By “Breaking Point”
I felt so stupid. Why did I feel that I had to do something wrong just to fit in? I read this article called, “Surrounding Pressure.” It talks about how peer pressure in America shapes crime and drug users because kids listen to their peers and don’t have the self-esteem to say “No.” I was one of those kids.
I wish I had the self-esteem to say “No” before I went to the mall with my friends that Saturday. (more…)
By Salim Williams
Growing up I always admired older my brother and took after everything he did. When he was in High School I was in Grammar school and yet he allowed me to hang with him and his friends. They showed me the ropes; taking me around the neighborhood and introducing me to people. Some of the people I met were known troublemakers who our parents usually told us to avoid; but parents are parents and ours always seemed to worry about everything. I later found out my brother and his friends were a part of a well known street gang.
I was the only one in my house who seemed to notice a change in my brother’s behavior. (more…)
By “Cleveland California”
Instructor’s Note: “Cleveland California” is a pen name.
The world is changing most people say in a good way but what I see is more people falling into poverty every year. People that used to be middle class are now poor. Most people don’t understand but I live in it. I see people my age who have to resort to illegal activities to feed their families because they’re the only source of income that the family has.
To start off, most people in poverty are born into it. Which means there was nothing they could do about it. To escape poverty you need a good job. These days it takes a high school diploma to work at McDonalds, and it takes a college education to make more than minimum wage. Most times poor families don’t have enough money to put their kids through college. The only way that they can make it is through sports but they have to make it through the streets first. (more…)
By “B. Channel”
Instructor’s note: In order to preserve their privacy, some students are electing to publish their work under pseudonyms.
When you wake up in the morning, crawl out of bed, wipe the crust out of your eyes and look into the mirror, what do you see? How do you feel about the image that appears to be your own reflection? How do you think others view that image? Do they see a respectful person, a kind-hearted person? Or is all of what they see negative? How do you what to be remembered? What do you stand for? What are you willing to die for? A wise man once said, “if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” Far too often people who are drawn into negative spaces do so because they are either too feeble minded to make anything positive out of their emotions or just weren’t taught well enough to decipher what would be the right decision when multiple tasks are placed in front of them.
Consider the ex-jock turned stick-up artist, who up until his sophomore year in college lived to play the game of football until his career was cut short by a deadly blindsided hit. (more…)
