals and jobs in this little know places. But as we engage in our decennial census count we must examine how these prison populations are being counted for the purpose of delivering services to Texas communities.

The Census Bureau requires that individuals are counted at the address where they reside as of April 1^st . The Houston Chronicle reported that Harris, Bexar and three other large urban communities will lose about 67,000 residents to rural Texas because prison inmates are counted where they are in prison.

The problem then becomes that the prisoners who were convicted will not lend needed resources back to their home counties. Thus, urban areas that need more schools, jobs and programs will lose out due to how the count is taken at the national level.

What’s more, rural legislators are open to possibly gain seats that belong to inner city folks during reapportionment – 99 problems and it looks like the hood gets one more…

Posted by:

Christina Sanders

99Problems.org Presents … Darrell Jones

Check this out folks … this is crazy moving:

This video is based on the writings of Massachusetts inmate Darrell Jones. Since his incarceration, Mr. Jones has maintained his innocence and spent the last 23 years fighting to stop the devastating cycle of violence and incarceration he is witnessing. This video is about hope and responsibility on an individual and government level . If the men and women behind bars think that no one expects more of them, if they believe that this great “change” Obama spoke of meant everyone else but them, the results are disastrous. Without hope, the prisons are currently breeding violence, racism and anger to be released back into our streets (97% of men come back out) fueling this endless cycle of violence and incarceration. If Obama is able to address terrorists and school children alike, then why not this prison system when it is holding so many of our people?

Here’s one excerpt from Darrell’s letter, to show its resonance and unique perspective:

Mr. President, I once read in a news article that listed the top music artists you had on your iPod. Among them, it listed Jay Z. Well, with 24 years in prison, I’ve never seen an iPod, and neither have many of the men around me, but I do know that daily I see many very young males walking around me with “Spiritual iPods” that are playing in their ears, the songs of Notorious B.I.G. singing the words “You’re nobody unless somebody kills you”. Yet two things are clear, sadly, Biggie did become bigger in death, and that many of these kids who have never seen their families together during a Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner meet them for the first time in a casket with their eyes closed at a funeral. So, what troubles me is not so much that they’re willing to die, but that they don’t even want to leave here (prison) and get back to living.

For more information and to read the full letter or to contact Darrell directly, please go to www.obamaanswerthis.com.

Posted by:

The Editor

Lights.. Camera.. GUILTY!

I’m going to tell you all a secret: Reality TV makes me really angry.

Ever since the first season of The Real World in 1992, more and more television has been composed of reality programs because they are cheap to produce, draw in a good audience and.. well, let’s face it.. the old adage goes, real life is stranger than fiction. And it bores me. I don’t care about Jon and Kate or Survivor and frankly, as much as I love P.E., thinking about Flavor Flav getting down with any of the girls on Flavor of Love gives me nightmares.

But while going through some daily blogs, I saw a piece that stopped me in my tracks. Michael Santos, prisoner and author of the book Inside: Life Behind Bars in America presents an interesting question: Can Reality TV Advance Prison Reform?

Let’s get into it after the jump! … Continue Reading

Posted by:

Steve Romain

Mail To: 54 Camping Tent, Hwy Underpass, Miami

In the middle of downtown Miami, a tent city exists not far from the mansions and beaches that Miami is famous for. Yet despite their proximity, neither community ever mixes—it’s forbidden by law. Why? Because the tent city is “home” to approximately 70 sex offenders, who are forced to live there due to a local law that mandates sex offenders who abused children must remain at least 2500 feet away from locations where there are high concentrations of children.

… Continue Reading

Posted by:

Yolanda Clatworthy

20 Years Ago: Tiananmen Square – A Testament To Youth Activism

There are a number of images that permeate our collective psyche. Some are tragic, others hopeful. Every now and then, there is an image that embodies a state of mind so well that it can’t be described or explained. You just have to see it.

On June 4th, 1989, a young, unidentified man stood directly in front of a line of tanks in Beijing, China to express a sense of dissatisfaction, attempting to stop the Chinese government’s attacks on young activists.

Despite the defiance of Tank Man, the struggle continues.
… Continue Reading

Posted by:

Steve Romain

Prison Reform Is An Effect of The Recession?

The recession has had drastic effects on families nationwide. Personally, I know it is having a drastic effect in my household, and I have not seen anyone profiting from this economic downturn. So, every now and then, it is fantastic to see something good happening as a result of such a terrible economic climate. A rose that grows from concrete, if you will.

It would seem that as a result of the economic downturn, the current prison strategy is essentially ‘too much’ to handle in the current economic climate and states are starting to pursue prison reform as an viable option, as well as methods seen in the Youth Promise Act.

… Continue Reading

Posted by:

Steve Romain

Rep. Bobby Scott wants the Youth PROMISE Act

We have to expect our government to take on the real problems in our neighborhoods. We’re not used to counting on them for change, but we should be able work with them and make something important happen.

There are over 80 cosponsors of the Youth PROMISE Act right now; we’re trying to get up to 150, but that’ll take all of us working together, contacting our representatives and telling them personally that we want their support for this pivotal piece of legislation.

Go to 99problems.org/youth-promise to send a message to your representative. It only takes a few minutes but will mean a world of change.

Posted by:

Sam Patton