I have been in the Clemente program for about a month now and it has been great. We have been given a great amoung of books. So far, we have read Dante's Inferno, Antigone, The Odyssey and more.

 The teachers are very interesting. They seem very interested and devoted most of the time. The art class is cool. So far, we learned about Mesopotamia and Egypt. The question was how did art evolve into what is is now and how do you define art?

The writing course has been of great interest to me because that is something I love to do. Working as a group, with the other students, has been good also because we all support each other. There is never a day when class was silent.

I wish everyone the best of luck as we continue thie continue this journey through Clemente.

Okay people. You should know the drill of how i operate by now but if you don't, you will learn. Politics, politics and more politics! Wow! I and one of my youth from DYC, Malcolm, went to the YOUTH SPEAK OUT dialogue on monday afternoon at the Great Hall.

The place was packed with youth and adults. Even though there was a great pile of information being condensed in a two hour period, what stuck out to me was the cry for mentors. In the slideshow presentation, I was completely baffled and appauled to see how much crime was happening and a complete gap, almost like the educational gap between whites and blacks as a whole, between youth and police. Youth, just as much as adults, are afraid to walk the streets.

The question was asked, "How easy is it to get a gun?" By just hands alone, it was an answer that was shockingly thrilling but also a wake up call that death is literally in the hands of angry, misunderstood people. Now, if it is going to make you feel better if i say, "power to the people" or "We need unity", you and i are on the right track but if you just sit there and not do anything you have a serious issue.

Many people are saying THE GUNS. IT'S THE GUNS AND WE NEED TO TAKE THEM OFF THE STREETS. If we take them off the streets and the people who are doing the crimes have no guns, what else would they resort to? We need to have a healthier outlook on life.

Say, if there was a gun in the street and people know that talking about the problem is better than shooting the person you may have a problem with, and that talking instead of fighting was accepted, what do you think would happen? Have you ever thought about that? Food for the soul. One love. Holla!

"Ever heard of Jim Crow laws*? Did you think that overt racism doesn't happen any more because of new laws and the Civil Rights Movement? Think again. Six black students from Jena, Louisiana are sitting in jail awaiting their fate in a case that echoes similar conflicts from the fifties and sixties. As the courtroom battle rages on, we are reminded that racism—and those who dedicate their lives to fighting it—are still very much a part of our world today.

The plight of the nicknamed "Jena 6" began last September, when a black student sat under a tree in his schoolyard that was traditionally occupied by white students. The next day, students arriving at school found nooses hanging from that same tree. (Nooses represent the threat of lynching, a common method by which whites have terrorized communities of color.) The nooses, later discovered to have been hung by three white students, were dismissed by the school's superintendent as a "prank," and the three students were allowed to return to school after a three-day suspension.

A few days later, several more students staged a sit-in under the same tree to show their support for the black students, and their disagreement with the carefree attitude taken by the superintendent toward the white "pranksters." The school responded by calling the district attorney, who arrived with armed policemen to break up the protest.

Then, in October, a black student was beaten for entering a private all-white party. A white student pulled a gun on several black students at a gas station later that month, claiming self-defense. The black students managed to wrestle the gun away from him, but were then charged with assault and robbery of the gun. No charges were filed against the white student. In late November, there was an attempt to burn down the high school that left its main academic building in ruins.

The conflict reached its peak a few days later when a white student was allegedly attacked in a school fight. Though the student was released from the hospital a few hours later with minor wounds, the six black students involved were charged with attempted second-degree murder and conspiracy—both felony charges.

Since that first day in September, when nooses appeared in the schoolyard tree, controversy has surrounded the racial conflicts in Jena and the trials of the Jena 6. The students and their families have tried to have the charges dropped and have advocated against the racist and unjust behavior of the school and police. But the white population in Jena, which is 85 percent of the town, seems determined to keep the trials moving forward.

Want to join others in voicing your outrage at the treatment of the Jena 6? Visit these sites for information on how you can make a difference.

www.friendsofjustice.wordpress.com
www.colorofchange.org/jena"

The fun was on in Ronan Park last saturday. The children were having fun, there were performances from many individuals but most importantly, there was a message that was frightening but had a revelation: Violence.

As Project Think DIfferent's MC, Adrian Davis asked that crowd if they ever los someone to violence, countless hands were raised in silent unity. The music stopped and the focus was remarkable.

There were numerous acts that was anti violence and showed how a group of young adults can make a difference by speaking out through rap, poetry, dance and theatre.

In the midst of remembering the lost lives in the community, we all remembered to have fun The children were thrilled with obstacle courses that had candy prizes, kiddie packs, food passes and bags as prizes, just to say the few.

Every one was connected in one way or the other. If you weren't there you missed out but you can plug into your commmunity by logging onto your website, mydorchester.org and start right away.