I went to an ordinary School in the Northeast. It was where my sister’s, brother, and I were the minority in the community. Now my sister’s had their incidents. But my brother and I were raised by Olskool Caribe parents. My father an ex boxer in Miami Beach in the 60’s didn’t take no shit! He was raised in Florida spoke good English. In 1965 he uprooted us so he could find employment up north. We arrived in New Jersey from Miami Beach FL. Now he’s responsible for 5 of us. No more boxing purses. Mom was old school Caribbean Geechy (No habla inglés) it served us because our first language is Spanish. I didn’t know it as a child but I thank her for teaching us our native language. Not only that but the loving care she gave me that never was reciprocated by my father. I will always be grateful for the love she embraced me with.
Anyways, my father brought in the money and the my mother ran the house and everything else. Dad working every day and being responsible for us. He wasn’t interested in our issues because aside from his job he had other women on the side which he used to take my brother and I to these women’s homes. He’d say to my mother ” I’m taking the boys out for a while”. Man I used to feel so phucqued up coming back home and lying to my mother. We really had no choice. He was the boss and provider. He really wasn’t involved as a parent. However, all that’s a story for another time ( My Father’s Sons). Dad wasn’t involved in our schooling. However, he was a responsible provider. So coming to him with a problem wasn’t an option. Especially, if it was a problem dealing with bullying. He was not going to have a son of his come home crying because someone beat him up. If fact that was basis for a whipping. Being a victim was unthinkable and unacceptable. I mean it’s something that’s never said but you learned by conversations among adults. Which we heard constantly. So we already knew it was law.
My brother and I were brought up knowing that if you didn’t win the fight that day. You make sure you come back with a bat and make it count. Now for that reason he would proudly show up to school and give us a pass.. It wasn’t easy everyday at school fighting after school and even at home my father fighting with my mother so he could find a excuse to leave and be with other women. Imagine a kid trying to retain knowledge in the classroom knowing when that bell rings or even going to the store down the street to get bread for mom. You knew there a 60/40 chance that your going to have to fight. Still till this day I look back and think : I had a phucqued up upbringing. But as the years followed we gained respect in school as well as the neighborhood. We even went to a local karate school called Bando in the neighborhood. These were the days when the Shaolin karate films were out in the 70’s so we learned how to defend ourselves even better.
Little did I know that all this insanity at home, at school and karate was preparing us for what was to come, “Spartan Junior High”. After living in the East Orange area fourteen years my father decided to purchase a house in the North Newark area. This was to be a good thing, WRONG! This area was the worst area in Newark NJ back in 1979. My brother and I found that out quick. In this area it was lawless. The school system was run by gangs. Every day we were in fights. The teachers were frightened of the students. They would get assaulted just like the kids. In fact many teachers Never Came Back to Spartan. Their was no control. So my brother and I were on this shit ever day. However, By this time we met some people in the area that knew we weren’t the ones to take the shit so they became our friends. They were solid people but not enough of them in numbers . So the crazy shit continued. However, when it’s three to one. That a lot of shit to leave for another day. This school was something unseen to the general public. It was like a prison pod for kids with no security. The only thing you learned in that school was how to become a gangster. So that’s what we learned.
One day we’re thinking of how the fuck can we control this chaos. So I tell my brother we need more than just fighting all these motherfuckers every phucqin day. You see my brother and I had something the other didn’t have. My brother was a better fighter than me and had the gift of gab. I on the other hand had the foresight to see what was in front of us and in back. I would catch things he didn’t see coming. I would sometimes look a this Mf like bro did you see that? He would be like what? I’d explain it in a way only he and I knew. We were like one person in two when we were together. I peeked that there was this one guy from Walsh Home Projects. Let’s call him China Man ( he even looked like a Chinese). He had a huge crew down in the projects and he was feared by all of the gangs in the neighborhood because he was the best in the art of tai Chi. My brother and I knew that was the the dude we had to do. But I knew their all going to come deep. I told my brother the only way we could handle him and his crew was with a gun. Remember, in those days guns weren’t used. So we tried to get a gun but couldn’t. So the crazy idea comes to my brother to ask my father for his gun. I knew it was a crazy thing to even approach him with. But this crazy motherfucker went to Pop and told him the crazy stuff that was going on and Pop agreed to lend him the gun. He lent him the gun with the agreement that you show the gun but you ask him for a fair one. So we go to the brothers that we had met and they were down to go with us. So we go to the Junior high about 2pm that’s when all the shit happens and waited for China Man to show up and told him in front of SPARTANS JUNIOR HIGH that we wanted a fair one so EVERYONE Knew. He agreed but he said ok. But we’d meet up tonight in front of the school at 8pm.
That day my stomach was in knots. It wasn’t a fear type knots and nervousness as some people will identify with. You see my type of nervousness is a feeling that is a weird feeling. It’s like I can’t sleep, eat or function until the whatever’s pending is dealt with and done. After that I can sleep like a baby and function normally again. I just wanted to get the sht over with so that feeling would go away. I couldn’t wait for that night to come because ever since as a kid. I been cursed with that and it’s a bad feeling that has caused me lots of misery and trouble in years to come.
I remember there were only seven of us against the projects. I told my brother Ray when they come their coming with all their crew and the followers. If we phucque this up we either die here or we’re going to have to disappear from North Newark NJ for good. However, we both knew we are not going no where, we couldn’t. That afternoon we didn’t speak but we knew what each one was thinking. So we go to a handball court and we smoke weed and play handball with the other guys from up the hill. We already knew that by 6pm we had to go home, pick up the gun and get ready. Mom served dinner which we both didn’t eat waiting to go upstairs to our room and sat there in silence. After the silence we go in the closet and start wrapping each other in pieces of light telephone books they had back in the day. So we’re taping it to our front torsos and our backs just in case we got stabbed it would stop some of brunt of the blow. This took more time than I had expected and it was time to leave and meet the guys. Surprisingly each one of our guys showed up. Of course we didn’t tell them about the gun or maybe they’d probably wouldn’t have showed. We couldn’t take that chance. But I have to give them their props. They show up like soldiers.
So we head out to the school with time to spare. So we’re waiting and 8pm comes and go and no one shows up. The guys we were with are starting to say “There not coming” we should just go home. My brother and I told them that if you wanna go, just phucqin go. But me Ray and a kid named Eddie said we’re going to sleep here if we have too. But if you leave don’t come back if you go. So they waited with us. The time keeps going and no one is coming and the time now is something to 9pm and still waiting. A little bit after that we start seeing people coming and just as I called it there were lots of them. I cannot lye seeing all those kids that looked like men shook me. But I wasn’t going no where and my brother wasn’t going no where.
Finally the group with aka China Man starts trying to circle us. I look at my brother when he opens his jacket and tells China Man, I’m strapped bro. I never seen so many niggz back the fuck up so quick. It’s look like the sea opened. I’m like phucque yea. So Ray tells the dude let’s do this. I’ll pass this to my brother and any of your people get stupid. He already knows what to do. But other than that let’s fight. Now I noticed something in China Man. He looked soft and as my brothers keeper I whispered in his ear as he’s giving me the gun and his jacket to hold “I say Ray he’s shook” so go hard when you start and let’s see.
In those days you bowed to your opponent and the fight started. Ray immediately hit him with a right hook and I heard the dude say oof. However, he came right back and connected with a front kick on Ray that thew him back ( Im thinking, I’m glad he has that tapped book inside his hoodie) but it did connect. They continued to fight it seemed like 20 minutes back and forth. But I could see China Man was tired. So I stepped in and said time. China Man took a step back and so did Ray for a minute. I’m telling Ray WTF bro you need to finish this or I’m going to start shooting if i don’t see something. So we call time in and they start again. China man threw the front kick again but Ray this time grabbed his leg and put him down but he let him get up. As soon a he gets back up Ray hit him with a spinning back kick a dropped china Man. Ray gets on top of him a hit him with a few more shots and gets up. China Man lays on the floor and can’t get up. His people help him up and Ray says to him You want some more?. China Man looks at him and says you got this one bro. I took a deep breath and not sure they were all going to try and rush us. I started to bring the gun up and Ray stopped me. At that moment his people picked up China Man and all left back down the hill. I remember going home smoking weed and not sleeping that night. Because I knew tomorrow was going to be a problem.
The next day came and at two o’clock we set out to the school and an amazing thing happened. People that were someone came to us and shook our hands and invited us to chill with them and the usual suck up I’ve seen as a kid. Some we accepted and some not. Looking back I never knew what happened to China Man after that. He all but disappeared. However, one thing I do remember. We took all their girls from the projects. They would come up the hill every day to chill, smoke and sex. They started to love us Puerto Ricans.i remember the car thieves in the area would come pick us up every morning in stolen cars and take us to Barringer high and get phucqued up every day a new car. We ended up running our own Crew Aka BROADWAY CREW and we ran all of North Newark for a long while and our numbers increased.
However, even though we had won the neighborhood and the set at the same time we sank into the street life. We became the worst of the worst. We were so notorious that my father had to sell the house and try to get us back in order. But by this time it was too late. We loved the life, the money, and where ever we went doors opened and we loved it. So we continued to go deeper into the game. My father loss total control over us. By this time we were full time thugs and their was nothing he could do to change us, Nothing!
I look back and remeniss. That was the only choice we had at the time and we took it to a whole other level. A level that I will write about soon so you can understand how deep we went in. Remember,when you ignore your children’s needs. Remember, they will probably grow up to be monsters. So listen to your kids and be attentive to their problems at home and in school. But most of all set a good example to your children at home so they can have a chance at being a productive member of society and not a gangbanger.
I leave you now with this bit of my life. However, I have much more to share. So look out for Kingraized stories.. You can find me on Twitter aka BrickCityKidd. That’s all for now. I hope you enjoyed or learned something from Spartan Junior high. Be well
KINGRAIZED 