by Q. Paige, San Quentin State Prison, CA To be totally transparent I hated writing in my youth due to complications with my learning. At a young age, I was diagnosed with Dyslexia, ADD and ADHD and couldn’t focus for long periods of time. Words jumbled together, sometimes I would read backwards. I hated everything to do with literature and there was no way to change that. So, I thought. My mom heard of my short-coming and refused to put me in special classes or give me medication so as my saving grace she spent extra time teaching me. She
Continue ReadingHow Would You Like To Be Remembered
by Marco Antonio Ramirez, Avenal State Prison in Avenal, CA When my journey started and when I first began to meet people, I would come across a variety of different people that I think would be interesting to copy and develop a mix between them all. Of course, these personalities weren’t positive. They were negative like the characters that are in the Batman series. I would walk and collect a little bit of the negative personality from one person, and then collect a little bit of the negative from another person. I ended up talking and acting like the Joker
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Volume 26.47/48
Please contact Lisa Lavaysse if you would like to purchase the full PDF or a printed copy of this issue.
Continue ReadingEd Note 26.47/48
Greetings! It is hard to believe it is the month of December. Where does the time go? We are quickly approaching the winter holidays, as we are weeks away from the new year, 2022, doing our best to wrap up 2021, as we approach our year-end issue. While looking forward to taking a break in the action, as we will take our annual break between Christmas and New Year’s. Until then, The Beat goes on… the workshops continue, and the hard work behind the scenes for this one of a kind publication, The Beat Within. This week we deliver you
Continue ReadingMy Motivation to Work
by Jesus, Sonoma I have two motivators in my life. One is my mother and two, my older brother. My mother has always worked while pregnant and dealt with my dad while he worked, being an alcoholic and putting my mother through hell. After my mother had my older brother, she went right back to working. Five years later I was born. My older brother learned and stepped up to take care of me while both dad and mom worked. Then, 1 ½ years later, my little brother was born. My mom still kept working and my older brother still
Continue ReadingBroken In Many Ways
by Rashad, San Diego I would describe my heart as emotionally damaged from all the losses and trials and tribulations I had to go through at such a young age. I have had many broken hearts for many different reasons. From a female to family betrayal, to losing someone close to me and that I care about. I have also had a lonely heart growing up by myself. For so long, I felt I had no one but the few homies who were looking out for me. But eventually they ended up switching on me too. It only happened
Continue ReadingMy Memory of My Best Birthday Breakfast
by Angel, San Mateo The best breakfast I have ever had was many years ago. It was my morning birthday breakfast, if I remember correctly. I think it was on my 11th birthday. I don’t really remember all the details, but I do remember some things. I remember waking up and smelling my favorite meal which was chile rellenos, red Mexican rice, posole and this good hot sauce my mom would make. Since it was my birthday my little cousins and my siblings woke me up and started singing happy birthday to me. I was a little mad at first
Continue ReadingAdvocating For The Mentally Ill
by Michael Mackey, San Quentin State Prison, CA Well, all right all right, how’s everyone doing on what was a fine day. My name is Michael Mackey and I’m here today to be an advocate for the incarcerated mentally ill. Question, by a show of hands, how many of you in the audience right now, have been incarcerated for over five years? (Interesting). The ones that have been locked up for that long are the ones most affected by this problem and we should be able to fix this problem. See there’s around 200,00 incarcerated men and women dealing with
Continue ReadingWhat Went Down
by Sir Royal LeBlanc, Kern Valley State Prison in Coalinga, CA I wake up in cold sweats, and I’m breathing heavyI’m seeing double but I’m trying to get my eyes steadyAnother dream that continues to haunt my soulTrue life events that I’ve never toldNeeding to just let it all outSo this is how this situation came aboutThe homie and I were sitting in my carWe got out to go into the storeBut we see our rivals coming from afarWe turn to run in the other directionBut it was too late they was already flexingI made it back to the car
Continue ReadingEarly Trauma
by Jesse Ayers, San Quentin State Prison, CA I think one of the most devastating issues I have never really addressed was being locked in a dryer at a laundry mat when I was three years old. Being locked in a dryer at age three started out funny. My sisters (age 5 and 9 at the time) were laughing, as it all seemed like a game. The laundry mat was empty, besides our mother, my two sisters, and myself. Washing machines made up the center rows and the dryers lined up against the walls with elevated entry level windows, easy
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