West 9th St by Sad Girl

last night rolled up tha block

to a lil spot called west 9th st.

all tha homies were there..

kickin it outside.

music bumps, and cop cars scream

sumwhere off in tha distance….

tare open tha 24 packs…

out comes tha smirnoff vodka

Sour Apple wrapped up in a brown paper bag….

people starten to get loud now..

time to move it inside…

kic back on tha bed…

talk shit to one another…

bring up old times…

when Regi thought he was El Chingon..lil vato cruzzin on his bike..

feelin kinda perked now…

Tykey strolls in with his peach wrapped blunt..tha only black fool thats kicks
it with us….grew up in tha same hood…he might as well be mixican….

we tell him not to forget us when he gets on MTV…..

laughter takes over all our conversations….

tha house smells like booze and vomit..

feelin kinda dizzy now…

yup..these are tha moments that make up our memories…..

in 10 years….these will be tha

“old times” that we talk about…

…as we kick it on west 9th…

Even in tough economic times, there are scholarships available to students who want to go to college.  All it takes is grades and green money!  Scholarships MEAN that you have to have the grades that are required for application…usually a 3.0 GPA (B Average) on a 4.0 GPA scale.  There are ’some’ scholarships available for students with a C+ (2.5 GPA) but not that many.  Bottom line?  Start searching for scholarship money a few years BEFORE someone graduates.  This is just a short list.  Your local library has more.  Bro Mike

Here are two new gateways from Black Excel: The College Help Network  (www.BlackExcel.org).

200 Free Scholarships For Minorities
http://www.blackexcel.org/200-Scholarships.html

Black College Tours 2010
http://blackexcel.org/black-college-tours-2010.html

These kids don’t wake up bad’: Project 180 teaches empowerment, gang prevention
Shelby Star

SHELBY — If Project 180 can turn students from failing grades to being at the top of the class, then officials believe they can do the same to prevent kids from gang activity.

For several years, the project has empowered many kids to stay on track academically, emotionally and spiritually. And now, the program has added gang prevention and intervention to its objectives.

“Make it so we’re not living in hell and becoming devils” says it all…One of the better gang related videos I have seen in a while

One Day by Matisyahu

Let these lyrics be our banner for 2010

we all lose
when they feed on the souls of the innocent
blood drenched pavement
keep on moving though the waters stay raging
in this maze you can lose your way (your way)
it might drive you crazy but don’t let it faze you no way (no way)
sometimes in my tears I drown
but I never let it get me down
so when negativity surrounds
I know some day it’ll all turn around
because
all my life I’ve been waiting for
I’ve been praying for
for the people to say
that we don’t wanna fight no more

Conselor Tells Teen Girls “Don’t Roll the Dice” With Gang Life …

Funeral Director Counsels Would be Gang Members

Rodriguez was a founding member of the Chicago street gang the Lady Aces

She speaks with great authority on the subject of gang violence, and tells groups of girls that joining a gang is like “rolling the dice” with their life. Rodriguez was a founding member of the Chicago street gang the Lady Aces, …

Guardian Angels grows as violence invades smaller cities
Post-Bulletin
We’ll do gang intervention. That means we’ll ride up on gangs and start immediately trying to talk to those on the periphery out of that lifestyle. …

Having seen the Guardian Angels grow to include more than 125 chapters around the world, founder Curtis Sliwa isn’t surprised to see a volunteer crime patrol group forming in Rochester.

Violence like the drive-by shootings Rochester has seen during the past year is becoming more common in cities with populations of 100,000 or less in the U.S., leading to new Guardian Angels chapters being formed, he said.