Welcome friends and colleagues to our latest double issue of the one and only The Beat Within. We are thrilled to have back in our pages, the one and only, OT! OT, if you did not know, is truly our right hand man when it comes to supporting this one of a kind publication and we could not ask for a better colleague and friend to share his truths in this week’s editorial note. Allow us to cut to the chase and hand the keyboard over to OT! This is OT once again with the privilege to hear your stories,
Continue ReadingYear: 2019
New Year Essay
by Eduardo I came into the world crying and fighting. I really had nothing but my mom since a little kid. I grew up holding so much pain and anger inside me. I always felt like I didn’t fit in. I felt alone, like I wasn’t meant to be in this world. My only memory of my pops was of him abusing my mom. I grew up hating him and promising myself that I would never need him in my life. After he left us, all I remember is the struggle my mom had to go through just to pay
Continue ReadingWhat Second Chance?
by George “Mesro” Coles-El All my life I heard about second chances. “This person has a second chance at life…that person earned a second chance to prove their worth…The other person gets a chance to change the world…” I am heartened by the idea of a second chance and pray it is not squandered. However, I have never been given a second chance at anything. What I mean by that is every time I have had a chance to do a thing like work a dream job or present great work, I usually miss the shot, and can never try
Continue ReadingA Handcuffed Life
by Suada Mistakes are something that everyone has. They are part of life. Mistakes are how we learn. Nobody has ever lived a life where they never made one mistake it’s simply impossible. Some may be more serious than others, but in the end, they are all errors and nothing more. That rolling grass hill, the sun shining above, little bluebirds are chirping. You walk along that bubbling stream with your best friend. You turn to say something, open your mouth, it is too late. It just slipped out. You said something you didn’t mean to say. All of the
Continue ReadingVolume 24.21/22
Please contact Lisa Lavaysse if you would like to purchase the full PDF or a printed copy of this issue.
Continue ReadingEd Note 24.21/22
Greetings readers! Welcome to issue 23.21/22! We are thrilled to have you readers back for another edition of The Beat Within. There is something for everybody in our magazine and we hope you find the inspiration and connection you are looking for. Inside you will find plenty of writings from our community workshops, our sessions inside the various juvenile halls we visit, the SF County Jail and a number of pieces from our thoughtful writers from state prison. This week, it is a pleasure to welcome back the reflections of two of our recent high school interns at the
Continue ReadingGrowing Up On Criminal Activity
by Angel Alvarado My name is Angel Isaiah Alvarado. I’m twenty-three years old and I would like to share my testimony on why I became attracted to the criminal life when I was young. I never knew about criminal and drug-related activity until I became aware of my family history and saw all the behaviors and activities that were going on within my house. My mother and father were involved with gangs and drugs way before I was born. My father was actually murdered when I was a newborn child. I never got to be around him long enough to
Continue ReadingSo Much (Song)
by Lil Ice So Much (Song) It’s a lot of shhh I done been through I just got to keep it lit and continue I can’t do no stopping I got to stay solid So much pain every day, I don’t stop hurtin’ I want to live but sometimes I feel I’m not worth it The higher power show me love but it’s not mercy But then again, I’m still alive so that’s God workin’ I know God real but sometimes I question If you there, point me in the right direction ‘Cause I don’t really like the life that
Continue ReadingVolume 24.19/20
Please contact Lisa Lavaysse if you would like to purchase the full PDF or a printed copy of this issue.
Continue ReadingEd Note 24.19/20
Welcome friends to another outstanding double issue, 24.19/20, of The Beat Within. Recently we’ve been publishing the reflections of our student interns from the Urban School of San Francisco. Our amazingly insightful interns have been transcribing writing from The Beat Without, and we’re ever so grateful for their time and dedication to our mission. This week, Tavi writes about how a function on his laptop allowed him a different way to access the writing from our authors, allowing the pages to literally speak for themselves, and listening to the writing as if it were meant for him. While Ben reflects
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