Poetry by El Presynt

This is Me
By El Presynt

I am a conscious and conscience man, present in this moment of space and time;

I am simply complex; free yet imprisoned; discovered yet lost;

I am a writer by gift, a freethinker by choice, and a living spirit by design;

I am the author of, “My Infinity Mirror: The Selected Writings Of Andre Coe,” and “Life With Out Perspective: A Study Concerning The Immoral Sentencing Practices Plaguing The Commonwealth Of Virginia’s Justice System;”

I am a contributor to, “Unlocked: Art & Experiences From Inside Virginia Prisons” (Vol 2/Winter, 2023 and Vol 3/Spring, 2024);

I am an advocate for prisoners sentenced to Life Without Parole (2nd Chances 4Our 1st Timers©);

I am of basic education (GED, 2003);

I am educated in law (Presynt v. Meadows, 7:23-cv-619/Criminal Justice @Stratford Career Institute [still enrolled]);

I am of rehabilitated definition (Anger Management, Substance Abuse, Victim’s Impact, Distress Tolerance, Dialectical Therapy For Long-Term Incarceration);

I am one of thousands fighting for a second chance;

I am El Presynt, an original King from Brooklyn, New York.

FIRST-TIMERS, SECOND CHANCES, AND THIRD TRIES…?
By El Presynt

Dear Commonwealth of Virginia:

Regardless of the opinions shared in the past and the present, I do hope all is well. I had to take a few days before I sat down and text this message because I wanted to be sure that my passion and my intellect were both of perfect balance. Almost needless to say that the Second Chance bill being tabled again was a huge disappointment. It revealed to me more about our government, our society, and the perception both have towards those convicted of violent offenses. It also reveals the true intent of the delegates who were voted into office on the premise of this Second Look bill being pushed through and passed. There is no way to sugarcoat the fact that our government and our society wants us to rot and die in here. This issue regarding the Commonwealth and the victims having the power to veto a felon’s petition, along with last year’s issue regarding the attempt to pass the bill but not allowing it to be applicable to guys convicted of first degree/aggravated murder – all of it is, and has always been, smoking mirrors, especially considering that parole has been abolished for, what…30 years now? Our government and our society never had ANY intentions on passing a bill that would give a convicted murderer a second chance at hope.

Our most recent and far distant history doesn’t display a government or society receptive to any form of change that involves fair consideration for the felon sentenced to LWOP. Factors such as the evaluation of one’s rehabilitative progress, the science behind immature brain development in those who may have been adults by legal standards, but children by scientific measure, or the mere fact that the courts may have dropped the ball during one’s trial and/or sentencing. Is it so farfetched to believe that there are guys in here who are innocent, wrongly convicted or unjustly sentenced because they were represented by public defenders who all but fell asleep during the proceedings, as their unconstitutional blunders go unchecked due to filing statutes that are strictly applied to prisoners who know little to nothing about criminal law?

Each case is filled with circumstances that differ drastically from the next. That Second Look bill was an opportunity for us to get objective consideration for our whole life! From our childhood/upbringings, the circumstances of our cases, to the errs of our trials and sentencing – facts that may not have been presented and information that may not have been considered, all the way down to time spent incarcerated, how that time was utilized, progress made, accomplishments achieved, etc. But we’re not dealing with a government or a society that cares about any of us any more than it cares about the dynamics of incarceration – the ancestry of this state being the motherland of slavery and the accepted attitude of such principles; the corporations that make millions of dollars off the incarcerated and their loved ones, and this overwhelming need to punish, yet this dismissive sentiment towards the restoration of one’s character to a condition of good.

Whether you want to admit it or not, it has never been about Justice as much as it has been about the almighty dollar. Verdicts have never been about an accurate, impartial judgement as much as it has been about securing a conviction. Truth is, it’s only about wins and losses, and checks and balances. That’s all it has ever been about. Prison and incarceration are big business, and stockholders have every intention on protecting their interests…but at who’s cost? If you knew, without a doubt, that Justice was just another form of commerce within this capitalistic structure, would it even matter to you? If you knew of one who has been convicted and sentenced to LWOP who is actually innocent, an outcome derivative of a prosecuting attorney who was able to get an overburdened public defender to sell out his client and score another conviction, would you even care? Or what about post-conviction remedies such as the Writ Of Habeas Corpus that have extremely short time caps that are strictly applied to indigent offenders who, in most cases, don’t even know what their constitutional rights are?! Would it even matter to you to know that if one fails to file that writ within the 1-year statute of limitations, he’s S.O.L.? If so, to what extent? Enough to say, “that’s unfortunate…” but not enough to throw rocks at the monster that is our Justice System. What a shame it is to know that our society isn’t even aware or knowledgeable of the system that they believe so righteously in.

Notwithstanding the fact that I’ve been incarcerated for decades, it’s worth mentioning that I haven’t been a bystander in the constant flow of time. I’ve studied the constructs of these institutions of confinement; the laws that govern them, the unspoken dynamics of prison culture, and the effects this place has on our spiritual, physical and mental health. I write about it, both therapeutically and informatively. I speak about it. I listen to the many stories of those who’ve been conquered by it. I’ve even tried to find examples of this cemetery of live human beings in nature, to no avail. Ask yourself what creature captures and imprisons its own kind for a duration that is without end? That brief pause of silence says a lot about our government, our society and ourselves.

Imagine a society absent incarceration, not so much because of what it is and what it signifies, but because its existence strategically becomes unnecessary. This flawed, broken and corrupt system has always been what it is and does exactly what it has been designed to do. However, I believe that if we, as a people of all races, of all ages, of all walks, beliefs and economic classes began to care more about each other, this system could not find one weakness of us to exploit. Concepts such as accountability, grace, rehabilitation, unity and forgiveness would have greater meaning if we changed our perspective about our neighbors and tried discovering connections instead of searching for differences. It’s by way of our own ignorance that this system has any power at all.

Nevertheless, this will be the second time this Second Chance bill got tabled. Maybe third time’s a charm..? Perhaps. For those who are innocent, wrongfully convicted or unjustly sentenced, had it not been so, the victims would’ve had to accept Justice in her true essence – blindfolded and scales balanced. So no, this past tabling of the bill had very little to do with the victims having a power to veto petitioner’s request for Second Chance review. This was solely about us first-timers being denied the opportunity of acquiring the Second Chance that we’ve earned and not giving this system the pleasure of requesting a third one.

From the depths of my disappointment and frustration, I still wish you well.

El Presynt

Who Am I?
By El Presynt

I look into my eyes,
In search of who I am,
Only to find,
Everything and everyone,
But myself and nothing…
Who am I,
If I am Black?
Am I an African?
Am I an American?
An African-American, perhaps?
Each an impossibility.
I am Black because,
From where I’ve come,
Is as blank as the space in between thoughts.
And where I am housed,
I am not welcome.
Who am I,
Prior to my enslavement?
Who am I,
On the land of my enslavement?
“I can’t breathe…”
Because this is not my air.
Like this place is not my home.
I am lost in time…

Who am I?

I look into my soul,
In search of who I am,
Only to find,
Everything and everyone,
But myself and nothing…
Who am I,
If I am not free?
A prisoner,
Obviously.
But am I a convict,
An offender,
An inmate,
Even if I am not incarcerated?
Am I a villain,
A predator,
A monster,
Before I even utter a word?
Who am I,
If I am not a man?
A slave.
A nigger.
A Person.
If I beg to differ,
I am told to “Stop resisting!”
Here, I am a dark blemish,
On a light surface;
A black mark,
To be cleaned white;
A beast,
To be killed dead.
Liberty, Justice, Equality,
Is not meant for those,
Who look like me.
Who are dark like me.
Who are black like me.
Not easily seen.
And even more complex to understand.
Since the day of my birth,
I’ve been lost in time…

Who am I?

#R.I.P. Eric Gardener & George Floyd

 

By El Presynt

 

 

R.I.P. To Freddie Gray, Jamar Clark, Philando Castile, Abdul Kamal, Amadou Diallo, Oscar Ramirez, Emmett Till, Ahmaud Arbery, Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Michael Brown Jr., George Floyd and the others murdered by those sworn to serve and protect us. And my condolences to the daughters, the mothers and the wifeys who lost their men so unjustly. Before I let my thoughts travel without filter about the black pandemic, allow me this moment of literary pause for their lost…

 

I appreciate that we’re standing up to these injustices, not only nationally, but globally as well. From India to London to Africa, even in Japan, all you hear and read is, “Black Lives Matter.” I honestly didn’t view it going that far for this long. That’s peace. Pardon my pessimism though Bruh, I’m not all that hopeful about any real change coming about these protests and riots. It’s not plausible. We see the residue of officers killing unarmed black men. Let’s take a moment to understand that this has become a grave concern now because these murders are being caught on camera phones and are then posted on social media platforms for the world to see. It’s devastating to watch that in real time with the ability to rewind the shit. The more and more you view it, the more you feel that impulse to act; to do something, say something. No need to describe the what one experiences after watching the footage of those murders, my point is…this has always been our reality. Word. Do your homework: in 1999, 6 or 7 years after the Rodney King riots, there was a man named Amadou Diallo. He was from Africa, spoke 5 languages and was about to go to college. He was shot 41times by the police because they thought he was a rapist they had been looking for and they alleged that he had reached for a gun when they confronted him. The man was reaching for his wallet to show the police who he was. He didn’t even have a gun on him. They shot him 41 times, went to court and got acquitted. That incident in particular wasn’t caught on camera phone. I don’t even wanna imagine what that would’ve looked like if it were…you would’ve thought after the other incidents caught on camera phone of the cops murdered us, that the protesting and the funds donated to orgs. that supposedly aided against these injustices would’ve made a noticeable change of some kind. But aside from the fact that these officers were being acquitted, if they went to trial at all, the murders just kept happening. And even with all of that said, what about the brutality of the justice system that isn’t caught on the camera phone…? Yeah Bruh, let’s really look at this justice system through a magnifying glass and put things in their proper perspective. This Justice system is composed of the police practice/ investigation stage, the interrogatory/preliminary stage, the trial/sentencing stage and the review/post-conviction stage. Now, what happened to George Floyd and ’em took place at the investigative/police stage. The other stages of the Justice system that I just mentioned, NO CAMERA PHONES ARE ALLOWED! So is it hard to believe that there is a detective, a prosecuting attorney, a public defender, a judge, a correctional officer or a warden who holds the same hatred and malice in their heart towards the black man as those officers did? What about the death sentence or the life sentence placed upon a man who is actually innocent? A man innocent of a rape conviction was freed by biological evidence after 3 1/2 decades…Really? Did it really take 36years to figure that error out?! Or what about that black man named, Jonathan Irons, who was released after 22years for a burglary he didn’t commit. Y’all saw how those detectives, district attorneys and judges carried Jamie Foxx’s character, Walter MacMillan, in that movie, “Just Mercy.” That was based on true events! I’m in the unit right now with a homie who received a numerical life sentence for murder. The only evidence they had against him was the testimony of some guy who made a deal with the D.A. to get his own ass out of hot water. Check this out…did you know that if my public defender doesn’t object to a violation that takes place during trial, I can’t bring the violation up on my appeal? FACTS!

 

Is that all it takes for the justice system to take a black life? Is it really that simple? Obviously. If you can’t understand that, then my lack of optimism has to be felt anytime a white man who is an alleged rapist and fails horribly in the elusiveness of his bigotry can become the president of the United States. One really has to question the structure that makes errors of this magnitude permissibly; how can any of us anticipate change that equates to justice and equality with a system like this? I gotta call a spade a spade, my G, as black people, as a lost people, as a hurt and broken people, we are desperately seeking liberties in structures that has never, nor will never provide them to us. This entire country and every structure derived herein stinks of racism and inequality. And like any other structure built on sand, that is leaning, with cracks in its foundation, as the United States of America reflects, it needs to be destroyed and rebuilt from the ground up with hands that view one as all and all as one, not by the hands of racist whites on the back of blacks. But hey, this movement is the strongest I’ve ever seen or read about, so I truly hope they prove me wrong…”