To Shanequa Gay on Hashtag Practicing Blackness

Tags

art appreciation, black in america, commentary, open letter, sociology

February 24, 2017

To: @shanequagay

RE: Hashtag Practicing Blackness

I’m waiting on your book Ms. Gay… you’re psychoanalytic purview draws attention to the emotional parameters that are often left on the drawing board. You dab the diasporic psyche of “colored” folks like never before, when you blackout with #practicingblackness. I adore your color language; the vividness, the boldness, the unforgettable hues, the willingness to color outside the lines is greatly appreciated.

#peaceloveandpositivevibes,

-Stevie | To Shanequa Gay on Hashtag Practicing Blackness

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The War On Drugs revisited

Tags

opportunity school districts, reaganomics, rockefeller drug laws, schools not prisons, sociology, the war on drugs, white collar crime

#rockefellerdruglaws

#thewarondrugs [eh hmm #thewaronthepoor]

#sociology

#whitecollarcrime [#privatizedprisons, #capitalists on #capitolhill, #mandatoryminimum & #threestrikelaws, #commodifiedconvictions, the #GEOgroup & the #correctionscorporationofamerica, and #reaganomics]

#unequaleducation [#elementaryandsecondaryeducationact, #nochildleftbehindact, #HB133 – #OSD: #opportunityschooldistricts , #ADD & #ADHD #misdiagnosis]

WAKE UP & WISE UP:
#noHB133 #noOSD;
it’s another legal opportunity to destroy the community,
the capitalists are reinventing legislation to allow them to capitalize off of the community.

THE WAR ON DRUGS has allowed the corporations to push pharmaceuticals from cubicles.

They have been peddling Ritalin to children,
lobbying the doctors to doctor you up with prescriptions.

They misdiagnose and overwrite prescriptions
cause their money multiplies when they prescribe your addictions.

They have been cutting school budgets and building prisons
cause they make money off of the inmates in prison.

When your lack of education becomes a crippling affliction,
the good folks behind the war on drugs will be there to sell you methadone and methamphetamines to soothe your addiction.

The war on drugs has increased the incarceration rates,
Blacks & Latinos have been incarcerated at epidemic rates.

The war on drugs has allowed the prescription pill mills to grow at alarming rates,
the FDA approves oxycontin for children in the United States.

Meanwhile rapists and killers have done less time than drug dealers in the United States…
and World Wars have had less casualties than the drug war of the United States.

World Wars have had less casualties than the drug war of the United States.
World Wars have had less casualties than the drug war of the United States.

–@StevieStreets #blacklivesmatter | The War On Drugs revisited

I Wonder Too

Tags

sociology

Remember the groups that planned picnics to lynch,
burn,
sodomize,
and/or mutilate a life?

They now have conservative values:
they propose opportunity school districts
and privatize the prisons,
they propose anti-gay laws
and sport bumper stickers that claim pro-life.

I wonder…
Why is there never a good ol’ boy in the systems
that they call the good ol’ boy system?

I wonder…
Why do they expect me to believe the Governor can see a failing educational system,
when he turns a blind eye to a failing prison system?

I wonder…
Why are equal rights and justice so hard to obtain?
Why is it so hard to see that the DNC and the GOP are one in the same?

During election season, they all seem to know your name.
When it comes to seeing that justice is served,
their eyes are all blinded the same.

I wonder…
Why do the politicians all preach change?
Do they really want change?!

After election season, they continue to speak change;
but they don’t wanna see change.
They just wanna see change;
they just want a piece of change.

Some do it for the money and the power,
some do it for the fame.
They get a few titles behind their name
and they never act the same.

When egos begin to change,
those that are appointed to protect the best interest of the people
tend to forget about the best interest of the people.
I wonder…
How can one expect equal rights and justice,
when the proponents of justice are given free rein?

They cover up corruption
with subsequent remedial measures
and more corruption;
they’ll throw dirt on your name
until your left out in the rain.

All these laws on the books
and aint a damn thing change.
Obama did the best he could
but aint a damn thing change.
The prisons are still filled with Blacks and Latinos,
aint a damn thing change.

I wonder…
Why is it a rarity to see someone appointed to do the right thing
that actually does the right thing?

It’s getting hard to do the right thing;
it seems like doing wrong is the new right thing.

I just want to fast and pray to the east;
they just want me to fall prey to the right-wing.

Some days, I’d like to fly far away;
but I’m a poet not a pilot
and I’m rooted and grounded
so I guess I’ll write wings.

Brother Marvin sang about flying high through the friendly skies
without ever leaving the ground.

I wonder…
“Why are you surprised to see them blatantly stepping on toes?
Hell; they step over veterans asleep on the ground.”

They say, “Let’s Make America Great Again!”
For the life of me,
I can’t see the pictures they are painting:
Maybe, their propaganda is too colorful.
Maybe, my perspective is off;
maybe, I remember different hues.
Maybe, they didn’t stretch the truth;
maybe, they gallery wrapped the art of storytelling,
maybe, they want those that fall by the wayside to have better views.
I wonder… if the sharp symbolisms of hate
and the impressionisms of injustice
are the fabrics that they are speaking of,
when they say America was great.
I wonder…
Why do they feel so entitled in America?
They stole the land,
made fortunes off of those they stole from foreign land,
then they wrote laws to impose the perpetual divide in America.
They want me to pray to a merciful god
that shows no mercy,
while these so called political pundits walk imaginary lines of faith:
the so called “good Christians” wear hoods
and burn crosses neath the bible belt,
they kill children for whistling dixie neath the bible belt,
brown-skin children can’t even walk the streets with a pack of Skittles neath the bible belt.
I wonder…
Why do those that state they wanna keep America great
tend to tip the scales of justice
and misappropriate diplomacy?
I wonder…
Why do they consistently claim to not see the great divide in America?
I’m appalled at the newscasts in America.
It’s getting hard to tell the reruns from the world premieres in America.
I wonder…
How long must we see the same ol’ story in America?
I see church bombings,
I see bigotry,
I see brown-skin people being brutalized in America.
No! I’m not referring to the “Great History,”
I’m talking about modern day America.

Banksy illustrated:
“I SEE HUMANS
BUT NO HUMANITY”
I love street art!
Do you see the pictures they are painting?
Maybe, I’m too radiant… for America.
I tend to mix with the outliers in this world where white is right.
They wanna dim my light;
but they will never whitewash me.
Oh No! Not Me!
They try to blackball the coloreds like me, in America.
They will never bring me down…
Oh No! I will never let ’em bring me down.
No! They won’t bring me down.
They may try to keep a foot on my throat
but I’m standing on higher ground.
I’m standing on the shoulders of those who dared to say:
“I Too America!”
I vividly remember Langston Hughes;
I think of his views,
whenever I’m under attack by America.
I hold my head up high,
I look ’em in the eye;
cause I know
I too, sing, America.
I am the darker brother.
I am standing on the shoulders of those that got spat at in America.
I am standing on the shoulders of those that got hosed down in America.
I am standing on the shoulders of those that were attacked by German Shepherds in America.
I am standing on the shoulders of those that rescued slaves in America.
I am standing on the shoulders of those that fought and died so I could read a book in America.
I am standing on the shoulders of those that fought and died so I could cast a vote in America.
Yes, I am the darker bother.
I am standing on the shoulders of those brave souls that spoke up for equal rights and justice in America.
I am representing for the feeling that made sister Maya write:
“I rise
I rise
I rise”
when they tried to write her down.
I am representing for the feeling that made brother Langston write:
“I, too, am America”
when Jim Crow laws tried to keep him down.
Sometimes, I wonder…
Exactly, what is or what was so great about America?

–@StevieStreets #iWonder part two, the #sociology #poem | from THE BOOK OF QUESTIONS: I Wonder Too

Needle Marks in the Park

Tags

heroin epidemic, rockefeller drug laws, sociology, the war on drugs

Syringes, Zombies,

Morphine Metamorphoses;

Heroin Abuse…

 

–@StevieStreets | from THE HEROIN IS HELL COLLECTION: Needle Marks in the Park [a still life impression of the heroin epidemic]

The War On Drugs

Tags

crack epidemic, rockefeller drug laws, sociology, the war on drugs

The government declared a war on drugs.

 

Rockefeller laws were imposed to crack down on heroin.

 

AIDS premiered and crack became the new heroin.

 

Are we ever gonna win the war on drugs?

 

 

Nah; they don’t wanna win the war on drugs.

 

The drug business was commodified;

illegal business is big business in America.

 

Jails were privatized;

the prison system is a billion dollar industry in America.

 

Governments fare well off of the war on drugs.

 

 

They told you to “SAY NO TO DRUGS”

as central intelligence smuggled drugs into the United States.

 

They established the “RICO ACT” to prosecute the mafia,

as the war on drugs became the biggest racket in the United States.

 

Capitalists on capitol hill lobbied for the GEO Group and the Corrections Corporation of America,

as mandatory minimum and three-strike laws increased the incarceration rates.

 

 

I wonder what they thought when Washington DC became the “MURDER CAPITAL”

as the president of the free world conspired with gun runners & drug smugglers to fund secret ops,

back when the crack epidemic was labeled endemic to the have nots.

 

I wonder what they thought as the “COLLATERAL DAMAGE” began to unfurl;

this is for the babies that were born addicted to ready rock,

this is dedicated to those that are still suffering from shell shock.

 

I remember how “THE WAR ON DRUGS” left urban areas looking like a third world;

this is for the P.O.Ws, this is for the nonviolent offenders that are still confined to a cell block,

this is dedicated to the families and communities that were ravaged by the infestation of crack rock.

 

–@StevieStreets | from THE CRACK ERA COLLECTION: The War On Drugs

 

Accumulation by Dispossession

Tags

crack epidemic, rockefeller drug laws, sociology, the war on drugs

Gentrification,

Housing Privatization;

Neighborhood Cleanup.

 

–@StevieStreets | from THE CRACK ERA COLLECTION: Accumulation by Dispossession

 

Survival

Tags

crack epidemic, rockefeller drug laws, sociology, the war on drugs

I grew up around dope fiends and dust heads;

I’m from where the hearts are cold and the eyes are blood red.

 

Where the clouds were black and the garden was bloodshed.

 

I’m from where children were sent to corner stores to get a dollar worth of cold cuts – “make they’re sliced thin”.

 

I grew up in an era when you abided by the credo “snitching is a sin.”

 

I grew up where they found a body over here and a head over there;

but hands and feet were neither here nor there.

 

I’m from where the average household income was less than ten thousand;

I grew up in an era when the police were afraid to police public housing.

 

Where the church preyed on those that prayed through the bible.

 

I’m from where there’s only one rule in the jungle – SURVIVAL.

 

–@StevieStreets | from THE CRACK ERA COLLECTION: Survival

 

 

 

Proper Perspective

Tags

black lives matter, sociology

I never knew you could board a commercial airline with an animal head.

I can’t even make it pass TSA with 3.5 oz of Sportin’ Waves for my head.

I guess my perception is off.

At times, I don’t see the prospective benefits of the law.

Yeah, my perception is off.

 

At times, I am compelled to put my concerns into proper perspectives.

In my proper perspective;

I applaud the major airlines for taking action against the illegal killing of African-Animals.

I wonder when the business sector will take action against the illegal killing of African-Americans.

I imagine the public outcry of Black Lives Matter

does not really matter…

 

At times, I don’t see the prospective benefits of the law.

I guess my perception is off.

When my perception is off,

I take a step back to see new perspectives.

In my proper perspective;

I see past the optical illusions,

I hear what is not said amidst the confusion.

 

At times, I don’t see the prospective benefits of the law.

Yeah, my perception is off.

When my perception is off,

I investigate to gain proper perspectives.

In my proper perspective;

I see they love animals,

it’s only the jungle bunnies they hate.

 

In my proper perspective;

I see you will get sentenced for fighting a pit bull

before you receive an indictment for killing an African-American in the United States.

 

–@StevieStreets | from THE BLACK LIVES MATTER COLLECTION: Proper Perspective

Good Grief

Tags

black lives matter, sociology

You could exemplify the epitome of peace.

Yet they’ll say you should’ve been more polite,

after you’re murdered by the police.

 

Good grief, it’s getting hard to survive.

If they don’t bury you in the system,

if they don’t kill you in the streets,

if they don’t kill you in prison,

they’ll kill your innocence; remember The Central Park Five.

 

I remember when the young black male was the most endangered species in America.

Nowadays, innocent, magnificent African Animals should be protected.

Yet those that have sworn to protect and serve are murdering innocent, magnificent African-American Humans in America.

 

Good grief; the police will fire 50 shots, if you’re an unarmed groom to be in America.

 

Good grief; the police will fire 41 shots, if you’re an unarmed immigrant, sitting on a stoop in America.

 

Good grief; the police will fire 39 shots, if you’re an elderly woman at home alone in America.

 

Good grief; the police will fire 137 shots, if you flee from police in America.

 

The digital era has given the world a glimpse of what inner city districts have witnessed for years.

They will kill you on video, they do not care.

They will kill you with your hands up, they do not care.

Black Lives Matter is the digital equivalent of shedding tears.

 

The war on drugs has ravaged the inner city districts for years.

They make money when the drugs, guns, and violence appear.

They make money when the District Attorneys and the Judges distribute them years.

Black Lives Matter is the digital equivalent of “does anybody care?”

 

Black Lives are being wiped out of society, look at the incarnation rates.

They falsely accuse and over sentence Blacks and Latinos, I’m afraid to substantiate.

 

Black Lives are being wiped out of society, look at the abortion rates.

They gave syphilis and AIDS to Blacks, I’m afraid to procreate.

 

Black Lives are being wiped out of society, at epidemic rates.

Too many mothers and fathers are burying their sons and daughters in the United States.

 

I’m beginning to drown in all of the blood that was spilled in the streets.

I’m beginning to drown in all the tears that were shed in the streets.

Good Grief!

 

–@StevieStreets | Good Grief

 

 

August 28, 1955 – August 28, 2015

Tags

black lives matter, sociology

“I saw that his tongue was choked out.

 

I noticed that the right eye was lying on midway – his cheek.

 

I noticed that his nose had been broken like somebody took a meat chopper and chopped his nose in several places.

 

As I kept looking I saw a hole which I presumed was a bullet hole.

 

And I could look through that hole and see daylight on the other side.”

 

-Mamie Till | #BlackLivesMatter: August 1955 – August 2015