Sean Bell

This isn't about white or black because the officers were all different races. This is about taking ownership.




Story stolen from CNN.com

Sean Bell was killed just before dawn on his wedding day, November 25, 2006. He and several friends were winding up an all-night bachelor party at the Kalua Club in Queens, a strip club that was under investigation by a NYPD undercover unit looking into complaints of guns, drugs and prostitution.





Undercover detectives were inside the club, and plainclothes officers were stationed outside.
Witnesses said that about 4 a.m., closing time, as Bell and his friends left the club, an argument broke out. Believing that one of Bell's friends, Joseph Guzman, was going to get a gun from Bell's car, one of the undercover detectives followed the men and called for backup.



What happened next was at the heart of the trial, prosecuted by the assistant district attorney in Queens.

Bell, Guzman and Trent Benefield got into the car, with Bell at the wheel. The detectives drew their weapons, said Guzman and Benefield, who testified that they never heard the plainclothes detectives identify themselves as police. Bell was in a panic to get away from the armed men, his friends testified. But the detectives thought Bell was trying to run down one of them, believed that their lives were in danger and started shooting, according to their lawyers.
A total of 50 bullets were fired by five NYPD officers. Only three were charged with crimes.


No gun was found near Bell or his friends.

On Friday, Justice Arthur Cooperman cleared Detectives Michael Oliver and Gescard Isnora of manslaughter, assault and reckless endangerment in the death of Sean Bell.



From L to R: Marc Cooper, Michael Oliver, Gescard Isnora

Bell, 23, died in November 2006 in a 50-bullet barrage -- 31 fired by Oliver.

Like Oceans

Flying is a very humbling experience. No matter who you are or where you are from, once you step onto that plane and fasten your seatbelts, you are all equal. Every person onboard, first class or coach, passenger or crew, is immediately at the mercy of not only a giant machine but also a human. Machines and humans have flaws. It is commonly known that men folly, but at 20,000 feet there is not much room for error. But machines and humans do, in fact, have flaws, and things go wrong. The odds are against you, that’s what they say. But the odds get better when the engine fails, or you hit a storm, or the pilot isn’t really a pilot, or someone on the plane wants to bring it down… If something like that happens, then everyone on board instantly has a bond that can never be broken.
Joshua was leaving his fairly normal life for only a week. He had just moved out of his parents’ place and into his own apartment, which he shared with a close friend. He was just out of college, and just into a relationship. He loved everything about his girl. Life just seemed to be going his way recently. He was just hired to work in the PR department of a mortgage company in his hometown of Long Island, New York. They were sending him on a “business trip” to Cancun, Mexico. He knew what “business trip” meant in “business” terms. It was just an official expression for a week long “meet and greet” with the new boss. Luckily for Joshua, he played a lot of golf and smoked cigars…
Joshua got on his flight, 5018 to Cancun, at around 12:30 on a Sunday afternoon. He said goodbye to friends, family, and his girlfriend and hopped on the plane figuring he would be back in a week and could continue with his life. At 23, he was beginning to settle down. He made a steady amount of money at the firm and was ready to move on to the next phase of his life. He wasn’t sure if he was in love or if she was the “one,” but he definitely hoped so.
The trip to Cancun was a projected 6-hour flight. Joshua hated flying. As he sat down in Row 14, Seat C, he let out a sigh of relief to discover he had the window seat. Maybe this flight wouldn’t be so bad after all. Another good omen came when a man not too unlike himself sat down next to him. His name was Andy and his story was much the same. Just going down to Cancun for “business.” They started talking to make things easier for the trip and seemed to hit it off. They started talking about relationships and Joshua began talking about his girlfriend. “She’s got eyes like oceans.” Coincidentally, the plane had just left land behind and was now flying over the Gulf of Mexico. The flight didn’t have much longer. Out from underneath Joshua’s clothes, skin, and bones, came another sigh of relief.
About that time is when the plane got a little shaky. The pilot attempted to reassure the passengers, but Joshua knew something was up. The stewardess’ sat in their seats with worried looks on their faces. Looking out the window, Joshua saw nothing but the blackest clouds he had ever seen. The lights flickered and the plane rocked back and forth. On the drop down monitors that tracked the planes movements, the altitude began slipping closer to zero.
Engine failure. It went down. Fast.
The plane hit the water traveling faster than the speed of sound. Joshua tried to brace himself, but there is no preparation for an impact like that. Somehow, he lived. Huddled in a floating mass, he survived. He climbed out of the plane and onto the top. He had no idea how long it had been since the plane crashed, but the skies were clear and the sun was setting. Joshua sat on the top of the plane and watched the sunset. It was beautiful. The way it reflected, they way the clouds came in painted him a picture. Like Oceans. All he could see were his girlfriends eyes. He wanted to stare into them so bad, but all he had was a memory, a mental photograph. He wondered if he would ever get that chance.
The plane started sinking, so he was forced to paddle out into the abyss and grab a flotation device that somehow survived the wreck. Andy was dead. He floated on that device for a day. The next sunset came and to the west he saw a ship coming his way. It was not just any ship though. It was a sailboat, an enormous sailboat. Spanish flags waved off of the top. It was made of wood and he could see the cannons in the side. Suddenly the plane was gone and so was his suit and tie. The metal and steel wreckage had been replaced with splintered wood and rusted brass. His suit and tie had been replaced with a wool shirt and black pants. He was no longer holding on to an orange life vest, but to a brown piece of wood from a ship that somehow wrecked. A million thoughts crossed his mind, but he remained calm.
The Spanish ship sailed closer. He made out the name of it on the massive hull from a distance, Como Los Océanos. Maybe she came to save him, he thought. That thought was fleeting. A man in captains threads pointed a gun at him and told him to get on. He was a prisoner.
They kept him in the basement of the ship and he was treated as prisoners are. He didn’t understand so he did not speak. He was fed little and was given water even less. Within the week, he arrived in Cancun. It was about the same time he should have been returning home. He walked, more like stumbled, onto the beach. It began to rain, and the ocean reminded him of her. He looked to his left and there she was. Walking out of a hut on the beach of Cancun was a true beauty. It was his girlfriend, but instead of embracing Joshua, she embraced the man with the gun. Their eyes met and she nodded her head and mouthed the words “I’m sorry.” She turned away, speaking fluent Spanish, and he was left with a million horrible and heartbreaking emotions. All he could say was “like oceans.” She said “Wait” and turned to him, but before she could put a hand out or even scream, he was shot and killed by the man with the gun.

Written by my man WILLIAM WALLACE.

Book Recommendations

Gang Leader for a Day

When Venkatesh walked into an abandoned building in one of Chicago's most notorious housing projects, he was looking for people to take a multiple-choice survey on urban poverty. A first-year grad student hoping to impress his professors with his boldness, he never imagined that as a result of the assignment he would befriend a gang leader named JT and spend the better part of a decade inside the projects under JT's protection, documenting what he saw there.

I first read this in Freakanomics, basically he infiltrates the gang during a study for graduate school and shows why the bottom level drug dealers still live with their moms. A real life study of risk and return.

Fletcher Street

Deep in the heart of Philadelphia, past row houses and vacant lots, run-down playgrounds and dilapidated schools, is a little place called Fletcher Street. It has everything one would expect to find down an alley in the ghetto, with one addition: horses. The men and boys of Fletcher Street have used their passion for riding and bonds with their rides to build their and their community’s sense of worth. They describe their passion for horses as having kept them from the temptations of street life. Fletcher Street by Martha Camarillo documents the lives of these men and the boys they mentor, who board their horses in abandoned houses or makeshift stables, and ride them through the streets of Philly.

This is a more recent update of what happened on Fletcher St. just last year. The bulldozers knocked down the building on Fletcher Street piece by piece. All that's left is a pile of rubble. About 95 percent of the property was condemned.

Tunnel Exploration

I know up until this point all of the posts have been related to what I know and what we know. However whenever I come across some shit thats different than what I know I get curious too. As was the case when I discovered this young kid who has a real affinity for crawling through the dingy, dark tunnels of NYC's subways. This is what I came up with....

How did you get into this?

Ever since around 5 years old (if I can remember right), I thought the subways were the shit. Although back then I didn't really think I would be exploring the tunnels at 3 in the morning. It began when I first started learning about graffiti, then I started to creep up on what I call ‘explorer flicks’. It all just came together man and I don't know how to explain it, but I'm here now. Cats think the NYC subway is a dirty place and it is, but they don't know how much stuff is down there. It would blow your mind, I probably only explored like .03% of it.

 

You ever have any problems with the law, workers, trains or the third rail?

I’ve had a couple close encounters with work bums and they never spotted me out. I never had problems with the law underground, but I did on the street. But I've had problems with trains…a lot of problems. Problems ranging from being salty and having to step in between pillars to sparks shooting from the third rail. I was taking a flick one time and a train was passing by on a local track and sparked up the third rail out of nowhere. It almost knocked me back.

 

What are the most exciting tracks you ever had the opportunity to walk down? What’s your favorite line?

The most exciting was probably the Queens IND between **th and Queens Plaza. It's got trains coming in from all directions. E,F,G,R, and V trains. It's a mad colorful and open tunnel too. You have to watch out in this tunnel though because trains still run express and people think that they don't because it's a "late night".
My favorite line would probably have to be the Brooklyn 2/5 and the Brooklyn 3/4 trains. Also the Queens ****** Ave, because they stay having trains laid up on the express tracks. Walking down those tunnels is fun too.

Does your mom know about this shit?

Haha yeah. She knows. Just like any other parent, she hates it.

 

You ever seen some craziness down there?

Yeah son, bums doing some nasty shit in the hatch exits. I fuckin' dipped out after that.

How long can you picture yourself doing this for?

Man, I have no idea.

I'm gonna explore every tunnel before the cameras get in the stations!! They're getting mad deep with those cameras. They can have you really salty sometimes, but I don't think they check them unless something big goes down. There's a new line being built. The T. I want to get down in that tunnel. I've seen a couple people that have already.

Any words of advice for those reading into the same thing?

 

Yes, those trains are quiet and fast. For anyone wanting to go into the tunnels, don't go down there unless you know what you're looking at. If you don't even know what the third rail is or what it looks like or what a white/red stripped line means, don't even think about it. Learn your shit and check out the tunnels before you go in. If the line still has cars with a rail-fan window, just look out and scope the tunnel out before you decide to go exploring.

Keep us updated and be safe man.

I appreciate the interview and your blog is the shit.

 

peaceout.

ISSUE 2 IS HERE

For those of you wondering why this has not been put in print yet, I'm asking those same questions. But for right now, this is heat and I have no right to hold onto it. Thanks to Save and W. Wallace for the contributions to the below pieces. Just Click the pictures and then press F11 for full screen view.

Slick Aleas Interview

Controversy

Ground Control contributed by W. Wallace



For those of you still looking for this in print. I'm always in the process of trying to make it happen, I've got a boat load of material sitting here waiting to get shipped out. Let me know if you have any ideas...Thanks.

SOLD OUT! THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

Delaware's war against graffiti..

"Take it from a champ, graffiti is for chumps." That was the slogan for NYC's anti-vandalism war and damn the ads were at least pretty cool looking. I'd like to see Delaware at least use one of it's 5 celebrities. How about Ryan Phillipe, Rocky Bluewinkle or ex-Presidential hopeful Joe Biden? Can anybody submit some anti-graffiti poster designs and I will forward them to somebody in the Tips department. Because the ones below are not too aesthetically pleasing.


if her ears hurt, why doesnt she just turn the music down?




Honestly vandalism in Delaware is out of hand. Tags are up, and they are blocking my daily commute to the WaWa. If we could get rid of just a few of the transgressors than I would be much obliged because writing on peoples private property is not art, its just stupid.

Supposed to be Issue 2.

Too many...time to release some of the pressure behind the flood gate. Just Click!

The following story is something I found online and reworded it into a spread. I'm not sure how much I actually like the actual write up. In a few ways it reads like somebody who has 2 hours until a research paper is due, and doesn't quite know what they're writing on. Its a good read though.

I'm not good at this spread shit. I know....

Original Issue 1 Spreads.

Just thought you might like to read some...In order, Just Click!

Playtime is over.

I'm done with you kids,



When the beards is in the building you know what it is.

Some footage I shot in 2001.

Issue 2 is around the corner...

We gotta celebrate.
click the pictures to make them larger.

Camden




Wilmington









Philadelphia









Issue #2 Features

Will the real Agua Stand up? "..I guess getting locked up for somebody elses crime must be pretty exciting."
Stolen Suroc Scriptures. "Buford Youthward woes"
Ground Control Violence in Philly. "The best we can do is survive. I was 13 the first time I saw a homicide."
Silent Wrytes Interview. "I say fuck em', they aren't fooling anyone and just playing themselves."
Ugly Squad in the news. "They kept alligators in a basement pond and fed them chicken and pigs ears."
Slick Aleas Interview. "Once you hit a wall its up for the people to decide. It's like being on American Idol, the street does the votes."
and I'll throw in some tunnel flics for good measure.


Yeah it's going down.

THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALL OF YOUR SUPPORT. THE 2ND ISSUE AND ALL REPRINTS ARE NOW SOLD OUT.

Bombing Iraq?

Old men make wars for young men to die in them.

I really don't care how you feel about the war. I'm educated enough to know the basis for wars and the history behind wars in the world. If you think wars in the world will just cease one day, then you're an idiot. The people over there fighting are good friends I grew up with, some I know from school and people just like me. These individuals are trying to make money to better their lives or pursuing their passion in the US Military. Some soldiers are cops who are either in the Reserves or the Guard, and yet others are robbers who love to squeeze pistols. And the funny thing is they love each other when they are in the same unit fighting side by side, and they love each other when they are back home doing what they do best. Either way this is life. When I look at pictures like the ones below, it shows me that these are real people, none perfect, but nobody is, Bombing Iraq....

All stolen.






I wonder when they're coming home.