blogging… the reflective journal that i should have kept from the beginning. maybe you could have saved me from those repetitive stumbles.
there’s no links for this post. unfortunately, people, you’re alone with my thoughts. all b.s. you’ve been forewarned, then.
no matter how poor the quality, education is a necessity; at some level, all people - students, teachers, administrators – that continue to have some stake in education, believe this. if a pivotal goal of education is to produce analytical, questioning citizens, then critical literacy has to be a major component of your classroom, her classroom, his classroom, and my classroom.
there seems to be an old, unspoken agreement that is always skirted in education. it is an agreement of trust.
students choosing to daily walk back into my classroom symbolizes that they trust me with their development, their minds. they harbor a hope that i’ll provide the education and human care that they, at some level, desire. when the lesson falls flat, when i can’t make it to school, when they don’t understand the new concepts, or when i forget that they’re sad because their grandpa (their PopPop) died, i’ve reneged on my end of our virtual contract. consequently, the strength of the agreement begins to lessen somewhat.
active vessels are what i want my students to become.
sometimes, they start out the course not yet at the vessel stage. limitedly receptive to the social and scholastic themes of the class, they feel outside their fellow classmates and the curricula. slowly, as that feeling of indifference starts to melt, they are considering what is being taught, but are still not honoring the student-teacher agreement terms. the moment that they start to ask “Why?”, students apply ideas to their world, embarking on the journey to become active vessels in school, and (with luck) will continue the behavior to become active citizens in the community. even though we are teachers, the parts of the contract that we want students to fulfill have little to do with education and more with learning how to conduct themselves in society and how to manipulate society to their and everyone’s benefit. moreover, such actions demonstrate that they care as much about their development and well-being as much as we do. although, teachers may not consciously admit that students not fulfilling the contract bothers them, undoubtedly it is a source of teacher attrition (Of course, lack of accountability when the administration does not honor its contractual terms to students and teachers also plays a large role in student and teacher burnout, but we won’t get into that mud on this post.).
the agreement’s violation is a pivotal cause of education falling apart today.
that is not to say that all education, or all schools, or all schools located in a certain region or type of community are failing. many schools are succeeding, but in those places where education is shit, the value of the agreement has been nullified. critical literacy’s absence is more than partially to blame. not enough teachers or students are asking the correct, pointed questions. it is happening in some classrooms; teachers are directing curricula to prod students into being fed up, into taking action. in some schools, the administration is providing students and teachers with opportunities for social action to occur. the correct questions lead to the correct answers, answers that can yield glimpses of solutions.
each day is invigorated by instances of inadvertent heroism in which teachers and/or students experience unplanned acts of issue-examination through an analytical lens.
in today’s schools, momentum is supplied to critical literacy through inadvertent heroism. in short, inadvertent heroism is the embodiment of critical literacy in the classroom and is a push that is felt and needed by teachers and students. the students’ perspective values the heroism due to its close mimicking of the real world, full of instances in which immediate decisions need to be made. the imitation flatters students by trusting them to practice and apply situations that they may face soon in the future. the other student benefit, which especially applies to extremely marginalized youth, is that inadvertent heroism (whether enacted or witnessed) helps to combat the negative aspects of the community via clear, immediate displays that the students have power over their lives. although unquantifiable, this latter benefit is extremely important in the way of supporting the idea that inadvertent heroism, that critical literacy, that education is worthwhile.
teachers’ experiences with inadvertent heroism is more focused on the students, on the events in their classroom, etc. – on their professional goals (which is, in many ways, exactly the level the students are trying to reach and, in another sense, parallels the reasons that they engage in critical literacy’s heroism – feelings of empowerment and real world validation). when the classroom’s happenings fall outside of the lesson plan, but the objectives are still fulfilled, this is inadvertent heroism for teachers. this usually happens surprisingly via building the day’s curriculum on the experiences of the students or their ideas. often, students, “good” and “bad”, surprise us by unexpectedly displaying active vessel qualities. benefits of inadvertent heroism to the teacher create professional empowerment as they represent a job well done – our career goals.
selfishness is what drives life.
as altruistic as teachers sometimes attempt to portray ourselves, we are partners in the educational institution for self-benefit. fulfilled by the training of tomorrow’s leaders, by participation in a noble profession or by the freedom of having a captive audience J, teachers do their jobs.
even though students may decry their experience with education, those that return, return because they are satisfied with how it helps them to better themselves. the inadvertent heroism that students experience strengthens their desire to learn and permits them to practice being actors on a simulated world stage. through these experiences, students inch closer and closer to being on the real stage that they desire, a stage where they have equitable status with their adult counterparts.
in all of this talk of critical literacy, there has been some miscommunication. mostly, there is too little recognition that students and teachers are in a symbiotic relationship. we’re here for them and they’re here for us. our happiness is mutually inclusive, and our inadvertent heroism supports it all. likewise, the absence of inadvertent heroism can spell the cracking of the educational process.
my words are part of the problem. here, instead of posing possible answers, i’ve only cast stones.
26.4.07
a missed opportunity
when you looked at the shiny, black surface from an off-angle, one could almost make out their likeness reflected via the glaring fluorescent bulbs humming softly overhead. walking to class, walking to lunch, walking in and out of the building, students, staff, and faculty passed many of these sable mirrors which crinkled softly due to the breeze that the human traffic kicked up. “so, why are the water fountains covered with trash bags?”, one of my students asked me that day.
unknown intruders had blocked off our access to earth’s lifeblood, water, giving no prior warning.
reflecting now on the events that occurred over those past few days, it’s pretty apparent that the activities that the class performed did not investigate thoroughly enough. where i thought we were being critical, we weren’t being critical enough. it would have been worthwhile to guess reasons why students had no forewarning about their access to potable water being discontinued. on similar grounds, i could have directed their discussions towards examination of the hierarchy of power and access to information in Washington, DC and what that hierarchy represented.
during class, the few activities and conversations that we got to only scratched the surface of critical literacy. the first task was to investigate what lead was. on a pre-reading assessment, students answered several questions concerning the identity and traits of lead. most students had never heard of lead, let alone knew that that it was dangerous. after reading an article, students had to answer and discuss some post-reading questions. these led to class conversations not about their own safety, but rather the safety of members of their household, pregnant students, and the children in the school's daycare. my students vowed to go home and warn their household about what they had learned. this response definitely showed that students understood the element’s dangers; as a result they selflessly thought of other people in danger first. unfortunately, we never moved towards any other social justice actions, mainly due to nil teacher prodding.
to provide some background, neither the students nor the faculty had advance notice that all water fountains in the building would be closed for almost a week so that they could be tested for lead contamination. on (approximately) the second day of “The Thirst”, students were given ½ pint-sized bottles of water… for the day. whether working up a sweat busting your butt studying after school or via being outside and running the bases, the ½ pint-sized bottle was supposed to sustain us for the entire day. of course, students resorted to filling up their water bottles with sink water, which may or may not possess the filter that the water fountains certainly do. faculty, teachers, and students knew that faucet water was filling the tiny bottles, but everyone was thirsty, so what could we do?
we could have spoken up.
links:
1) a quiet publication from the superintendent concerning the water testing
http://www.k12.dc.us/dcps/frontpagepdfs/response-to-high-lead-levels.pdf
2) school board reaction to lead testing
http://www.examiner.com/a-576838~School_board_head_criticizes_handling_of_lead_findings.html?cid=rss-Washington_DC
unknown intruders had blocked off our access to earth’s lifeblood, water, giving no prior warning.
reflecting now on the events that occurred over those past few days, it’s pretty apparent that the activities that the class performed did not investigate thoroughly enough. where i thought we were being critical, we weren’t being critical enough. it would have been worthwhile to guess reasons why students had no forewarning about their access to potable water being discontinued. on similar grounds, i could have directed their discussions towards examination of the hierarchy of power and access to information in Washington, DC and what that hierarchy represented.
during class, the few activities and conversations that we got to only scratched the surface of critical literacy. the first task was to investigate what lead was. on a pre-reading assessment, students answered several questions concerning the identity and traits of lead. most students had never heard of lead, let alone knew that that it was dangerous. after reading an article, students had to answer and discuss some post-reading questions. these led to class conversations not about their own safety, but rather the safety of members of their household, pregnant students, and the children in the school's daycare. my students vowed to go home and warn their household about what they had learned. this response definitely showed that students understood the element’s dangers; as a result they selflessly thought of other people in danger first. unfortunately, we never moved towards any other social justice actions, mainly due to nil teacher prodding.
to provide some background, neither the students nor the faculty had advance notice that all water fountains in the building would be closed for almost a week so that they could be tested for lead contamination. on (approximately) the second day of “The Thirst”, students were given ½ pint-sized bottles of water… for the day. whether working up a sweat busting your butt studying after school or via being outside and running the bases, the ½ pint-sized bottle was supposed to sustain us for the entire day. of course, students resorted to filling up their water bottles with sink water, which may or may not possess the filter that the water fountains certainly do. faculty, teachers, and students knew that faucet water was filling the tiny bottles, but everyone was thirsty, so what could we do?
we could have spoken up.
links:
1) a quiet publication from the superintendent concerning the water testing
http://www.k12.dc.us/dcps/frontpagepdfs/response-to-high-lead-levels.pdf
2) school board reaction to lead testing
http://www.examiner.com/a-576838~School_board_head_criticizes_handling_of_lead_findings.html?cid=rss-Washington_DC
crit. lit. is possible with wit!
side q
nothing worth doing is easy, side p, and making critical literacy occur in your classroom is no different. whereas i can relate to most of your ideas and experiences, i do not agree with the conclusions that you draw from them. as a burgeoning educator, there are advantages that you have over seasoned professionals. a large quantity of the teachers that have been teaching for many years encounter great difficulty attempting to make the switch towards critical literacy. and you’re correct, side p, the problem lies in the physical plan of the room and in the instructional technique.
the physical plan of the critical literacy classroom should foster creative, out-of-the-box thinking, especially rich in media types for students to express themselves. for instance, there could be artifacts of visual student-generated pieces, as well as models, sculptures, and music stations. although some may view it as a nuisance, computers and the internet prove to be valuable resources in terms of superior access to information and varying perspectives.
instructional techniques that promote critical literacy mostly seize on the current, or more specifically, the moment. teachers must remain informed of the latest issues in their world and in the students’ worlds in order to either grab the interest of the students with teacher-generated topics or be able to relate to student-generated topics. key, too, is the mentality that unplanned discussions do happen and should not be viewed as an affront to a planned lesson. the adage “expect the unexpected” really takes precedence in critical literacy instruction. unforeseen topics/conversations should be welcomed, not scorned, because they represent interest on the side of the students, as well as signaling a thought out link between novel information and the students’ experiences. often times, too, such synthesis of concepts and experiences does mesh well with the curriculum and standards. true, the direction of the class may not match what you have for your mini-lesson or work period, but the objective will still be accomplished.
nothing worth doing is easy, side p, and making critical literacy occur in your classroom is no different. whereas i can relate to most of your ideas and experiences, i do not agree with the conclusions that you draw from them. as a burgeoning educator, there are advantages that you have over seasoned professionals. a large quantity of the teachers that have been teaching for many years encounter great difficulty attempting to make the switch towards critical literacy. and you’re correct, side p, the problem lies in the physical plan of the room and in the instructional technique.
the physical plan of the critical literacy classroom should foster creative, out-of-the-box thinking, especially rich in media types for students to express themselves. for instance, there could be artifacts of visual student-generated pieces, as well as models, sculptures, and music stations. although some may view it as a nuisance, computers and the internet prove to be valuable resources in terms of superior access to information and varying perspectives.
instructional techniques that promote critical literacy mostly seize on the current, or more specifically, the moment. teachers must remain informed of the latest issues in their world and in the students’ worlds in order to either grab the interest of the students with teacher-generated topics or be able to relate to student-generated topics. key, too, is the mentality that unplanned discussions do happen and should not be viewed as an affront to a planned lesson. the adage “expect the unexpected” really takes precedence in critical literacy instruction. unforeseen topics/conversations should be welcomed, not scorned, because they represent interest on the side of the students, as well as signaling a thought out link between novel information and the students’ experiences. often times, too, such synthesis of concepts and experiences does mesh well with the curriculum and standards. true, the direction of the class may not match what you have for your mini-lesson or work period, but the objective will still be accomplished.
critical literacy possible in the classroom?
side p
doing the transformation is tough stuff. let's face it; making the physical classroom and instructional switch to a critical literacy-based class is approximately 5% ingenuity, 5% luck and 90% perspiration. it takes time and effort, especially as a novice educator, to design thoughtful physical classroom plans or to locate readings that are interesting to youth AND may provide fodder for blazing critical literacy discussions.
most issued textbooks (i'm particularly acquainted with science texts) would not fall into the realm of critical literacy; they are rather clear cut and dry, replete with technical jargon, data tables, and graphs and diagrams that support the concepts presented. how can critical literacy come of this? teachers must, consequently, scour other media for topics that would fall into the category of critical literacy. on top of numerous tasks like grading and calling parents, the teacher is forced to don the hat of a researcher and tote to class selections that they've spent time discovering.
all the while that teachers are attempting to transform their classes into critical locales, we still have to ensure that our classes cover the content standards. the fact is that there exist lots of critical concepts, books, and articles that can't be practically covered while still adhering to the meticulously planned coverage of the standards. the expectation required of teachers is that we ready our students to be critical-minded citizens without actually providing opportunities for critical literacy. what gives? i recall a student getting excited about hearing that plants were bad for your health if placed by your bedside. the idea was dispelled by review of the photosynthetic equation, but the class couldn't delve into the student's belief as much as we wanted. why? we were too busy preparing for our upcoming standardized NCLB test.
doing the transformation is tough stuff. let's face it; making the physical classroom and instructional switch to a critical literacy-based class is approximately 5% ingenuity, 5% luck and 90% perspiration. it takes time and effort, especially as a novice educator, to design thoughtful physical classroom plans or to locate readings that are interesting to youth AND may provide fodder for blazing critical literacy discussions.
most issued textbooks (i'm particularly acquainted with science texts) would not fall into the realm of critical literacy; they are rather clear cut and dry, replete with technical jargon, data tables, and graphs and diagrams that support the concepts presented. how can critical literacy come of this? teachers must, consequently, scour other media for topics that would fall into the category of critical literacy. on top of numerous tasks like grading and calling parents, the teacher is forced to don the hat of a researcher and tote to class selections that they've spent time discovering.
all the while that teachers are attempting to transform their classes into critical locales, we still have to ensure that our classes cover the content standards. the fact is that there exist lots of critical concepts, books, and articles that can't be practically covered while still adhering to the meticulously planned coverage of the standards. the expectation required of teachers is that we ready our students to be critical-minded citizens without actually providing opportunities for critical literacy. what gives? i recall a student getting excited about hearing that plants were bad for your health if placed by your bedside. the idea was dispelled by review of the photosynthetic equation, but the class couldn't delve into the student's belief as much as we wanted. why? we were too busy preparing for our upcoming standardized NCLB test.
18.4.07
gender equality awareness
first, has anyone noticed a few people, ahem, teachers, that have decided to forgo the normal grammatical conventions in favor of more loose, informal sentence structure? is this okay, especially on a critical literacy blog? let's hope that outsiders won't read too deeply into our irreverence for "correct" english register. eek!
more seriously, after rereading a chapter (six) from vasquez's negotiating critical literacies with young children, i came to the conclusion that my classroom had an interesting debate once concerning gender in relation to fame and renown. to give some background on said chapter of vasquez, elementary school students analyze the use and selection of happy meals toys from mcdonald's, and also attempt to uncover the chain's motivation behind giving away free toys. they come away realizing that mcdonald's targets young children to get them and their towed families into the restaurant; often, this is done through gender-aimed marketing.
on a painted, white section of the brick wall in our class hangs a banner emblazoned with the words "people making a difference". in covering a genetics chapter, we touched on the contributions of one scientist in particular, rosalind franklin (see the article we used at http://www.sdsc.edu/ScienceWomen/franklin.html). additional questions accompanied the article, ranging from picking facts out of the reading to making inferences and predictions. one of the questions, simply asked "why do you think that franklin was not honored for her contributions while she was alive?" in writing their response to the question, most males in the class thought that it was because she was an unimportant person in the elucidation of DNA's structure. these responses glared in opposition to what most females in the class thought, that franklin was discriminated against due to her gender and the field in which she worked.
while we could not say for sure, there did seem to be quite a disagreement between what the sexes thought. in addition, when posed with the question of "if franklin lived today, do you think that she would be discriminated against and not honored?", most of the males replied in the negative, while most females guessed the opposite. the situation made clear to me that even at the high school level, people can be unaware of the power and privilege that is in their possession. to many boys in the class, it seemed that sexism was a thing of the 1950s and 1960s, maybe the 1980s, but certainly not happening now. further, the exercise clearly showed the lack of communication between sexes about how they were thinking/perceiving about society. unfortunately, preconstructed notions blinded many males in the class to read the article and consider franklin's 1950s situation and today to be completely disconnected occurrences.
more seriously, after rereading a chapter (six) from vasquez's negotiating critical literacies with young children, i came to the conclusion that my classroom had an interesting debate once concerning gender in relation to fame and renown. to give some background on said chapter of vasquez, elementary school students analyze the use and selection of happy meals toys from mcdonald's, and also attempt to uncover the chain's motivation behind giving away free toys. they come away realizing that mcdonald's targets young children to get them and their towed families into the restaurant; often, this is done through gender-aimed marketing.
on a painted, white section of the brick wall in our class hangs a banner emblazoned with the words "people making a difference". in covering a genetics chapter, we touched on the contributions of one scientist in particular, rosalind franklin (see the article we used at http://www.sdsc.edu/ScienceWomen/franklin.html). additional questions accompanied the article, ranging from picking facts out of the reading to making inferences and predictions. one of the questions, simply asked "why do you think that franklin was not honored for her contributions while she was alive?" in writing their response to the question, most males in the class thought that it was because she was an unimportant person in the elucidation of DNA's structure. these responses glared in opposition to what most females in the class thought, that franklin was discriminated against due to her gender and the field in which she worked.
while we could not say for sure, there did seem to be quite a disagreement between what the sexes thought. in addition, when posed with the question of "if franklin lived today, do you think that she would be discriminated against and not honored?", most of the males replied in the negative, while most females guessed the opposite. the situation made clear to me that even at the high school level, people can be unaware of the power and privilege that is in their possession. to many boys in the class, it seemed that sexism was a thing of the 1950s and 1960s, maybe the 1980s, but certainly not happening now. further, the exercise clearly showed the lack of communication between sexes about how they were thinking/perceiving about society. unfortunately, preconstructed notions blinded many males in the class to read the article and consider franklin's 1950s situation and today to be completely disconnected occurrences.
8.4.07
Student Work/Thoughts
It’s been a while, a long while. While I’ve been afforded the chance to think about education and educating and could blab and blog on for ages, instead I’d like to publish some student work here. Know that the student is aware that their work is published on this blog.
Prior to feeling the words of her poetry, here's a bit of background about the author, M.Y. She is an underclasswoman at the high school in which I work, and like many of the students there, is a multilingual and truly multicultural, African immigrant. She has been my student since August of 2006, and in my interactions with her, has almost always presented herself as one of the most upbeat and optimistic of any of my students. Although I wasn't surprised by the themes and ideas presented in her poetry, they definitely contradict her usual smile.
When students, or anyone, has the chance to free write and record the thoughts that roam in their minds, they merit attention and analysis. The poetry that you'll find at the conclusion of this blog screams about what is important in the eyes of the student, or better said, on what the student's eyes are forced to focus. Her words depict a common high school vista, where respect, style and violence weigh heavily. Augmenting those themes are the wants of acceptance and belonging, especially in instances where appears the word "family".
From a critical literacy perspective, this student and others consciously feel the disconnect between themselves and the support systems that they should have. For some students, the educational system fails them (curriculum, teachers, etc.), their friends fail them, their family fails them. Particularly in "Why Not", she highlights the values that many teenagers have - sense of style, need for respect - and examines how upholding these values can lead to jail or physical violence, respectively. Therefore, the teenage value system fails our young adults yet another time. As a student, I know that the author is reaching great heights, but I can only wonder what higher summits she would be able to climb if she had access to more stable support.
"Dream", is written mimicking the Harlem Renaissance's style of poetry; while M.Y. has not journeyed to all the places in her work, she has left her immediate family and come to Washington and her aunt's house by way of Seattle, Washington and Ethiopia. She is, then, well-acquainted with the unique, trying process of picking up in one place and starting anew in another. The low value and little respect that immigrants receive is a major theme that runs through "Dream"; the poem is aptly named, considering the dream that M.Y. has and the reality in which she finds herself.
I hope that you’ll respond with your thoughts about her works. Student works are some of the few uplifting things still in DCPS. The other uplifting things are, of course, the experiences we share with them and their sincerity. Now, that's just my opinion, and I'm waiting to hear yours.
"Why Not" by M.Y.
What are the people of our future looking like?
Scream, Shout, Smack, Smash,
You want to see how tough I am?
I'm getting ready to beat the hell out of that girl.
Bounce her head up and down the court like a Basketball.
She mugged at me,
She looked at my man.
And she copped my style.
I'm getting ready to hit a "J" tonight
Why not?
Go party!
Hey! Why not?
Have some Bacardi,
If my friends do it, why not?
Gucci,
Louis Vuitton,
North Face,
Oh, I have to have those,
Even if it means getting locked up.
I need to feel protected,
I need a family.
Fill my heart with love.
But in return for something else...
Why not, represent my families' colors.
Black, red, blue
I love my colors.
Bang! A loud sound broke the silence.
Another member of my family gone.
Scarlet rain pouring.
I'm stuck in a black hole.
So dark full of fear.
Every night I sit and think with a dark cloud over my head.
I don't like my new family,
I want to get out,
but the only way out is a bullet through my heart.
Words buzzing in my ears,
so annoying as a cricket.
Stop,
Drop,
Wake up,
Stop messing up your life, you got a future to get to.
But, Why not listen?
"Dream" by M.Y.
I had a dream of making a better life for myself.
from being tossed around
beaten,
blood dripping all over my body.
Working hard
for people who would kill me tomorrow and
burn me to death
and so, I left rural south.
I had the choice of cities in the North,
Chicago,
Harlem,
Washington, DC,
St. Louis.
I said to myself Harlem here I come.
Living in Harlem, I began my journey.
As an African American.
Striving hard to show my talents.
Jazz,
Art, Literature,
so many choices,
so little opportunities just because I'm Black,
But I'm just like everybody else;
I don't care what anyone says about the color of my skin.
Which one should I begin my journey with, because I have a lot to say.
Prior to feeling the words of her poetry, here's a bit of background about the author, M.Y. She is an underclasswoman at the high school in which I work, and like many of the students there, is a multilingual and truly multicultural, African immigrant. She has been my student since August of 2006, and in my interactions with her, has almost always presented herself as one of the most upbeat and optimistic of any of my students. Although I wasn't surprised by the themes and ideas presented in her poetry, they definitely contradict her usual smile.
When students, or anyone, has the chance to free write and record the thoughts that roam in their minds, they merit attention and analysis. The poetry that you'll find at the conclusion of this blog screams about what is important in the eyes of the student, or better said, on what the student's eyes are forced to focus. Her words depict a common high school vista, where respect, style and violence weigh heavily. Augmenting those themes are the wants of acceptance and belonging, especially in instances where appears the word "family".
From a critical literacy perspective, this student and others consciously feel the disconnect between themselves and the support systems that they should have. For some students, the educational system fails them (curriculum, teachers, etc.), their friends fail them, their family fails them. Particularly in "Why Not", she highlights the values that many teenagers have - sense of style, need for respect - and examines how upholding these values can lead to jail or physical violence, respectively. Therefore, the teenage value system fails our young adults yet another time. As a student, I know that the author is reaching great heights, but I can only wonder what higher summits she would be able to climb if she had access to more stable support.
"Dream", is written mimicking the Harlem Renaissance's style of poetry; while M.Y. has not journeyed to all the places in her work, she has left her immediate family and come to Washington and her aunt's house by way of Seattle, Washington and Ethiopia. She is, then, well-acquainted with the unique, trying process of picking up in one place and starting anew in another. The low value and little respect that immigrants receive is a major theme that runs through "Dream"; the poem is aptly named, considering the dream that M.Y. has and the reality in which she finds herself.
I hope that you’ll respond with your thoughts about her works. Student works are some of the few uplifting things still in DCPS. The other uplifting things are, of course, the experiences we share with them and their sincerity. Now, that's just my opinion, and I'm waiting to hear yours.
"Why Not" by M.Y.
What are the people of our future looking like?
Scream, Shout, Smack, Smash,
You want to see how tough I am?
I'm getting ready to beat the hell out of that girl.
Bounce her head up and down the court like a Basketball.
She mugged at me,
She looked at my man.
And she copped my style.
I'm getting ready to hit a "J" tonight
Why not?
Go party!
Hey! Why not?
Have some Bacardi,
If my friends do it, why not?
Gucci,
Louis Vuitton,
North Face,
Oh, I have to have those,
Even if it means getting locked up.
I need to feel protected,
I need a family.
Fill my heart with love.
But in return for something else...
Why not, represent my families' colors.
Black, red, blue
I love my colors.
Bang! A loud sound broke the silence.
Another member of my family gone.
Scarlet rain pouring.
I'm stuck in a black hole.
So dark full of fear.
Every night I sit and think with a dark cloud over my head.
I don't like my new family,
I want to get out,
but the only way out is a bullet through my heart.
Words buzzing in my ears,
so annoying as a cricket.
Stop,
Drop,
Wake up,
Stop messing up your life, you got a future to get to.
But, Why not listen?
"Dream" by M.Y.
I had a dream of making a better life for myself.
from being tossed around
beaten,
blood dripping all over my body.
Working hard
for people who would kill me tomorrow and
burn me to death
and so, I left rural south.
I had the choice of cities in the North,
Chicago,
Harlem,
Washington, DC,
St. Louis.
I said to myself Harlem here I come.
Living in Harlem, I began my journey.
As an African American.
Striving hard to show my talents.
Jazz,
Art, Literature,
so many choices,
so little opportunities just because I'm Black,
But I'm just like everybody else;
I don't care what anyone says about the color of my skin.
Which one should I begin my journey with, because I have a lot to say.
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