Abstract

This was more a learning and growing experience for myself and the young teenagers involved than a project. Over the duration of the time I spent mentoring the kids, I forgot about the fact that I was doing a project for a grade. I felt more like I was doing something that was helping me become a better person. At the shelter, I helped the young kids deal with their hard life situations by writing. Over the time,  I also chimed in on helping them better understand basic every day mannerisms, like being respectful, grateful and polite. In the beginning, everything didn’t start off as lovely as it ended. The kids were very unkind to me and they would clearly express that they did not want to be in my “program”. They would openly express their dislike for what I was trying to teach them. I thought that they didn’t respect me because we were only 4 or 5 years apart in age but soon I realized what it actually was that disinterested the kids. I realized that the kids were being rude for 2 reasons. Reason one was that they didn’t have much discipline in their lives, which explained why they were so rude and they also, like all other teenagers, didn’t  want to sit and write and listen to someone talk for an hour. After this realization. I decided to take a different route into getting them to like what we were doing, which was use active games instead of writing exercise  to start off with. They enjoyed that after a long day of school, then they didn’t mind the writing as much. In the end every went well and I just hope that the kids took a lot from this experience. 

Favorite Spot: West Philly 

Neighborhood: West Philly 

I am: A poet from West Philly who has figured out the miracle of here. 

My Love Note: 

Favorite Spot: West Philly 

Neighborhood: West Philly 

I am: A poet from West Philly who has figured out the miracle of here. 

My Love Note: 

I have passion for recognizing where the boiling belly full of love is, 

You have the burnt remains of what used to hold everything beautiful,

You've been my cradle since birth, 

Somewhere that I can always call home, 

All space in your boiling belly for a black girl in need of home, 

Always leaving room for me even after all the struggles people stomp into your skin of soot. 

You are very much appreciated here. 

You are beautiful, 

Home too all the hurting brown boys wearing bullet proof skin, 

And the girls who can't find their way out of the maze in those boys minds, 

You've been my mother my entire life, 

Your street lights always my guide back to broken beauty,

You, 

West Philly always has room, 

Even with the over population of poverty, 

I try to save you with poetry, 

There is always room, 

You are nothing but a beautifully broken mother birthing boiling belly flu of love. 

Pepper Steak and Onions over White Rice 

By Eryn James 

Preparation Time: 15 minutes 

Cooking Time: 15-20 minutes 

Ingredients:  ( 8 - 10 servings) 

 • 2 to 3 pounds sirloin steak, cut into thin 2-inch strips

 • 2 onions, sliced into thin slices

 • 2 green bell pepper, sliced into thin slices

 • 2 red bell pepper, sliced into thin slices

 • 2 cup beef broth or 2 cups beef gravy

 • 1/2 teaspoon salt 

 • 1/2 teaspoon pepper 

 • 1/2 cup cold water

 • 5 cups cooked white rice 

Instructions:  

1. In a medium sized frying pan sauté the onions, green and red peppers
2. In a large baking pan, bake steak for 7-8 minutes on both sides for a well done steak.
3. While the steak is still in the oven, add the sautéd onions, green and red peppers, salt and pepper to the pan with the steak letting it back for an addition 3-4 minutes.  
4. While the steak is still in the over, pour the 2 cups of beef broth or beef gravy into a pot adding 1/2 cup of water to avoid gravy/broth burning to the pot. 
5. When the steak is done, Cut steak into 1 inch by 1 inch pieces and add to the pot of gravy.
6. Serve over white rice.  

Analysis: 

About 9% of the steak used for this recipe is processed and the white rice used for this recipe is 27% processed. So 85% of this meal is processed. I used about 5 and a half 6 ounce steaks for this recipe which resulted in about 1,914 calories with 58 calories per ounce. For 5 cups of white rice, there was 1,335 calories with 267 calories per cup. There are 140 calories in 3 cups of green peppers, red peppers, and onions, with 1 cup of green peppers having 30 calories, 1 cup of red peppers having 46 calories and 1 cup of onions having 64 calories. There are about 3389 calories in this entire mean. In one serving there are between 340 and 424 calories. So, eating this mean constantly could cause you to gain weight and because of the rice in the dish, could eventually cause diabetes. 

I think my rice came the farthest because I know that a lot of Americas rice comes from Japan. This entire meal costed $26.47. Comparing that to fast food, I know that 2 cheese steak platers from the pizza store on 52nd and Girard cost $19.75 and thats only for 2 servings of food but for only $6.72 more, I can feed 6 - 8 more people. From watching the video in class, I know that the steak used for my dish went through a long, violent, inhuman process. It was raised, very improperly, and killed by the masses where they’d skin them then cut the meat from the various parts of the cow. Not much happens after that except for packaging and shipping what used to be a living animal.

Personal Reflection 

During this unit I’ve learned a lot about healthiness and obesity. About how poverty effects who is afford the foods need to be healthy. There are a lot of things that effects peoples ability to be healthy and I’ve concluded that you have to be the start of change in your life. 

I know that if unhealthy fast food restaurants don’t maintain business they will eventually go out of business and some people strive to stop the fast food chains that are making more and more people obese. My role in the larger food system is that of the person who is trying to move fast food restaurants, if not out of business period, out of neighbor hoods where majority of people eat and live unhealthy lives. I don’t purchase food from the leading fast food restaurants such as McDonalds, Wendy’s and Burger King. I know that a lot of people have a hard time eating better because there are so many fast food restaurants and they make their food affordable to even the poorest people, which ultimately keep them in business.

Some changes that I could change to my food choice is try not to eat any bread or anything that is not low to fat free. I could also eat less snacks during the day. I know that those snacks are only healthy if I bring them from home and when I don’t I eat from the school store and buy chips or air heads instead of having a piece of fruit or pretzels. I could also   try to eat more home cooked meals instead of ordering. I order when it’s too late and I am too tired to cook so i should eat dinner a few hours before bed time so that I can try to burn as many calories before I fall asleep because you dont burn calories while your sleep. 

The impact of these changes are weight loss, a better diet, and a healthier future. I would benefit so much from this new diet if I keep it strick and not cheat on days when I just feel like something else. I would have to fight the urge to eat the salty and sweet foods that aren’t good for me. I am willing to make these changes and plan to starting the week of January 27th because I know a healthier me is a happier me. 

He said “Baby girl, good men always know when it’s time for their fight to end, but a better man never stops fighting.” 

He gathered himself without taking anything with him, 

Not even my embrace,

To let me know that even without him here/ I can still love, 

I’ve never had the audacity before now to wait for a heart,

But you said “Sleep on it” 

So I curled up on your chest and we taught each other patience that night,

Hoping that the weight of my tears on your chest wouldn’t wake you from your gorgeous slumber, 

Because  mornings can be so mortal, 

I just want to wake up to your smile,

Rustled locks and tired eyes, 

The sign on our door says “don’t disturb” because whoever has the audacity to wake me from this fairytale, 

Must have something more to offer me than you, 

And you fill the space between here and forever,

Because when I kiss you, 

I can taste the next 60 years of my life,

Waking up with your arms draped across my fatigued body is what I look forward to even in my dreams,

You are the first adult I've ever dated, 

The only man I've never had to lay before, 

You found treasure where thieves found trinkets, 

I feel prided in your arms, 

They used to take parts of me without asking, 

And gamble my bones for luck, 

But I found honesty in your touch, 

I've trailed your spin as straight as an arrow,

And have been astonished by the application of your mind,

Last night before day dream met fairytale, 

You were just as beautiful as the first time I laid eyes on your honey suckle skin and luscious lips,

Drenched in sunlight on the most beautiful day of my life thus far,  

So in the morning when I wake up,

With your arms draped across my fatigued body, 

And I tell you that I love you more than any one human heart can bleed, 

Don't blush or look away, 

Just hold my gaze, 

And see ME, 

Know that I will forever hold your heart and protect it with my own, 

And that I will always be yours,

At your disposal,   

I sat on the ledge of the fountain at love park, 

I wasn’t sure if you were taking a picture of the beautiful Philadelphia scenery or me,

But I will take what I can get from you, 

You are still the last person I kissed,

No matter how much my body or mind decides it wants to change as we carry each other in years, 

I will always be the same girl you fell in love with. 

I just want to fall asleep with your smile,

Rustled locks and tired eyes, 

Hoping that you’ll make space on your pillow for me, 

If not my face at least poem or 2, 

And you are the first adult I’ve ever dated, 

So if anyone should ever ask, 

I would describe you as a wealth of daisy’s and  sunday mornings, 

When we just lay in bed, 

Being as lazy as we allow ourselves to be,

Basking in the growth of our affluence of love, 

And when you get mad at me,

I know you won’t leave me and be so gone that even our “in-love telepathy” won’t carry my “I’m sorry” messages to you, 

And I love you for that, 

Because you’ve found the forbearance to wait for my mistakes to fix themselves, 

You will always be the last person I kiss, 

And I swear when I kiss you, 

I can taste the next 60 years of my life. 

To me, a sugar skull is a creation to adorn and celebrate the life of someone who is deceased. Sugar skulls are from the Mexican celebration on the Day Dead, which is a national holiday. It’s main focus is to get family and friends together and remember the loved ones who have died. Sugar skulls are brought to graves of children as well as toys. They are gifts for both the living and the dead, made usually from granulated white sugar, icing and other decorative accessories. They are edible but are normally used as decoration. 

The decorations of a sugar skull are to represent how you feel or felt about the loved one or just to make something so ugly as death be beautiful. I thought about the death of my father as I decorated my skull. I decided that I only wanted to remember the good things about my dad, which I incorporated into the mask by using bright colors and  and images such as hearts, peace signs, flowers and smiley faces. My father was a really peaceful man although very cautious and would keep himself and his loved ones safe at any cost. 

A poetry book by Eryn James

We Will Be

This was a boundary,

In which I had never intended on crossing,

Which may have been the biggest mistake in our relationship,

The stench of resentment and distrust in the air was telling me that i shouldn't be here,

But the loneliness and distress plastered on his face is begging me to stay,

Begging me to engrave my place beside king as queen,

Fill the shallow middle of his bed with my soul,

Resting it on bed sheets and confusion,

Tangle my fingers to his like roots,

So that our children can look back on solidarity,

And when we grow older,

He will have eyes like camera lenses,

And shutter eyelids,

Capturing memories by the blink,

His smile still holding me here,

Cradling me in the curl of his lip as if it never gained a day of age past 19

And I will have the sky on the lining of my womb from the galaxies created there before the birth of each of our children

We will live as if our bones never began to hollow,

He will still hug me as if to say there will forever be a home in the bends of my elbows for you,

As if today is all we have left

And we are not greeted with tomorrow’s sun,

I'll smile like moon light

Bright and surrounded by darkness

Hoping to be someone’s guide back home

And kiss you like the sun

Hot and excited

I will love like the meaning of tomorrow doesn’t matter anymore,

And hope there’s a time between death and evolution where bones can still be in love,

Maybe somehow our souls will find their way back home,

Even when our bones become playgrounds for insects and rodent,

We will still have passion,

Painting salvation over whole cities with sunshine,

There does exist a place where bone and marrow doesn’t matter.

Fiji

I’ve been trying for so long to learn you,

To discover what bliss you have hidden in you the caves of your eye sockets,

All the while I never judged you by the soil browns of your skin,

Or the tangles in your crown,

Alls I wanted to do was read you,

Open like a wound after battle,

You’ve been through battles,

I can tell,

And alls I want to do is heal your hurt,

Find the Fiji in your tears and catch them like dreams,

And figure out why you cry entire utopias,

I am destine to know you,

Eager to figure out why you cry paradise,

And why you hate anyone who tries to care,

I only want to be the Neosporin to you scars,

Make them disappear as easy as they were thrown there,

Make whoever hurt you vanish as easily as they appeared,

I want you to trust my hands for nothing more than caressing you,

I need you to trust me for nothing more than loving you,

But acknowledge that I’m human and we all make mistakes,

I promise that I wont make promises that I have no control over keeping,

I wont promise you that it’ll all be ok,

Or that you’ll be fine,

Because I don’t know and wont until all this ends,

But if all fails and falls,

I’ll be here to pick up the pieces,

I’m here to pick up the pieces,

We’ll try to build back as whole as possible, 

The lost pieces are only gone to show you that you’re human,

And to tell the world that you have a story,

Let Go

Does my name accidently slip off your lips when you kiss her,

Tell me you haven’t you been thinking about me,

Try to persuade me that you don’t stare when I walk past you,

Lie to me and say that you don’t have to pry your eyes open to awake because I am a permanent part of you limbo,

Tell her your sorry for calling her my name and mean it,

Apologize for comparing my past to her present so many times,

Kiss her without thinking of how much my lips meant to you,

Close your eyes and scratch her face over top of mine in your eyelids,

Let go,           

So I wont be stuck here,

Half present,

Half past,

Broken in two,

Let go,

So I can learn to be a whole,

So I can learn to love something new,

Don’t think of it as moving on,

Think of it as an accomplishment,

Go,

And achieve something greater than I am,

I promise I’m not going to stand in your way,

I can’t promise I wont cry but I will heal from the pain,

I’ll turn my back if you want me too,

Just let go love,

There’s nothing left to hold onto,

Just sweaty palms and a sack of regrets flung over my shoulder,

I’ve learned I wasn’t meant to be here with you,

So enjoy her presence,

Call her beautiful without having my face in mind,

Don’t listen for my voice her cries,

I promise I won’t be there,

Tell her she’s a queen,

And offer her your thrown and stop thinking I’ll be back,

I wont,

Love her personality without comparing it to mine,

You have something worth loving,

You had something worth letting go of,

Love her and let me go,

Because I’m leaving now,

And I’m taking everything that you have memory of,

My name,

My smile,

My face,

My past,

My lips,

My voice,

I’m taking me,

And I don’t want you to come find me,

Forget me,

Let go.

Lost Each Other

It’s weird that we lost each other here,

In this fallacy of fantasies

But I’m ok with the fact that you're moving on,

I know,

She gave you more than I ever had to offer,

I still love you but I want you to recognize that there is more left for me in this pool of happiness,

I’ll try to find someone else willing to love the brokenness out of me,

Because here love lasts longer than lonesome anyhow,

Time flies when loving someone wrong and hurtful,

Quick and careless,

I don’t want to stay where I know I don’t belong,

You’ll see my face and realize that I am something worth wanting,

I’ll walk away from this whole and content but you should know,

That sometimes love is hurtful and we cant find solace in broken

I’ve tried.

I’ve tried to blanket a bed on top of fragmented fallacies of the perfect fantasy.

But we know lies hurt and they wont always heal,

So next time,

I wont try to run a race bare foot,

How We Left

Have you ever seen your ex love hugging someone the same way they used to hug you,

Kiss as if they had love notes chanting samba on their lips,

It makes my soul cringe,

Puts freezer burn on my heart,

And forces me to remember all the vacuous reasons I decided to end a such shameless love so expeditiously,

1. I was jealous of the way stars chose your eyes for bedrooms at night.

It made looking at you a lot harder knowing your perfection.

2. We used to watch the sunrise and you'd kiss me like the sunshine. You broke my guard down with you lips.

3. You screamed forever’s into my heart. You loved me too hard.

I hate that you’re gone now,

And I've been searching for someone to get you off my heart,

Trying to find someone who could out do you in loving me,

But I've found myself lonely,

My bedroom has been made hotel rooms for unsuccessful one night stands since you left,

Foreign bodies cannot make me feel as whole as you did,

Even when they're on top of me,

Ever since you left there's been this emptiness on the right side of my bed where you'd lay when you were here,

But I guess your content with her sleeping on my side of your bed,

Meeting you in the middle where our souls once met,

Where our unconditional love once lived,

What happen to us?

I know the ending was my fault,

But it takes two to tango,

So I hope your owning up to stepping on my feet,

I should've listened when you told me you couldn't dance,

But sometimes I’m glad I didn't,

Sometimes I'm glad I decided to gamble with my emotions,

Memories where made here,

I remember Sunday football games,

You'd lay your head in my lap and I’d rub your back,

I never liked football much but,

I'd still cheer for your favorite team,

'Cause you were my baby,

And I remember when I’d come over after a long day of school and you'd cuddle with me,

And make me laugh at everything,

I was yours,

I hope you remember, 

I hope your not letting her create space in our memories for herself,

Because far before her there was me,

Remember when you used to call me your everything?

I never wanted to be much of anything,

But you insisted that I was the reason your world spun,

But now I guess I was just a model for the fitting of her crown,

I regret all of our mishaps,

But I cant put this all on you,

I know I used to yell,

And tell you I hated you,

But I'm a woman,

Most things I say when I yell aren’t true,

I promise when I said those things I was still loving you,

I just wanted a reason to get you mad,

So you’d have a reason to chase me,

But I guess you were tired of running

Islam

I will shatter myself in Islam,

Rebuild my temple in la il ilaha illa allah,

And own my character as a daughter of Prophet Muhammad S.A.W

I will never be ashamed of my garb,

Recite the Qur’an like Arabic was the very first star perched on the corners of my galaxy, 

Bismil-laahi rrahmaani rrahiim,

Qul huwa Allahu ahad

Allahu assamad

Lam yalid walam yoolad

Walam yakun lahu kufuwan ahad

He was bore

Was not born,

Equal to no man

And I will praise him,

Sacrifice my self like lamb,

I serve no other purpose, 

Learn the prayer buried in the moist palm of half Saudi half African Girl,

I will be worthy Insha-allah,

Islam saved me,

Saved me from myself,

From who I thought I wouldn’t be able to be,

From dishonesty

Helped me regain my self-respect and integrity,

I often find myself having to choose between my religion and something that I know I will be forgiven for,

But I always choose you,

Allah is my savior,

Allahu Akbar is my plea,

Love You Right

1 I don’t want to love you broken,

2 Don’t want to kiss you cold and lonely,

3 I cant bring myself to hug you loose and heartless,     

4 Don’t lie to me,

2 Don’t want to kiss you cold and lonely,

4 Don’t lie to me,

5 Keep truthful even if honesty sounds crazy,

6 Don’t break my trust into stolen happiness,

5 Keep truthful even if honesty sounds crazy,

7 I want this to work,

6 Don’t break my trust into stolen happiness,

8 You have to help me keep together to love you,

7 I want this to work,

9 We all know that lies hurt but they always heal, 

8 You have to help me keep together to love you,

10 I want to change and be able to love you properly,

9 We all know that lies hurt but they always heal,

3 I cant bring myself to hug you loose and heartless,

10 I want to change and be able to love you properly,

1 I don’t want to love you broken.

Savior

Some girls try to construct kings out of unhealed wounds claimed to be caused by shootings stars,

They try to believe that they have enough space in their luggage for other peoples souls,

My bones aren't designed to carry anyone else's burdens but my own,

I have picked up broken glass before,

Cradled it in the palms of my hands like disintegrating philosophy,

Decided that it was worth the splintered fingers and bandages,

You,

More than the “ratchet 52^nd and market nigga” that you try to persuade yourself that you are,

This is an attempt to make sure that you know where you come from,

Snatched from the galaxy under your mothers bosom,

Crying stars and music,

You where born symphony,

But live Bach,

Loud and angry,

You apoplectic angel,

Born beautiful and g cleft,

Live like danger and catastrophe,

There are mornings when I wake up wishing that you'd just listen to me love,

I'd click my tongue against the oxygen surrounding your eardrums

Create something worth listening too,

Because it seems as if you only respond to hollow promises and nonsense,

But I wasn’t born music,

I was born poet, 

No instrumental,

No base line,

Just words and ink,

For now,

I’ll try my best to sing for you,

Be sincere in my song, 

I’m sure that I’ve heard a few girls sample you,

Music,

It sounds rather cacophonous to me,

And I know you want to believe in saviors,

But I can't save you,

I'm not here to pry out whatever monster buried itself in your chest,

I only want to pray for you,

Whisper help,

Under my salat,

And I hope that Allah will hear me and afford you salvation,

Because I can’t offer my soul as shelter love,

I’m not strong enough,

I’m just as in danger of losing myself as you are,

Too hollow,

Too many missing bricks to keep this house from crashing down with you in it,

I’m just hoping that you can gather enough of yourself in this poem,

To be whole enough for tomorrow.

Our group worked on a website to inform people about Child Abuse. We used a multitude of directions to come from that would help us get people to take the time to look at our website and just for people to understand the problem at hand. One portion of the project that I personally worked on was the media portion. We decided, as a group, that we should use images to show people what child abuse looked like on the outside so that they would take the initiative to go and find out what abuse does to children on the inside. So my job was to find images that I thought would have a hold on people after they saw them.

Challenges for us as a group was finding the time out side of class to communicate with each other and to focus while in class.  In class we’d get off task and start having a conversation about child abuse or an image I found or a statistic or something but in the end we found a way to incorporate the information form the conversation into our website. At other times we’d totally get off task and start talking about other things that had nothing to do with the project. Personal challenges I had was trying to find a sufficient amount of pictures that didn’t look cheesy or that had the effect that I wanted it to have on our viewers. Another personal challenge I had was being absent one of the days we had to work when we only had a few days to work on the project.

Successes that we had as a group was that when we all put our heads together we came up with really good ideas and found really good information to compile onto our website. We all brought some effective input to the table when we were brain storming on the project. We all also gave an equal amount of effort and support during the project as well as had a good time working with each other, in my opinion. Personal success that I had was pulling my own weight on the project and not asking for unnecessary help. Also, coming up with good ideas and pitching them to the group was a success I had. I also over came one of my weaknesses in group work; I wasn’t distant and I took the initiative in communicating with my group. 

Choosing a topic was fairly easy for us. We made a short list of things we knew about but could find more information on. A few topics that were listed were Martin Luther King Jr. and the Million Man March, Rosa Parks and the Bus Boycott and Malcolm X, and his Existence in the Muslim Community. We looked into the one we though were more interesting and essentially found that Malcolm X’s story was the most interesting to look into more in depth. We decided that this topic was also a better idea than the others because in the general Malcolm X story, there was more than one revolution to focus on.

            We went about finding out information by breaking up the project into categories that we were going to focus on. We essentially focus on his voyage to Mecca, his empowerment in the Muslim community, X being sanctioned, and his death. After deciding how we were going to divide the topics, we gather information on those topics separately. After compiling the information and the liable sources into primary and secondary sources categories, we decided that all of the sites we used weren’t necessary and began to disqualify them from our sources. When we had the sources we wanted to use, we found the connection between all the different topics we talked about within our general topic.

Before we started the whole process and everything, first we had a 15-20 minute brainstorm session. We did a 20-minute brainstorm session so we could gather a lot of ideas together. So then my partner said how about we do Malcolm X. Well I said I don’t know too much about him but my partner said she does. I said well this is perfect because I can do a lot of the researching and she can do a lot of the design. Well it turns out we both got a lot of information and we both did a lot of the design. Overall I think our process was pretty good because we did everything on time and a good quality of work.

Our project relates to the NHD theme because our project followed the whole rubric for the Nation History Day Competition. We clearly went back in time and picked an event to research and find a revolution, reaction and reform. We decided to do a website because we could put a lot of different information on it without being timed because we were going to originally do a documentary but we decided to do a website. A website was also a good choice because it allowed us to compile information without having it cluttered or confusing to follow.

Bibliography

Primary Sources:

Travels to Mecca:

http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=539

"A Summing Up: Louis Lomax Interviews Malcolm X by Louis Lomax."TeachingAmericanHistory.org -- Free Seminars and Summer Institutes for Social Studies Teachers. Web. 11 Jan. 2012. <http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=539>.

(interview with Malcolm x)

This source is an interview with Malcolm X about his trip to Mecca and how that trip effected him and his views on Islam. He gained so much knowledge about his religion and everything involving that when he returned back to the states that he initially became the spokes person for the Nation of Islam. We’ve decided to use this particular source because, as it is full of information, it also gives a first hand incite on the direct impact of his travels.

Going to and coming home from prison:  

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/file/shabazzs-grand-jury-testimony?page=0

"Shabazz's Grand Jury Testimony | The Smoking Gun." The Smoking Gun: Public Documents, Mug Shots. Web. 11 Jan. 2012. <http://www.thesmokinggun.com/file/shabazzs-grand-jury-testimony?page=0>.

(His testimony before he went to prison) This is Malcolm X’s testimony before he was sentenced to his time in prison. The testimony gives some sense of how he felt about why he went to prison and how he felt about going to prison for what he was going for. We’ve decided that this a good primary source for this topic because, again, we’re learning about it more or less from his mouth.

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/file/malcolms-rap-sheet?page=0

"Malcolm's Rap Sheet | The Smoking Gun." The Smoking Gun: Public Documents, Mug Shots. Web. 11 Jan. 2012. <http://www.thesmokinggun.com/file/malcolms-rap-sheet?page=0>.

(His rap sheet)

This is Malcolm X’s rap sheet. The reason we decided to use this was to further out knowledge on how many times Malcolm X went to jail and the reasons behind them to strengthen our opinions on what type of man he was and what he really stood for.

   His death:

     http://www.criticalreading.com/malcolm.htm

"Malcolm X." Dan Kurland's Www.criticalreading.com -- Strategies for Critical Reading and Writing. Web. 11 Jan. 2012. <http://www.criticalreading.com/malcolm.htm>.

(news article) This website is just a direct link to a few articles about Malcolm's death. In the articles they talk about who he was and what happen to him. They have a few statements from witnesses that were there. 

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/file/malcolm-morgue?page=0

"Malcolm In The Morgue | The Smoking Gun." The Smoking Gun: Public Documents, Mug Shots. Web. 11 Jan. 2012. <http://www.thesmokinggun.com/file/malcolm-morgue?page=0>.

(his autopsy pic) This is an actual photo of malcolm X's dead body at the morgue. We used this picture for the tension and reality of his death on our website to add effect to that section. 

 Secondary Sources:

http://www.malcolm-x.org/bio/timeline.htm

"Malcolm X - Biography Timeline." Welcome to Malcolm-x.org. Web. 05 Jan. 2012. <http://www.malcolm-x.org/bio/timeline.htm>.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAmalcolmX.htm

"Malcolm X : Biography." Spartacus Educational. Web. 05 Jan. 2012. <http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAmalcolmX.htm>.

http://www.africawithin.com/malcolmx/malcolm_bio.htm

Necessary, Any Means. "Biography of Malcolm X." Africa Within. 2001. Web. 05 Jan. 2012. <http://www.africawithin.com/malcolmx/malcolm_bio.htm>.

These 3 sources are all Biographies of Malcolm X. The difference between these 5 sources is that they all give information that the other doesn’t as far as dates and information. Also, they aren’t 100% accurate so to have more than one is better than having one not 100% accurate source.

http://www.ushistory.org/us/54h.asp

"Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam [ushistory.org]." Ushistory.org. 2008. Web. 05 Jan. 2012. <http://www.ushistory.org/us/54h.asp>.

This source is someone’s view about who Malcolm was through the Nation of Islam. It tells about how he lived through his religion and who he became because of it. It also explains the effect he had on other people because of the effect the Islam had on him. We’ve decided to use this source because although as a secondary source it is not 100% accurate or reliable, it had good information worth using for the task at hand.

http://www.colostate.edu/orgs/MSA/find_more/m_x.html

"Malcolm X." Colorado State University - Fort Collins. MSA. Web. 05 Jan. 2012. <http://www.colostate.edu/orgs/MSA/find_more/m_x.html>.

(Timeline) This site is a time line of Malcolm X's life. This site points out different things that he did in his life, providing us with dates and things to focus on as far as his story. We've decided to use this site because instead of researching blindly, we could look this over and decide which, of many, revolutions in his life that we would focus on. Then from there we could locate the reaction and reform later on the timeline, making the figuring out what the revolution, reaction and reform portion of the research already taken care of, giving us more time to focus on actual research.

A poetry book by Eryn James

 Judgment

There’s no gorgeousness in guts,

No elegance in intestines,

No loveliness in lungs,

I'm ugly,

This is not what I look like

I wear these rags called skin so you people can't judge what matters,

Although you say you don't,

I feel your judgment unpleasantly trickle down my spin,

I feel those eyes like broken glass piercing my bones,

Don't judge what matters,

Judge this body,

This face,

These limbs,

These cloths

But my insides are delicate,

One quick tongue can cause earthquakes in my ribcage, 

My bones have become brittle,

I used to give away my organs like sunshine,

To be used as homes for the egos of boys who only knew how to love painfully,

I used to suffer so that I could feel necessary,

So much hate and misery has tumbled down my insides,

My heart now made a jigsaw puzzle,

My lungs smoky from the disaster of my pride being ripped from the walls of my esophagus,

I've been broken,

To be reassembled by duct tape and plaster,

Explaining why I can only love in pieces,

Elucidating on why I’ve decided to not further occupy my bones,

Some days I feel like if I love,

My whole body will shatter into insignificant shards of a faceless woman.

Tell Him

If I can have just a moment of your time,

I'd like to ask you of a favor,

See there's this boy,

Who deserves a lot more than he's bargaining for,

And I think I can help him, 

Could you just tell him?

There is no need for him to hide his feelings from me,

He doesn't have to shackle his emotions in the chambers of his heart,

No need to stand in the shadows,

I promise to take good care of him,

I promise to make bad memories fade,

There's love here,

There's honesty,

And trust here,

I don't want him to be scared,

Tell him not to be afraid to be vulnerable with me,

Tell him to shed his skin and become flesh with me,

I swear I wont steal from him,

I wont take his heart and leave his cavities bare,

Tell him I'm not like those blood seeking creators he once called girlfriends,

Having no hearts of their own,

They stole bits of his,

Instead,

I will give him everything I have, 

The last breathe in the basement of my lungs if he needs it,

And ask for nothing in return,

Even though he feels unworthy of sincere affection,

I will lace my love around his neck like diamonds,

He deserves me,

Tell him that he deserves me,

He deserves salvation,

I will be his salvation,  

Tell him just because his heart has been crushed,

Doesn't mean that I can’t be amazed at how beautiful broken can be,

Everyone has their own understanding of an abstract being,

To me,

He fell apart gorgeously, 

Tell him I adore his brokenness,

I know he wasn't built to be perfect,

But he's amazing just the way he is,

A man with such a beautiful,

Honest soul,

Little patches of impurity,

But he's human,

And I'm a little upset that he thinks he's found his backbone in wrinkled bed sheets wreaking of a cacophony of forgettable one-night stands and girls perfumes,

Tell him I'm unique,

I promised I'd be waiting,

And I am a woman of my word,

I hope this truth descends onto his ears,

But if it doesn't,

Promise me you'll tell him.

She, Moon

Dark,

Shadows gone,

Cloaking all,

She,

Be Guidance,            

Be Blackness,

Be Scary,

Be Nice,

Her skin,

Blankets all,

Stands guard before man,

She be tough,

She be rough,

But smooth on eyes,

She is moon,

She always there but always away,

I neglect her,

Eclipse her,

Not there but not invisible,

I will wait,

Catch up with her on her next cycle,

When her insecurities can’t stand between eyes and she,

When daylight doesn't scare her away.

I Was Born

I was born of Philly,

Of the neighborhood homeless man,

Of philosophy,

Of never sprouted roses afraid to bloom in spring,

Of soul food,

Of "down south" in my kitchen,

Of my brothers recording freestyles on cell phones aspiring to be the hottest thing out of Philly 

Of fear,

Of broken homes and broken family but family none the less,

I was born of hatred,

Of soft screams in distant bedrooms,

Of shushing,

Of secrets stowed under my breasts,

Of breaths,

Of strength

Of will power

Of crisis

I was born of G Clefs and music notes

Of pictures and cd covers

Of portraits

Of tattoo scriptures at 14

Born of tears and memories

Born of sorrow

Of joy

Born of best friends and betrayal

Of summer time and newness

Of leading and leaders

Of the dry tape that was supposed to be strong enough to hold a mother-daughter bond in place

Of the cement that never set to hold a childhood together

Of sisters and brothers

Of porches on sticky summer nights

Of street lights

Of pity-pat card games for quarters

Of poverty

Of my siblings distant dads

Of my father

Of cartoons and fairy tales

Of reality

Of the gap between now and forever.

Of never ending arguments with big sisters

I was born of the future and impact the past has shed on it,

I was born of creations,

Dear Dad,

Somethings been telling me to write you a poem lately.

I’ve been running from my testimony on the person you are for me ever since puberty.

Maybe it’s because some days I don’t remember why I love you so you much,

Maybe it’s because all the reasons your so important to me have been stifled underneath my teenage years,

But something is telling me it’s time,

Dad I know you are no hero,

Your simply a man with enough regrets and mistakes to fill a grave yard,

I understand that you never meant to hurt me my sisters or my mom,

And that you just realized that life was too short to sit in one place for a long time,

But we wanted to live too,

And I’ll be honest,

When I was younger,

And stricken with the fear of my friends finding out that you didn’t have the super man complex that I allowed my imagination to design you with,

I tried to shovel enough miles in the middle of our relationship so that I wouldn’t have to face the truth,

But now,

I’m growing up and learning that despite other peoples judgement of you

We have an unbreakable camaraderie and kinship that other people might not comprehend, 

It’s funny how you never told me what type of man I should look to marry,

And I just thought that I’d want him to be just like you,

But I didn’t fully understand who you were,

But then,

Someone told me that when they looked at you they saw the definition of a real man,

They said the way you carry yourself is the way only a man can,

With your Adonis like build and  Zeus like mentality,

I want my husband to exist like you,

But something told me that if i said that to you,

You’d disagree and tell me how hard your life is, 

I know that life is hard dad,

And there’s not a day that goes by that i don’t think about how much pain you have to dwell in,

I know that the pain I have to encounter to write a poem will never equate to the agony of post dialysis treatments,

But I don’t know why Allah choose you to carry this sickness,

That some days forces you to feel like tomorrow isn’t even worth the trip,

But on days when your rationality skills are lacking I am willing to give up my sanity to deliver you salvation,

Because I have no idea what kind of cataclysmic behavior I will display when your gone,

I owe you,

And their isn’t any amount pens in this world that I could milk the ink out of to repay you,

I know what you sacrificed for me dad,

A poetry book by Eryn James

My Honest Poem

How many of you have kept secrets from yourself?

Those "I shouldn't have eaten that last piece of chocolate cake" or that "I'm in love with my best friend" secrets

Well I feel like its time for me to be honest with myself,

Boys tell me I’m beautiful and I say thank you to be polite but I have no idea what it really means,

They say, "The sun is a reflection of your smile and the sky is envious of your demeanor."

Through the compliment I hear "Shawty you bad. Can I hit?" sometimes "Girl you are gorgeous and that alone should put a smile on gods face".

But I can never decipher between being a bad jaw and a queen so I just say thank you,

I sometimes forget that I’m a person and wonder who my classmates are talking to when they call out my name in the hallways,

I get nervous when people get close enough to hear my breaths because then I have to actually be in the room,

Rambling is one of my many talents because I tend not to make sense,

See I never know exactly what to say and sometimes I accidentally say what I’m thinking.

Sometimes I forget that divinity lives in my habits and that I was born from naturalist,

Truth be told I still hold my ex's name bottled into my bones because I don't know how to let go,

I seem to hold onto anything that feels good for that moment in hopes that the moment will last forever,

Or at least return just one more time so I can properly inhale perfection,

I have to admit I’m a hypocritical perfectionist,

I tend to try to fix everything around me but myself,

I figured since my innocence is well past tampered with I might as well leave it that way,

I see pain in paradise so I try to avoid changing the world,

I was brought up being taught that change is a mistake and beauty doesn't exist in these streets.

I don't have too many secrets but the ones I do have live at 30th street station where I go to talk to the ceilings,

Breathing my stories onto lunch time table tops,

I confide in the walls because I know bricks can keep secrets,

I often see my thoughts ricocheting off septa bus windows because they just won’t shut up,

6 am bus rides to basketball practice on top of homework and projects cant really keep you sane.

I think Facebook is a better therapist than the resource specialist at my school because it knows when to shut up and let me make a comment,

I'm sick of people telling me to write a poem,

My friends think because I’m a poet that’s the easiest way to get free,

I've discovered that writing cannot be the key to every shackle that holds you down,

My problems can’t be solved with a note pad and pen,

I turn to poetry only when I can handle recapping the worst of me,

But honestly when the my pen hits my life,

My world shakes like Hurricane Katrina is about to blow through my brain.

Sometimes I just want to say to hell with my writing,

I just want to scream even thought I know it wont solve anything but it takes way less time and effort than caring if someone with like my metaphors and similes.

Sometimes and only sometimes I wish I were more honest with myself.

Confession to A.J

I would've never thought that I'd found the perfect me in a person so opposite myself,

You’re the me that I could never be,

 I've always wanted to make the world a better place and by the world I mean the little part of it that belongs to me,

But I’ve come to the realization that without you my life wouldn't be as complete so I’ll go out on a limb and say that I can only make my world a better place if and only if I do everything within my power to make sure that the world you live in is precisely to your liking,

I'd never think that I’d find my soul mate,

A person ideally suited to me as a close friend but NOT a romantic partner,

In a being such as yourself,

I'd never make your world cry,

Or attempt to be yet another burden placed upon your back, 

Just as you'd never attempt damage my already broken soul,

You couldn't fathom what you do for me as a person so just try to concoct a remote idea of what you do for me on a more spiritual level,

On days where you feel like your falling apart like weathered stone I will graciously gather you like gold dust between my fingers and help re-construct you just as you were,

I love just as you were,

Just as you are, just as you will be

And I’ll stand beside you at times when you feel like you have to go to war with the world, just like you told me,

There’s never a day that goes by that you should feel any form of loneliness,

As long as I have a breath in my body the feeling of lonesome will not exist to you, I will always be here until my body is laid to rest,

I'll know that I've had my peace,

And it doesn't matter to me if you feelings are remotely connected to mine because what you can do for me in just one glance, one day spent together in silence,

In one passionate conversation,

In one innocent forehead kiss, in one reassuring hug,

Another can't do for me in 10 lifetimes and my gratitude is infinite.

Girls 

This is for the girls who aren’t content with their bodies,

Girls who don’t understand the power they hold by just being women alone,

Girls who try to compromise who they are to be something they’re not for people, who don’t even matter,

Didn’t you know that sizes 8 -18 are just as beautiful as a size 2,

You are a queen no matter how large,

They always say the bigger the better,

So how much satisfaction can you get out of a dainty little doll baby?

Even if you wear a size 11 shoe,

You can still have your Cinderella story,

Glass slippers don’t just come in size 4’s,

You are still divine, 

I know some days you just want to let everything go and say I don’t care,

I know there are days when you want to dispose of your halo,

And on those days I will hold it above your head,

You’re still an angel on days when other peoples standards make you feel like a monster,

 You have a smile that could put the sun to shame,

And eyes that could strike Aphrodite with envy, 

Skin like softest clouds in heaven,

I want you to understand,

That the looks of a air brushed King Magazine Model can never amount to the natural beauty you posses,

A man will only love you correctly if you love yourself that way first,

So don’t rush the process,

Learn to love yourself slowly so you wont miss a spot,

And don’t pretend to be someone your not,

And don’t waist gods time praying you were somebody else,

You’re a commodity to this planet as the person that you are,

So don’t regret turning out the way you did,

Because every women has a day where she hates something about herself,

When she wishes she were never born because nobody told her what she had the potential to amount to,

And grated,

I am no Opra or doctor Phil,

I cannot pay to fix your faults or feed you some psychology mumbo jumbo to make you feel better,

But I can let you cry on my shoulder,

Let you create oceans of your tears in my lap,

Help you reflect on the person that you are,

And the women you aspire to be,

Help you recognize your elegance,

I can do that much for you,

Because that is just how much I care.  

Expectations

Yesterday I wanted you be every reason I stood up straight,

I wanted you to become everything I breathed for,

I wanted you to be that reassuring feeling in the pit of my stomach that everything was going to be okay,

I wanted you to be my adrenaline rush,

Fun,

Wanted you to be my pulse,

Dependence,

A love,

That ooo I cant stop this feeling and I don't want to kind of love,

I wanted you be everything I needed for tomorrow,

A reassuring hug,           

A rainbow after this thunderstorm,

Something beautiful to look forward to,

My piece of mind,

My sanity,

My will to stay just a little while longer,

Baby, help me hold on for a few moments more,

Help me remember yesterday and the images it captured of our happiness,

Help me find my grasp of reality because with you everyday will be easy like Sunday morning,

I wanted you be the love song that I never wanted to forget the words to,

But today I realize that no love is perfect and sometimes there’s no love at all,

Just lust in disguise,

And to embrace that is to embrace reality in its purest form,

With that being said,

Tomorrow I want you to be yourself whichever way you want,

I'm not expecting anything of you anymore just be you,

Be exactly the person god intended you to be at your worst so I can accept you that way first,

So when you reveal to me you at your best I'll know that I deserved it.

Confident Women Piece

I won't concern myself with degrading catcalls,

I'm a goddess and will never reduce myself to a "jawn",

A "bitch",

A "hoe",

Or a "shawty" for any boy who thinks he got enough mugga in his pocket to own me,

Priceless is what you should call a person of my stature, And no,

I'm not the most confident girl on earth let alone in this room but on days when my confidence is only knee high I still stride smoothly in my heels,

I’m gorgeous and I love almost everything about me,

My laugh,

My big feet,

(more stuff I love about me)

And it didn’t take validation from anyone for me to see,

I don't need a man to make me whole,

He is merely an extra attachment sold separately from my main masterpiece,

I won't label myself as a damsel in distress because I'm strong enough to break down any barrier between my happiness and me,

I’m the type of women who will grow old build a home standing on her own two feet,

I’m every mans fantasy,

I’m not conceited so there’s no reason to argue it but my advice to you is stop worrying about me and concern yourself more with becoming a queen.

Dear Love,

I’m not a love poet,

The idea of writing about a person that I have passionate feelings for scares me,

That makes the concept of rejection and heartbreak too vivid for me to handle,

But if tomorrow I decided that I wanted to write the perfect love story,

My first poem would be about you,

Not about how I love you but about how somehow you make the idea of love a lot less scary for me,

Every time I see you I smile like an absent minded child,

I'm not usually a love poet but if I were I’d write about how I see centuries of happiness in your eyes and how lost I get in them every time our pupils connect even if its just for a second,

I'd write about how your demeanor is that of a sunset,

Hurting and beautiful all at once,

Some nights I find myself waiting for the sky to turn purple and blue like a bruise so I can blow kisses at it at the in hopes that I can make it feel better,

If I were the type of poet who liked to look on the bright side of things,

I'd explain pain like art,

I’d write about how I like watching you,

Admiration without commentary,

I like to call you silent poetry,

You’re a perfectly imperfect masterpiece,

That fits right into the chaotic puzzle of my life,

I’ve never really thought about love,

But if we just pretended that I had I’d write about how I love hugging you,

I enjoy the sound of our hearts beating in unison against each other,

Its like your heartbeat is the bass-line to my rib cage playing symphonies on my insides,

There’s always music in me when you’re around,

It’s like you Boq (that music guy) and Beethoven sat in the chambers of my heart and had the most beautiful of conversations,

I know how you how you feel about the L word so I don't want to make love to you,

I want to make heavens with you,

Use a few hours to turn a bedroom into galaxies with you,

Scratch my future on you sides so there’s reason to be anywhere but beside you tomorrow.

I want to tickle you in places no other girl has,

I want to hold you so tight that my right hand is imprinted over your heart,

So you understand that I promise to love you on days when your heart feels like an avalanche,

And I know it’s hard to trust girls these days,

So think of it like this,

I want to be everything that no girl ever had the audacity to be for you,

A person who isn’t afraid to be trustworthy and honest with you, 

Sometimes when I call you with absolutely nothing to say it's not just to get on your nerves,

I just want to hear your voice and I was too scared to admit that,

See I have this crazy fear of forgetting what you sound like,

I don't want to lose you,

So when I get the chance,

I'm going to hold you like my last breath,

Cherish you like my heartbeat,

I’ll be good to you,

Sometimes when I'm next to you I get this fuzzy feeling all over me,

I think its God's way of saying, "this is the way it was meant to be",

I’ve finally found someone who makes me just as happy as I make myself and alls I want to do is give that back.