It’s All About Attitude

by Dortell Williams Some time ago, I got a call to the dentist’s of ce. I wasn’t expecting a call; I had no problems or complaints. But when staff calls, you know you gotta go check it out. So I went in there and there they were: the dentist and two assistants. Nothing unusual about that. The odd thing was that they were all smiling- and looking at me! Now you know that’s weird, at least on this side of the wall. To be polite, I smiled likewise. The shorter nurse with glasses said I looked confused, but maintained her

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Anxiety

by Brittany Anxiety will ruin you and being locked up doesn’t make it any better. The counselors act like they understand what you’re going through. They think locking me up in a small room with no windows will help calm me down. I can’t just breath through my anxieties, it’s not that easy. I’m sitting here shaking, crying, heart pounding and I can’t catch my breath. The staff just tells me it’s going to be okay. Now, it’s not going to be okay. I am sitting in Juvenile Hall after the most traumatic experience of my life. Not knowing what is

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Lit Crawl 2016

One of the most anticipated literary nights of the year, San Francisco’s world-famous Lit Crawl attracts close to 10,000 people, and features over 400 authors in just three hours. Lit Crawl brings literature to the streets, featuring smart and silly, worldly and wacky events in venues usual (bars, cafes, galleries, and bookstores) and unusual (police stations, tattoo parlors, barbershops, and erotica boutiques). For 20 years, the Beat Within has been publishing the soul-stirring poetry and essays of kids locked in juvenile hall in and outside the San Francisco Bay Area. Come learn about this extraordinary program, get inspired, and learn how you can help! Please

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Writing Workshop for Teens

Topics will be presented for teens to discuss and write about. The writing can then be submitted for possible publication in The Beat Within – a magazine of youth writing and art from the inside. 3:30-4:45PM  every 1st & 3rd Friday FOOD!  (if you arrive at 3:30PM) The latest issue of The Beat Within will be available for those who submit to the magazine! When Friday, October 7, 2016 – 3:30pm – 4:45pm Friday, October 21, 2016 – 3:30pm – 4:45pm Friday, November 4, 2016 – 3:30pm – 4:45pm Friday, November 18, 2016 – 3:30pm – 4:45pm Friday, December 2, 2016 – 3:30pm – 4:45pm Where Eastmont Branch 7200 Bancroft, Ste 211 Eastmont Town Center Oakland, CA  94605 Phone: (510) 615-5726 See

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The King Of Rap

by Delandreas, Year 1, Issue 1 As I sat in juvenile hall, I worried and thought about 2Pac who was in intensive care at the time. I thought for sure he would survive the terrible tragedy which happened to him in Las Vegas. Now that 2Pac has passed, his death really worries me because of the life he led. I always wondered when something went down with 2Pac (shootings, rape, running his mouth, and talking shhh in his raps) if it would come back on him? I see his death as a tragedy, because he was a man who had

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2Pac Spoke The Real

by Francis, Year 1, Issue 1 2Pac was as real as a person could get! Like all of us, he had a good side and a dangerous side. He was a ghter in my eyes. The good side of 2Pac was that he always told the truth. The truth is so important because we who listen to his music have much respect for him. Even his gangster side spoke about the reality of my streets, the daily horrors of alcohol, drugs, women, killin’ and gangbangin’. When I hear that 2Pac died, I got so sad. The thought of him being

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The Beat Within – Writing Workshop for Teens

Topics will be presented for teens to discuss and write about. The writing can then be submitted for possible publication in The Beat Within – a magazine of youth writing and art from the inside. 3:30-4:45PM  every 1st & 3rd Friday FOOD!  (if you arrive at 3:30PM) The latest issue of The Beat Within will be available for those who submit to the magazine! When Friday, September 16, 2016 - 3:30pm - 4:45pm Friday, October 7, 2016 - 3:30pm - 4:45pm Friday, October 21, 2016 - 3:30pm - 4:45pm Friday, November 4, 2016 - 3:30pm - 4:45pm Friday, November 18, 2016 - 3:30pm - 4:45pm Where Eastmont Branch 7200 Bancroft, Ste 211 Eastmont Town Center Oakland, CA  94605 Phone: (510) 615-5726 See

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