But I'm gonna quibble about the horse. That is no horse "dancing." That is a horse urged forward and being yanked back. See its mouth hanging open? It moves via threat of the whip. There is no joy in this "dancing."
Oh, the power of YOUR words, Karen. To transport us to a world we will never know, show us the beauty of every human soul, and inspire us to act as you did, from compassion, non-judgment, and freedom. My heart is overflowing. Thank you.
Well, I've learned not to assume that I can just take a quick look at something you post and then get back to my day. Now, an hour later, I have to figure out how to rearrange my day. All your fault! ;-)
It was amazing to watch you make your way from that most inauspicious starting point to actually succeed at creating a writing group. Wow. Throwing a lifeline to wounded people drowning in deep turbulent waters. And watching each soul grab hold for dear life as they begin to recognize the value of the gift that you had placed before them. Wow.
Jan 22Ā·edited Jan 22Liked by Karen Hunt aka KH Mezek
A powerful tale, more so bein' real an' true an' lived experience! the genuine power of words is that they kin tear down barriers--race, male-female, rich-poor, faith, an' so much more an' that's whut ya did Karen, ya calmly tore down the barriers an' let the girls' words come out (untethered from the walls that held those young women whose paths--it sadly seems--were twisted an' beaten down from the start). With words, you changed their lives--that's sumthin'! Whut struck me was not only that today ya couldn't've done this b/c of the whole racism/whi'pee-pull thing (hate that stuff beyond words) but because...today....young people DO NOT READ an' DO NOT WRITE.
THIS is the double crime of the century (the 21st). Young'uns that could not even do what your class girls did are the norm--some kin barely print their names, some are full-out illiterate, most just text--half-words, inarticulate an' lost. There is no poetry in the voice of a finger pokin' a shortcut key to say bye... buttons an' clicks cannot replace words an' the beauty of stories... Even computers (no more longhand, no more manual typewriters, not even any more typin' on them nifty electric IBM Selectrics) didn't kill writing or words... Humans adapted (fer better 'er worse) as did writing. BUT I fear the age of the cell phone did finally kill writin'--making the POWER of shared human experience only a delete key away.
Kin we regain our footsteps in the digital age? Even if we erase the false-gawd "identity" barriers they put up between folks, what will they say in the void left? (I worry.... ) Meantimes my girls still have ta write real stuff on college-lined paper... outliers fer sure-
Thank you Karen. I was an instructor at the biggest state prison in Pennsylvania called SCI Graterford...100 year old max security prison with 40 foot walls and sniper towers it wad the biggest and bloodiest prison for men in Pennsylvania. I was there for 4 years and I'll never forget it. There's a very raw but honest way a lot of the men have in there.... I led a gang leader to the Lord. I had a Bible on my desk in the shop and I could talk about the Lord in the whole prison...on death row and in all of the blocks in the prison..I had a good reputation with the staff and the inmates. I always thought to myself if they allowed the Bible in public schools most of those men would not be in the prison where I can freely have a Bible on my desk. Oh the irony....I have many stories and miss my time there where the Lord showed me so many things about myself and His faithfulness...
Well, that was glorious! (Your words express what so many of us instinctively know, that hate and prejudice are taught behaviors.) I look forward to all your writings, but these āupliftingā essays are some of my favorites. My email Inbox is stuffed full because of all the weather issues weāve had here in the last week (frozen pipes, no heat, etc), but one of the first things I did when I got on line was to seek out your posts. What a rewardā¦thank you.
In the USA at least, you cannot be punished for crimes committed by your family. If, say, your parent or grandparent cheated someone, you as the child cannot be punished by law for it. In other countries, this may not be the case. I would like to know then how it is that anyones 'whiteness' can be held over them in this way, to the point where that which we might contribute to society is thwarted. I think at times of trying to teach music skills (I play brass instruments like trombone and flugelhorn) to incarcerated people, but this blame whitey forever movement dissuades me from even trying.
Beautiful and moving! You are speaking the truth, and we all should re-member the things that make us human, and stop allowing them to be taken from us. In the beginning was the word!
What a wonderful thing you did for these girls, while their families abandoned them to the tragedies of the streets and abusive relatives. Reading about each one of these girls really touched my heart. Gangs became their families but they werenāt families, they used and abused them. This is what the welfare system has done to every family sucked into this life! They were never raised to love their children and teach them responsibility and caring. My grandparents used to have a neighborhood grocery store that we would frequent and stay overnight at their house. We saw the families who came in and how so many kids were abandoned by alcoholic and drugged out parents. My grandparents would always make sure the kids got something good to eat and never expected payment. When the sixties riots came, they were forced to close because the very people they helped turned on them, robbed them and tied them up executionary style to kill them. Fortunately someone walked into the store and the black man ran out. None of us were ever prejudice. But it became a sign of the times. All the issues weāve ever had were from violent blacks! And they wonder why others didnāt want them anywhere near them! This was all by design by the powers that be! Iāve tried to reach people about that and this was purposely done to them to create this nightmare, but they donāt believe it. They prefer to believe the lies. They never look at the fact that there is no family responsibility or goals to become responsible people. Mom has had many children without even knowing who the fathers were all for those promised babies for benefits. I met women with 10 kids who had a different father for each and they never cared that these kids were never raised as a real family. It wasnāt this way for other minorities and whites. I am sick of the white privilege BS! My dad came from a family of 9 and lost his mother from a fall while she was pregnant with his youngest brother. The difference was they all took care of each other and kept the family together. He watched the decline in the cities and he and one of brothers moved out to a suburb and built homes next to each other. The saddest thing not enough people want to change the narrative. Now its open season on innocent children, and anything goes, while loving parents can lose their children for,protecting them.
Loved this.
But I'm gonna quibble about the horse. That is no horse "dancing." That is a horse urged forward and being yanked back. See its mouth hanging open? It moves via threat of the whip. There is no joy in this "dancing."
Iām so glad I read all of this article. All you said was true. What a gift you gave them.
Thank you for shining the true light once again- so people's blindness can be cured.
Love this essay!!!
Oh, the power of YOUR words, Karen. To transport us to a world we will never know, show us the beauty of every human soul, and inspire us to act as you did, from compassion, non-judgment, and freedom. My heart is overflowing. Thank you.
Well, I've learned not to assume that I can just take a quick look at something you post and then get back to my day. Now, an hour later, I have to figure out how to rearrange my day. All your fault! ;-)
It was amazing to watch you make your way from that most inauspicious starting point to actually succeed at creating a writing group. Wow. Throwing a lifeline to wounded people drowning in deep turbulent waters. And watching each soul grab hold for dear life as they begin to recognize the value of the gift that you had placed before them. Wow.
Thank you for your service.
A powerful tale, more so bein' real an' true an' lived experience! the genuine power of words is that they kin tear down barriers--race, male-female, rich-poor, faith, an' so much more an' that's whut ya did Karen, ya calmly tore down the barriers an' let the girls' words come out (untethered from the walls that held those young women whose paths--it sadly seems--were twisted an' beaten down from the start). With words, you changed their lives--that's sumthin'! Whut struck me was not only that today ya couldn't've done this b/c of the whole racism/whi'pee-pull thing (hate that stuff beyond words) but because...today....young people DO NOT READ an' DO NOT WRITE.
THIS is the double crime of the century (the 21st). Young'uns that could not even do what your class girls did are the norm--some kin barely print their names, some are full-out illiterate, most just text--half-words, inarticulate an' lost. There is no poetry in the voice of a finger pokin' a shortcut key to say bye... buttons an' clicks cannot replace words an' the beauty of stories... Even computers (no more longhand, no more manual typewriters, not even any more typin' on them nifty electric IBM Selectrics) didn't kill writing or words... Humans adapted (fer better 'er worse) as did writing. BUT I fear the age of the cell phone did finally kill writin'--making the POWER of shared human experience only a delete key away.
Kin we regain our footsteps in the digital age? Even if we erase the false-gawd "identity" barriers they put up between folks, what will they say in the void left? (I worry.... ) Meantimes my girls still have ta write real stuff on college-lined paper... outliers fer sure-
Thank you Karen. I was an instructor at the biggest state prison in Pennsylvania called SCI Graterford...100 year old max security prison with 40 foot walls and sniper towers it wad the biggest and bloodiest prison for men in Pennsylvania. I was there for 4 years and I'll never forget it. There's a very raw but honest way a lot of the men have in there.... I led a gang leader to the Lord. I had a Bible on my desk in the shop and I could talk about the Lord in the whole prison...on death row and in all of the blocks in the prison..I had a good reputation with the staff and the inmates. I always thought to myself if they allowed the Bible in public schools most of those men would not be in the prison where I can freely have a Bible on my desk. Oh the irony....I have many stories and miss my time there where the Lord showed me so many things about myself and His faithfulness...
Well, that was glorious! (Your words express what so many of us instinctively know, that hate and prejudice are taught behaviors.) I look forward to all your writings, but these āupliftingā essays are some of my favorites. My email Inbox is stuffed full because of all the weather issues weāve had here in the last week (frozen pipes, no heat, etc), but one of the first things I did when I got on line was to seek out your posts. What a rewardā¦thank you.
In the USA at least, you cannot be punished for crimes committed by your family. If, say, your parent or grandparent cheated someone, you as the child cannot be punished by law for it. In other countries, this may not be the case. I would like to know then how it is that anyones 'whiteness' can be held over them in this way, to the point where that which we might contribute to society is thwarted. I think at times of trying to teach music skills (I play brass instruments like trombone and flugelhorn) to incarcerated people, but this blame whitey forever movement dissuades me from even trying.
Beautiful and moving! You are speaking the truth, and we all should re-member the things that make us human, and stop allowing them to be taken from us. In the beginning was the word!
One more reason why I can't stand Elon Musk's X. When I shared this essay, they put a warning on it that it might contain "sensitive" content. I refuse the "blue check" and am censored there but this is beyond belief. https://twitter.com/karenalainehunt/status/1749068315585294622?t=TRwuy87Ps0ABbMB9lycRDA&s=19
Bravo!
What a wonderful thing you did for these girls, while their families abandoned them to the tragedies of the streets and abusive relatives. Reading about each one of these girls really touched my heart. Gangs became their families but they werenāt families, they used and abused them. This is what the welfare system has done to every family sucked into this life! They were never raised to love their children and teach them responsibility and caring. My grandparents used to have a neighborhood grocery store that we would frequent and stay overnight at their house. We saw the families who came in and how so many kids were abandoned by alcoholic and drugged out parents. My grandparents would always make sure the kids got something good to eat and never expected payment. When the sixties riots came, they were forced to close because the very people they helped turned on them, robbed them and tied them up executionary style to kill them. Fortunately someone walked into the store and the black man ran out. None of us were ever prejudice. But it became a sign of the times. All the issues weāve ever had were from violent blacks! And they wonder why others didnāt want them anywhere near them! This was all by design by the powers that be! Iāve tried to reach people about that and this was purposely done to them to create this nightmare, but they donāt believe it. They prefer to believe the lies. They never look at the fact that there is no family responsibility or goals to become responsible people. Mom has had many children without even knowing who the fathers were all for those promised babies for benefits. I met women with 10 kids who had a different father for each and they never cared that these kids were never raised as a real family. It wasnāt this way for other minorities and whites. I am sick of the white privilege BS! My dad came from a family of 9 and lost his mother from a fall while she was pregnant with his youngest brother. The difference was they all took care of each other and kept the family together. He watched the decline in the cities and he and one of brothers moved out to a suburb and built homes next to each other. The saddest thing not enough people want to change the narrative. Now its open season on innocent children, and anything goes, while loving parents can lose their children for,protecting them.
Through
Margaret Anna Alice trough the looking glass
Find on substack: An Anthem for Justice by Margaret Anna Alice and listen. Amazing....