Author: mpau@thebeatwithin.org

The Power of Words

The Beat Without

by A. Raheem Ballard Since the beginning of time, language has allowed people of all ethnicities to communicate, to be heard, and to be felt. Through the exchange of words, language has also allowed people to persuade others, and to be persuaded. For example, the ery speeches of Adolf Hitler convinced a nation of people that blonde hair and blue eyes was a sign of ethnic superiority. Then, there was the congregation of Jim Jones, which was tragically misled from America to Africa, only to commit mass suicide. These horri c acts were not only carried out with bad intentions,

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Staring Back At Me

Piece of the Week

by Rajene Thick brown skin with battle scars everywhere, a glance around my face expressing a deep depression and overcoming of sin. I see three tattoos that express the love for the people symbolized amongst each of them. I see coarse hair, which I was born with and struggled with while going through different stages of depression. I remember my different hairstyles as I think of myself, and cry knowing that my hair did not deserve this point of roughness. That’s just the outside appearance of the mirror for the bigger image is withheld inside of my soul, heart and mind.

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THE BEAT WITHIN/JJIE

Daily Blog

Hello all! We hope most of you had an enjoyable Mother’s Day weekend!? Happy Monday to all. The Beat Within is gearing up for our big trip this week to New Orleans to bring our workshops and publication to the New Orleans Parish Juvenile Hall! An exciting time. We are thrilled to see that our dear colleagues and friends over at the JJIE (Juvenile Justice Information Exchange) based in Georgia, picked up and posted the well written and thoughtful piece of writing from Mistah G today, a former participant in our weekly writing workshops inside the San Francisco Juvenile Justice Center. Today Mistah G is a

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Different Homes

The Beat Without

by Michael Mackey Yes, I’ve been in many group homes and foster homes. I’m surprised I’m not the poster child for the foster system. I was rst placed in the foster system when I was seven years old. My twin sister, Michelle, and two younger brothers, Johnnie and John Earl were also with me. My uncles and aunties made the decision to place us in the foster system. I’m not sure if our granny was a part of that, but I think she knew. The only person who asked if we wanted or needed anything was the case worker who was

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Crying to the Limit

Piece of the Week

by Bre’Ann I’m an emotional wreck. Crying is my only good coping skill, not having a mother to cry on or a father I can run to. My sister is gone with the wind. My brother is gone with my freedom. As I stare at my public place of punishment, punishment is my only hope for freedom. Being a highly sophisticated, intelligent, emotionally mature, lonely, and ripped up failure. I see what I have become and it’s not exactly helping my emotions. My mother went to a better place when I was 12 and I got separated from my lovely

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Do The Time, Don’t Let The Time Do You

The Beat Without

by Son Nguyen Our perceptions tend to change as we get older. When I rst got locked up in county jail, everyone pretty much knew I was going to be behind bars for a while because of the crime I committed. Those who had more experience with being in the system advised me to “Do the time, don’t let the time do you.” I took this to mean Man Up and not let the system break me no matter what happens. So when I came to prison with a life sentence I went along with what I was taught. Follow

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Addiction

Piece of the Week

by Chance I as a person have a lot of concerns. I will talk about a couple of them, but keep in mind they are just concerns, not beliefs. I feel like a failure. My anger has removed myself and my family from home to home since I was young, but I fought it and conquered it. But when one big problem goes another takes its place. Drug addiction; right now it feels unbeatable. Every ber of me wants them to make me happy, to nd a purpose. It takes me and wraps its warm arms around me. Now that

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