Author: William Sheets Page 3 of 4

I found this week’s reading, chapters 4-6, to be really interesting, mostly because of the narrative structure Campbell employs throughout these chapters. Campbell made use of many primary sources in the first few chapters of the book, but in these chapters he doubles down on the emphasis of primary sources, particularly stories told by people in and around Richmond. Full pages in these chapters are taken up by first-hand accounts by figures such as Fredrick Douglass, Eyre Crowe, Anthony Burns, and Charles Dickens. This structural choice seems to indicate that Campbell feels that the information he is trying to impart on his readers is most impactful when coming from the people who experienced it first hand, an opinion I agree with. The stories and observations displayed in these chapters are truly impactful because they depart from mere summary of historical events, and instead present the readers with the real, gritty details surrounding the horrors of slavery in Richmond.

Another detail that Campbell mentioned that I thought was really surprising was the fact that so much of Richmond’s history was unknown until recently. The fact that the domestic slave trade played such a big part in the city’s economy, yet was almost completely concealed from the public was shocking to me. It reminded me of what Ana had brought up in class on Thursday (9/28), when she spoke about how information regarding the mistreatment of Native Americans had been blocked by her high school. I think that it’s essential to confront our history as a nation, the horrific parts especially, in order to rectify the wrongs of the past and grow as individuals and as a collective, and the fact that parts of America are trying there best to prevent such self-reflection is both disappointing and frightening.

The story of the founding of Virginia is a truly painful one to think about. The story, as detailed by the first two chapters of Benjamin Campbell’s Richmond’s Unhealed History, is fraught with colonial greed, abject racism, and atrocities committed against indigenous people. Although Spanish settlers had explored the area in prior years, the first true settlement in Virginia came by way of a British expedition. And from the start, conflicts with Native Americans began to become a major part of life for the settlers. Peaceful relations between the English and chief Powhatan soon fell apart as the English settlers who founded Jamestown were attacked by the native people. A lack of respect for the rights of the indigenous people doomed the settlers to hostile raids and attacks throughout the early years of the Virginia colony.

The relationship between the English and the Native Americans didn’t improve with the multiple changes of governor that the colony underwent. In fact, it seemed they got even worse, with a horrifically matter-of-fact account by George Percy detailing the atrocities he committed against the Paspahegh tribe under the command of Lord De La Warr being particularly chilling. Of course, not all the settlers or Native Americans held hatred toward the other, but the terrifying actions of those who did overshadow those settlers that tried to treat the indigenous people with respect, and the indigenous people that attempted the same.

As a result of English settlement, Native American numbers dropped from close to twenty thousand to two or three thousand in around fifty years. The English-Powhatan war, and even the relations between the two groups prior, is a brutal example of the horrific treatment of Native Americans by early English settlers and it is the most painful, yet also most important thing to consider when trying to understand the foundation of Virginia.

I think there’s no one set definition for who the “incarcerated youth” are. Everyone who ends up in those correctional facilities ahas a different story to tell and a world of different experiences. This is part of the reason why I thought the video by The Atlantic rung true when it mentioned building multiple correctional centers throughout the state instead of just having Bon Air. I think this idea goes along with the idea that the people being incarcerated at a young age are all so varied. What works for one person might not work for another, so having multiple different facilities to accommodate people who live in different places or have different backgrounds is a smart move in my opinion. Additionally, since Bel Air wasn’t built for correctional programing, I think a complete renovation of the facility like what was mentioned in the documentary, is a really good idea. By living in a place that’s obviously focused on correction, I’d imagine the youth living there would be more inclined to really work to improve, as opposed to the current Bel Air layout which makes correction feel like an afterthought. I assume there are a bunch of logistical issues that are hampering the progress of these changes, but I think that the effort required to make said changes happen will be well worth it in the long run.

I think the discussion we had with Terrance, Kelvin, and Dr. Coogan as a class was really insightful and engaging. I think one of the most impactful things I learned from the discussion was the outward focus that everyone involved with the project seemed to have. they seemed determined to help educate us, and anyone else who read their book, about their lives and their stories. Kelvin seemed the most adamant about this, saying that his main goal for joining the project was to help others from his background avoid going down the path he had gone down before.

I was surprised by the very serious nature our guests, especially Terrance, talked to us with. Personally, that showed me that he was committed to the project and wanted to take every opportunity he could to impart the knowledge he’s gained from his experiences and show us how important the project was to him.

1. (For David Coogan) “When you started this project, did you have some sort of ideal end goal, and if so did you reach that goal?
2. (For the other writers) “Why did you decide to join this project at its inception?”
3. (For the other writers) “Did you ever feel like you wanted to leave the project?” (For Dr Coogan) “What did you do to try and ensure the writers stayed with the project?”

The second half of “Writing Our Way Out” was just as emotional of a reading experience as the first, with the conclusion of the men’s journeys and their alter views on life post-incarceration lending a sense of hope and optimism to the end of the book. Because of this, or maybe in spite of it, the story that struck me the most was Andre’s.

Andre’s story starts with his father getting him addicted to heroin when he was just twelve years old. To feed his addiction, he becomes a dealer, while also getting his friends and the people close to him addicted, just as his father did to him. He loses one of his best friends to a shooting, before getting shot himself by angry users looking for Andre’s friend, a fellow dealer. When Andre’s eighteen, he gets arrested for dealing drugs. In prison, he goes through intense withdraws, but comes out on the other side with a more positive outlook on life. During his imprisonment, he gets his GED and becomes certified as a graphic designer and as a data entry clerk.

Once released from prison, Andre’s strained relationship with his father leads him to relapse on heroin, subsequently ruining most of his personal relationships. However, he sees that a change needs to be made within himself, and he signs up for a rehabilitation program. The program helps him stay clean while he is living in the program’s house, but he is kicked out of the house following another relapse. This failure motivates him to quit again, and he becomes a salesman, though he does still sell drugs on the side, albeit without using them himself. Unfortunately, Andre is sent back to prison for the last time with numerous charges, all coming from his involvement with an armed robbery. The catch is, Andre was never a part of the robbery, he was just getting a ride with some of his friends after they had already committed the crime, and he had no idea it had occurred. His arrest was accompanied by heavy police brutality, sexual assault, and an all around failure of the justice system.

Andre wins his trials (three of them) and is released for the final time. The story ends on a sad note though, as Andre is seen robbing a convenance store, leading to a police chase. A police chase that ends with a fatal car crash taking Andre’s life. This is the event Dr. Coogan is talking with Kelvin about in the book’s opening chapter.

The most impactful thing about Andre’s story is the fact that it didn’t come to a happy conclusion. All the other guys’ stories are full of hope for the future and determination to change their lives and the lives of others. Andre never has a chance at that. His story ends too soon, but it’s clear from his writing leading up to the fatal accident that he was making a real effort to change, an effort which makes his tragic death all the more painful.

I think that “Writing Our Way Out” is a really powerful book that has a bunch of emotional weight. The stories that the book contains are beautiful because they toe the line between being really tragic and somewhat up-lifting. The stories are sometimes really hard to read, with harsh subject matter and descriptions of traumatic events, but when you consider the people behind the writing, you can see how each person if really working to improve themselves.

One of the things that struck me the most about the narratives in the book was how young all the writers were when they first started going down a bad path. In the stories, kids as young as eleven or twelve years old were committing crimes and risking their lives on a daily basis. I think this is a perfect example of why it’s so important to experience stories like these. Not just because the process of writing and reflecting is therapeutic for the authors, which is of course a fantastic benefit, but because the publication of these stories helps educate the people that read them about some of the fundamental problems in our society.