Hope
Simply put cannot be found
Accustomed to the burdens of this side of town
Too numb to smile at peace with no frown
My spirit lingers in the wind, cannot be found
Emotions simmer as life gets thinner
To live and die in the ways of a sinner
Eating up knowledge as if it was dinner on a Sunday
Approaching the likes of those who choose gunplay
A wise choice to duck when the thing sprays
Lacing in tales of death, many nights I wept
After watching my folk’s brains get swept
Across the way so out of touch I sway
Your thoughts are counterintuitive against the
Grain, I refrain from nonsense my conscience is
Troubled, your life in my hands so I call you a fumble
A mistake, a feeling your boy can’t shake or take so
I bring a situation of euphoric behavior displacing
And erasing you fools introduce you to your savior
You savor my taste, it’s pleasing up all night bangin’
And thieving with no sense of discretion so you call me
A demon neglected and labeled a heathen so I
Take it like a baby that’s teething and seeking a means
To stop when it’s on pieces out your top or brains
So cold and tight the boy similar to braids or
I’m tight and nothing sticks emptying out and
Reloading clips and this is the best form of revenge
The end I will send you, we heartless peep what
We been through, separated and divided like Muslims
We fight ourselves into submission, can’t comprehend
So just shut up and listen.
In 2006, over 25 youth began participating in weekly after-school writing workshops where they congregated in the hallway of a two-story building in West Fresno and learned the essentials of creating media and telling their stories. The group evolved over the next five years and is now proudly recognized as The kNOw Youth Media.
Through our program, we create opportunities for our youth participants, who in turn create long-term positive change in their communities. Our approach weaves youth development and youth media innovation to produce our biannual youth publication, multimedia projects, and community forums.
The kNOw began as a project of New America Media, which was the country’s first and largest national collaboration and advocate of 2000 ethnic news organizations. In 2018 The kNOw became a project of Youth Leadership Institute.
