Greetings friends! We welcome you wonderful readers and supporters to yet another fabulous double issue (23.49/50) of writing and art from the inside and beyond! We are certainly thrilled that you have this one-of-a-kind publication in your hands. As is the case with each issue, there is plenty of solid standout writings from our many contributors – from our young and old who deliver their truths from inside the numerous detention facilities we visit, to those who send their submissions to us via snail mail, as well as those in the free world who courageously share their truths each week!
This week we welcome to our editorial section the reflections of two of our high school interns from the Urban School of San Francisco, Melia and Yudi.
These past few months we’ve had the pleasure of working with fifteen Urban students as they transcribed writing for our Beat Without pages, immersing themselves into the thoughts of our prolific writers.
In Melia’s, “A World Without Borders,” she explores the breakdown of the single-story narrative, and in her words, how “those living inside do not have one identity that is defined by suffering.”
Yudi writes on her feeling of investment and connection to the writers she got to know over the course of a few months, and the impact one particular writer, Michael Mackey, has made. Be sure to flip to the back of this issue to read the piece of his that Yudi speaks so highly of.
We look forward to continuing our wonderful, longtime partnership with Urban, bridging the distance between those on the outside and those on the inside. A big thank you to not only our Urban students but to teachers, Deborah Samake and Amy Argenal for making this partnership a success!
Response To My Time Transcribing For The Beat Within
It’s easy to make assumptions. About things and people that you experience and interact with on a daily basis, and with things and people you may be totally unfamiliar with. And with the unfamiliar, it’s even easier to keep as much distance as possible between them and you. This is the bubble I’ve lived in my entire life by separating the experiences of people far away, including those who are incarcerated.
Through my time typing with The Beat Within, I believe I’ve been able to create personal bonds with the authors I’ve read, by learning about their lives and experiences through their various works of art. This unique experience has allowed me to aid those who are incarcerated, allowing their voices to become heard. But, this “service” isn’t a one-sided relationship. The pieces that I had the privilege to read enlightened me to the diversity of experiences and identities of incarcerated individuals, tearing away a wall of ignorance I had originally hid behind.
Before I began reading and typing the pieces, I was under the impression that it would be easy to separate myself from the voice of the author, because I was only familiar with them through sheets of paper. But, especially with individuals whose work I read multiple times, in different mediums, like Michael Mackey, who wrote anything from raps to poems, I found myself forming relationships with them.
With Michael, as I continued to read more and more of his pieces, I began to respond internally to his writing, finding patterns and stylistic choices that he made through multiple pieces. I didn’t realize my own connection to his work until reading his last piece, a rap he wrote called “The One You Over Looken.” This piece was particularly unique because I noticed that as I began to type, I had imagined a voice for the author, forming an idea of what he sounded and looked like in my head, even though the possibility of me meeting Michael in the future, and putting a real voice and face to his work, is slim. I’m still moved by the relationship I grew with him, entirely through his words.
Thank you Michael Mackey for allowing me to read and reflect upon your personal experiences, and expression of self, which has both pushed me to use writing as an outlet, and helped me bridge the gap that I’ve formed between myself and those in prison. (To read Michael Mackey’s piece, please go to page 72)
-Yudi, Urban School, San Francisco
A World Without Borders
When asked to reflect upon my time working with The Beat Within, I struggled with finding a way to express all the knowledge and perspective I had gained. I feel that the only way to do this is to respond to one of The Beat Within’s own prompts, as many of these same questions are what provoked the rich responses I read. So, what would “A World Without Borders” look like to me they ask? To begin to answer this question, I think it is important to address what having a border means in the first place.
To divide people, ideas, or countries, one must first define this entity. There lies a border between those who write for this organization, and those like me who type up these pieces. While this border can be the actual wall that divides a prison yard from the world outside, it can also be the border that exists societally. We are able to separate those in government institutions or those incarcerated so easily from ourselves, because of these borders, and their ability to make two neighbors seem worlds away.
These borders allow one to remove themselves from the problems in these institutions, and the stories of those inside them. I think The Beat Within’s purpose is to break down these societal barriers, something it was able to help do in my mind, through disproving the many differences I thought to be true between myself and those incarcerated.
The stories I read through The Beat Within were some of my only exposure to first-person narratives of those in the system, outside of a dramatized film. Before this, the borders I put up had never been challenged. I believed on the other side of the border there existed histories of violence, abuse, and discrimination, and failed to understand the multitudes and individuality of each person I would be transcribing for. While many of the stories I read did involve these histories, there were also stories about fitness, forgiveness, reflection, and family.
There were poems about love, articles about the promotion of protests, and letters reminding readers of their self-worth. I realized that there is not a single story of someone who is incarcerated, and while it is important to recognize the injustice and pain that exists within this system, those living inside do not have one identity that is defined by suffering.
After my time at The Beat Within, I have been able to break labels I had placed, and have lost the ability to such a vast group of people with a few adjectives. Without an easily defined group, it becomes harder to maintain such a protected border. I believe a world without borders is one without these absolute labels, one in which the stories of Michael Mackey, Phong Dang, Larry Hernandez, John Vasquez, and Sean Pernice, to name a few, are normalized in society, and are as present and valued in my community as any other.
-Melia, Urban School of San Francisco
We hope you enjoyed these personal reflections. We anticipate a few more from our friends over at Urban School.
For you fans of OT, he has not gone anywhere! His work is in this publication and he will continue to be shining light in future issues of The Beat Within. We would not be surprised if he’s not featured in the next Ed’s Note! All right friends enjoy this amazing one of a kind issue. It is truly our honor to share the art and writings of our dear friends and colleagues in these pages. Reach out anytime if we can be of support! See you soon!