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Invest in Youth, Not War!Commentary by Spoken Word Artist"Police State," a song by the conscious hip hop group called Dead Prez, talks about how we live in a society where jobs don't pay enough, rent is overpriced, women get disrespected and police are an ever-present force of oppression. Looking at how many cops are on high school campuses and concentrated in low-income and people of color neighborhoods, we can see this society is really becoming a police state.
Recently there was a battle between African American and Asian students at Thurgood Marshall High School in San Francisco. Cops were called on the scene to stop the fight, but instead escalated the problem by beating and arresting students. Instead of decreasing conflict, the presence of cops at schools always adds to the tension students already feel. Instead of fostering an atmosphere where students feel respected, where they learn how to communicate their feelings, the police system serves only to criminalize youth. And so continues the cycle of tracking youth into prisons for cheap labor while military recruiters in inner-city schools lure youth into fighting a war on behalf of rich people by offering enlistment bonuses and college scholarships. What are the real reasons for a U.S. war on Iraq? Iraq has one of the largest oil reserves in the world and U.S. corporations want to get it at the lowest price possible for profit. That means controlling the countries that produce oil and that means funding a global police state to enforce U.S. control. How is all this connected to our local struggles for better schools, less jails, affordable housing and fair wages? Money that could be used to improve our social systems is instead spent on the war industry. Free speech is labeled "unpatriotic" and repression increases. Youth die on battlefields. There are solutions out there. We just don't hear about them from the mainstream media, which is controlled by the same corporations that benefit from war contracts, polluting our environment and exploiting workers. We have to take it upon ourselves to understand how this system affects us and not fall into the trap of fighting each other, becoming slave labor in prisons or joining the military. That's why learning all our histories is so important. Historical struggles have shaped our present situation. If we don't learn from history, we will make the same or bigger mistakes. Our ignorance will keep us having stereotypes of each other, blaming each other for the problems in society or, worse yet, thinking we can't do anything to change this system. Creating a better world is possible. Youth, women and men all over the world are working towards a world where greed and war do not rule. There is so much you can personally do. Start by getting your information from independent and community media. Some resources (besides War Times) include: Youth Outlook magazine (www.youthoutlook.org), AWOL magazine (www.awol.objector.org), Independent Media Center (www.indymedia.org) and radio shows on Pacifica stations like KPFA (94.1) in the Bay Area. There are also many youth and community organizations out there. Just look for the one working on an issue you feel and get involved! All you've got to do is begin the journey with an open mind and the path will open up for you! Kaira Espinoza is an activist, youth program coordinator, spoken word artist and a student at San Francisco State University. |
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