Van Lathan (120:03)
This is a place I've been to, drove up that long Road in St. Francis, visited men that have been there, seen the pictures and all of that stuff. This is a place that I've been to. It's gotta change. You're right. And like, for me personally looking at that, I'm like, that is amazing and it's beautiful. And yeah, there has to be somebody in there that takes the walls down. There has to be someone. That's true. But when you drive up that road, you drive past white men sitting on horses as black men are out there picking shit up, you like, yo, what the fuck is going on? Like, what is happening in this type of place? The way these men inside these places are commodified? Like, when you go in there are the questions being asked, like, how much does it cost for you to call your mom? Like, seriously, just break it down to a. Like, when you are in a place like this and you talking to an inmate, next time you talk to an incarcerated person, ask them, how much does it cost for your mama to accept the call? Like, what. What company is making money off your mom accepting the call? Can she afford to stay in touch with you? Like, who's making money from the food that you are eating right now? Is it R Mark? Is it a company that's coming in there and feeding you low quality food, right? And then making a million dollars, a prison or a billion dollars a year, whatever the fuck it is, off the fact that you have to eat inside? Like, what, how are you? How are they treating you in here? All of that? And I hope to God, pray to God that this company is doing all of that work. But in addition to the dancing, there needs to be somebody, There needs to be some part of this that is addressing how these men got there, what their lives are like when they get there, there. And what happens when they leave? Leave. Other than that, I can't dance with you. I need somebody that has some answers. Bringing God into the prison is fantastic. Spirituality is expansive. It brings you into your humanity. All of that is phenomenal. That's great. But who's working on the other side? Like, what's happening? And by the way, the way they probably because the information on the website was sparse. Right. But they probably maybe will respond to some of these questions. And they're only questions. But you would have to have been, not have to have been. Everybody understands the reality of prisons like Angola and other places like that, that there's so much wrong happening. And I. Everybody get with an organization and try to if you have the chance. Worth rises Bianca Tylek and a lot of the information and a lot of the work that they do is phenomenal. Campaign 0deray McKelson. Get with some organization. Connect yourself to some group that can better educate you on the lives of an incarcerated. And the deeper you get into that, man, listen to deray talk about life at Rikers. The more you get into that, the more you go, okay, fathers and daughters and human. All of that is. That is such a vital part of it. But if you go in there, to me, you're signing up for a lot more than just that. But I completely understand how this is coming off. Like, I totally get it.
