April 10, Poem 10 - the guard in juvenile jail...

The guard in juvenile jail tries to hip some unruly kids as to what’s in store

See dat’s the problem wit you lil niggas –

think you know everything – I’m tryna

tell you some shit so you might not havta

come back here, but y’all 16 and think

you already know shit. Look, you think

I wasn’t here before, where y’all is?

But in my day, we beef and got up

and fought and got knocked down

and beef and got knocked down

and got up until we ain’t got knock

down no mo. And errybody walk away.

Y’all lose a fight and come back all

blam! blam! blam! and now you can’t

een be nowhere – then you get scared

and take some bullshit-ass court-appointed

attorney 60 months parole deal bullshit.

Nigga you doan agree to no 60 months parole!

5 years nigga?! Nigga 5 years?! Nobody

out here caint go no 5 years without

doin something wrong! Can’t leave

the state. Can’t get a speeding ticket.

Can’t een take a drink! Ain’t no citizen

can go no 5 years without at least one

time he gotta take his dick out and pee

on a tree – you can go 5 years without

takin yo dick out, nigga?! Bet you,

you can’t – then next thing you know,

you right back here locked up – 10 years,

20 years – fucked up in the game, but yeah

you ain’t gotta listen to me player – you’se

a big man, Joe – you’se a big man!

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