The Breakfast Club - Tony Lewis Jr & Tony Lewis Sr Talk Life Before/After Prison, First Step Act +More

Episode Date: May 25, 2023

Tony Lewis Jr & Tony Lewis Sr Talk Life Before/After Prison, First Step Act +MoreSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hey y'all, Niminy here. I'm the host of a brand new history podcast for kids and families called Historical Records. Executive produced by Questlove, The Story Pirates, and John Glickman, Historical Records brings history to life through hip-hop. Flash, slam, another one gone. Bash, bam, another one gone. The crack of the bat and another one gone. The tip of the cap, there's another one gone. Each episode is about a different inspiring figure from history. Like this one about Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old girl in Alabama who refused to give up her seat on the city bus nine whole months before Rosa Parks did the same thing. Check it. And it began with me. Did you know, did you know? I wouldn't give up my seat. Nine months before Rosa, it was called a gold mine. Get the kids in your life excited about history by tuning in to Historical Records.

Because in order to make history, you have to make some noise. Listen to Historical Records on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yep, it's the world's most dangerous morning show, The Breakfast Club. Charlamagne Tha God, Jess Hilarious, DJ Envy is off. We got two special guests, man. Tony Lewis Jr. and Tony Lewis Sr. If you've been paying attention to their journey, then you know we about to have a great conversation. How y'all brothers doing, man?

Amazing, man. Amazing. Wonderful. Yeah. Tell them the story that you've been're about to have a great conversation. How y'all brothers doing, man? Amazing, man. Amazing. Wonderful. Tell them the story that you've been telling for all these years, Tony. Yeah, man. My father went away when I was nine years old. Got life without parole. And, you know, that journey lasted 34 years through tirelessly fighting for his freedom. You know, coming up here five years ago, you know, doing stuff all across the country, doing stuff in D.C.,

but also utilizing our struggle to help, you know, so many other families that was in a similar situation, being inspiration and hope. And then finally, you know, due to so much advocacy, my brother Pusha T connected me with Brittany K. Barnett, who I call our modern-day Harriet Tubman, and her organization, Burning the Live Project. Shout out to people like Corey Jacobs, who was also a part of that.

Miranda Jones. Yes, Miranda Jones. And eventually that unlocked those gates, and 65 days ago, my father stepped out of federal prison. Have you adjusted yet, my brother? I'm trying. Yeah, it's getting there. The technology, that's kind of,

the whole city's changed, gentrification. Or white people, what happened to our black DCs? Yeah. Yeah. For real. Dang, man. I think there's any context for that, though, really, right? We live in the most gentrified place in America. DC? DC, man. I think there's any context for that, though, really, right? We live in the most gentrified place in America.

Yeah. D.C.? Yeah, D.C. And five years ago when I was up here, I talked a bit about that, right? But he left in 1989, 34 years ago. When it was really chocolate city. Yeah, it really was. Now a block, man.

Like our neighborhood, everything has just really changed a lot. So for him to walk into that, that's hard. And where is everybody also who were there before? That's the other question, you know? So, sorry, but, you know,

I just think that's important. I can definitely tell that he's still like, hold up, what's going on? Because even when I walked up to him and spoke to me, like, y'all,

you might want to chill out, relax, don't walk up all happy like that, you know, but you can give me a hug. And look, you know, he don't even give hugs regular. He's like, no, don't walk up all happy like that you know but you can give me a hug and look you know he don't even give hugs

regular he like no don't touch too much and then he'd put the two fingers on the back like tap tap alright now back off you know what I mean

hey hey y'all I was telling her I'm watching her from prison I know who she was I know who she was I appreciate that I'm a big fan of hers I love that

thank you and you're not from Baltimore y'all right there Baltimore you right there you know what too you. You're right there, D.C. You're right there. You know what, too? You know, it's crazy because, you know, I think what's beautiful about the D.C.-Baltimore relationship is it's really grown. And it's through people like you.

Yeah, thank you. People like, and really a lot of it got to do with, like, you know, people in the feds, you know, when he was logging out from Baltimore. Yeah, yeah. Dudes like Stokoe and D. Watkins that's like my brother shout out to stokey yes and then my guy so through that kind of work and trying to help out share community and i think the whole idea of the dmv um which dc people weren't necessarily with that from the beginning boston more people weren't with that from the beginning but our region even down to the 757 you know starting

to really show that there's a lot of beautiful things coming out of our area, you know what I'm saying? Absolutely. Let's talk about the story a little bit, man. Tony, Tony Sr., you served 34 years for your role in one of the largest, most notorious crack cocaine crime rings in that region. Like, what got you into the game? Poverty.

Poverty. Poverty. Single- parent household. You know, like the regular, not regular, but back in my, our whole street was basically, that's what it was, at least on my side of the street. Right. Welfare, poverty, drugs, violence, the whole block. That's all you knew.

That's all you saw. That was the job. Like, you know, like people say about getting a job, that was the job. We knew nothing else. So it was a culture. And the poverty is what led to me selling drugs and trying to help my family, mother, single parent, sisters, brothers, friends. And it just grew.

And you use a culture, you know what I'm saying? And, you know, that's what. Did you ever think it was going to get that big? Because, you know, I always say in the 80s, y'all were like early investors in like a tech company or something. You know what I mean? Like y'all were the ones who really, really got it. Yeah, I never set forth in it to become big or a drug.

Really, I was trying to just survive, help my family eat, mom pay the bills, you know, light gas get cut off from time to time, the welfare check ain't last, you know, like, you know. So that's where I got in. And, you know, like I said, it was a culture, and I always worked hard at whatever I did. So selling drugs, I worked hard, and I came up, and I worked hard, and I seen the money, and I kept wanting to get more and more,

but not to glorify it at all. But back then, that was the culture. What's the most you had at one time? I had a few million in cash. Damn! Back then, that was a lot. You know, I knew NAMS a little less, but, yeah, got to get a few million in my early 20s.

Wound up getting the rest of it at 26. And that was it. Yeah. Done. That was it. You had, like, what, two years of balling? A year of balling? No, actually more, because I started, like, when I was 14.

You know, but, of course, small stuff, you know, but the big I was 14 you know but of course small stuff but the big stuff came later money wise and everything else but marijuana from the beginning

and stuff like small stuff like that but then I blocked turned from marijuana to cocaine not my making

you know other people making but Ronald Reagan yeah yeah but Ronald Reagan. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,

Ronald Reagan, CIA, yeah, yeah. We right there too, right? You see the dome of the Capitol, we 10 blocks,

12 blocks from the Capitol, where our street is, you feel what I'm saying? And I think that really is, it's something to that though, to say that, right? You can stand on our block,

on any corner in D.C. and the presidential motorcade might ride by like in a little sense. That is the backdrop to our story. I grew up on that same block in a more even deadlier time because now we're in the heart of the crack epidemic. You feel what I'm saying? I'm coming up in the 90s, you know what I mean? We're the murder capital of the United States.

It's just like complete destruction and just desperation. And I'm just so happy that I had him from prison. It's crazy, too, is when they got locked up, man, you know, being nine years old, I'm the only child, you know what I'm saying, from the court stuff. It was on the news every day. Then they went to, they was getting preferential treatment at D.C. Jail. So they go to Quantico Marine Base. Yeah. You know what I'm saying?

So you go visit at the cell like we at the Marine Base M16s and Marines it's not a prison and that's embedded in my brain to this day they go

shipped out to Lompoc, California for the next 13 years and I'm just sharing that to talk about how that is and I'm on that block he 3,000 miles away

my mother started dealing with severe mental illness that she still battles to this day so I lost my both my parents in the way that I had them prior and had to navigate through that which we just described but I had him on the other hand phone in them letters you know every day telling me to like make better choices right you know doing everything that he could from prison to ensure that I don't, you know what I mean,

following them same footsteps. But at the end of the day, I'm growing up in the exact same thing. That's why I wake up feeling like the luckiest man alive. And even with all of that, you could have still took another turn. What made you not turn Tariq St. Patrick with all this? Yeah, for real.

You know what I'm saying? Now listen, you know what, I've been watching that joint though, like for real, all jokes aside. My biggest fear. Yeah be watching that joint, though, like, for real, all jokes aside. My biggest fear. Yeah, because where we come from, it ain't nothing else. Just like he just, it's nothing else. All my uncles, all his friends, them people ain't leave with him.

They was still around. And people did give me, you know, so much information of, like, Slug. That's what everybody called me, Slug. Do something different. You got something different. I had a strong grandmother. My aunts, you know, and other dudes in the community in general just wanted me to do something different but nobody could show me how that's where the problem came do something different but who who else

yeah but i was able to you know by the grace of god i was able to kind of you know find my way but what really saved me it wasn't linear like that though just what happened was when i was about 20 i still ain't, you know what I mean? What am I gonna do? I don't, you know, but I got a job doing peer-to-peer violence interruption.

Like, a job, basically, the people closest to the problem that can reach their peers, you know what I mean? I fell in love

with the work and that saved my life. That's what really, you know what I mean, put me on this path that I've been on for the last 23 years. You know what I'm saying?

As an activist, aside from getting them out of jail, but being sort of the leading voice, I stand at the intersection of poverty, mass incarceration, and gun violence in my city. You know? What was the turning point in the Free Tony Lewis movement?

When did you start seeing hope? Man, I always felt like I was going to make it happen, but the biggest turning point, I think when, you know, through the years, like people like my brother Wale, a lot of other guys, you know, helping and pushing. Push the T. But when Pushing introduces us to Brittany Barnett, right,

we had other turning points. When Pushing makes that intro intro he made the song coming home with long heel she mentions pops in that's when her

legal prowess and then she connected with a law firm Aaron Fox Schiff in DC to be able to

represent him I felt hopeful but look the first motion that she files, though, his judge, he gets denied for it, though. You know, when I did the free Tony Lewis rally,

we got like a thousand people out in D.C. At Black Lives Matter Plaza. And we filed a motion after that. And that motion get denied. I was like, man, but Brady was like, nah, it's all right. Tony, we going back in. And we just kept, you know, kept pushing. You know what I mean?

I kept bugging, you know, you and everybody else. Like, let me come up. Let me talk about trying to, you know what I mean? Because, you know, I felt like I've started a family, man. You know, now I grew up, right? But also I got married. You know what I'm saying? My two daughters.

And I didn't want my babies to keep visiting no federal prison. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? Yeah, I grew up like that. You know? And then we hadn't seen him since when COVID hit. We didn't go see him. What, Papa, since?

Three, four, three years. Three years? Three years. Yeah, we ain't even going to visit. Because he was like, nah. He's like, nah, I don't even want to see them in here again. Yeah. We going to do, I'm going to see them when I come home.

Right. Still ain't thinking shit. Even though I ain't know. Yeah, there was this good energy and hope. Prayers, you know, and faith in you, son, you know. Yeah. Yeah. You know, we did something I think is important, too, that gave me hope.

My father's, you know, Pop's, we got different personalities. He more introverted than I. When he started running this, helped to run this program called Young Men Incorporated, a guy named Dominic Henry started. There was a former federal inmate came back in to do this program. And dude, Peanut King out of Baltimore was doing this.

Yeah, Peanut King. Yeah. But they ran, they was mentoring. Just don't know who that is. Yo, chill. I know. She from the county.

She ain't from the county for real. I'm sorry. I'm not talking about nut, man. But yeah, talk about nut. Yeah, that's I ain't talking about nothing, man. But you ain't talking about nothing. Yeah, that's my man's pee. Yeah, that's right. So, Pop, can you tell me a little bit about why am I, like, you know more, but I mean, you can explain it better than me.

It was a mentoring, a peer-oriented mentoring group, I would say. They got the most high-profile guys in the prison to be a part of it. Most of the young men look up to the, it's sad to say, but the most high-profile guys in the prison. And so I was reluctant at first to take part in it, really, because I was doing some other things. I'm always mentioning, I'm doing this on a regular anyway, and it's consuming because the young guys always want to talk. They want to bring you all the problems, the girl problems, all the problems.

I'm like, what about my problems, young'uns? But it's all good. But anyway, no, I took part, and it really was good. It was gratifying. Son, you got to come in. Council members came in. We had it rocking and rolling. We had a good warden who was pro-programming.

Sure. You know, he was with it. Which you don't always get. Yeah, that you don't always get. And to come into federal prison in the ways that I was able to come in and collaborate with my father. Yeah, that was amazing. That don't happen in federal.

I don't know people out there really understand that. It just does not happen. And I also came in and interviewed him and did a PSA to the young men in our community about putting the guns down for the mayor, right? So, but when I saw him opening up and saw the work that I was doing on the outside, we had always connected on it, like helping the guys in there, their children. You know, their children out in the community I would help. But for him to take it by the horns like that, it made me go even harder.

Because I'm like, he's even growing in a different way that wasn't really, you know what I'm saying, happening before. So that made me keep pushing. Yeah, we can't leave our big homie up here, Silborn Waite. He was a big part of it. Silk was a big part. Timothy Williams, Tiny. James Kirby Burks.

These good men still in prison With life sentences They working every day No matter the weight they got on their back They helping these young guys Not to come back out and pick these guns back up That means a lot man But people don't know So I got to

Try to shed some light on them guys What was the legislation that actually got His sentence overturned? The First Step Act. First Step Act. Oh, yeah. It was a Trump-era reform. And, you know,

again, back five years ago in the interview, I was in, you know, because I helped advocate for that as well, right? But at the time, we didn't even think that he would be able

to benefit from the First Step Act. But obviously, other stuff that I benefited, I mean, that I advocated for, you know, was about not us. it was about the great and other American families all across this country to benefit you know I'm saying so the first step back you know shout out to you know cut 50 dream cool van Jones and all that crew

and Hawking Jeffries also who introduced the bill but Trump signed in the law party like 20,000 people have come come home off that reform and you know something that's really, really important to us and what we plan on working on together moving forward. We actually got a meeting tomorrow in the same vein is that, you know, the Biden administration. Joe Biden. Joe Biden.

President Biden. Listen up. Yeah, man. Listen up. Very inactive, I think, when it comes to this issue. He's the architect of our current system, right? Yeah, absolutely. But check this out.

So infrastructure, these things he ran on, infrastructure, did that. Computer chips, did that. Climate change, did that. Gun control to the extent that he could impact that. For executive order. For executive order, did that. Student loan debt, to a certain degree did debt but this Mr. Biden is your issue

this is you can do by executive order you do not need congressional collaboration to do this no by executive order he has the clemency power power to pin and we need you to do that we need you to commute sentences we need you to

reunite American families like ours the joy that we feeling you know do that. We need you to commute sentences. We need you to reunite American families like ours, the joy that we're feeling, you know, just to be reconnected. Because all of this is on him directly. Oh, it's his. The 86 mandatory minimum sentencing, the 88 crack laws, 94 crime bills. That's right. Absolutely.

Do it, Joe. Like, for real. And it's his to do, and it's time to do it. I went to an event at the Justice Department. What was that, Papa? Three weeks ago? Three weeks ago we went. And then I say this all, like, I don't, I'm glad that those 31 families have been reunited.

But come on, man. Only 31 pardons or commutations. 31, you got thousands of people languishing under these hard sentences, man, for crack cocaine and mandatory mental instances. And they've done their time. That's the point. They've done their time. More than their time. Right? So it's not like

you decide to get out of jail free, Carl. We talking people that have done 25, 30, 35 years. They've done their time more than their time. Should have never got that much time.

The reason I think Biden should make this a main issue is because, number one, he was the architect of all of those bills, but he's admitted to it. Like, when we had him

on Breakfast Club, you know, people always get caught up in the you ain't black comment, but there was a moment when I'm talking to him about righting his wrongs of mass bills, but he's admitted to it. When we had him on Breakfast Club, people always get caught up in the you ain't black comment, but there was a moment when I'm talking to him about righting his wrongs of mass incarceration with the 94 crime bill. He was like, it wasn't the 94 crime bill. It was the 86 mandatory man on

citizens. I was like, you wrote that too? Yeah. That's the one. He know that. What you get out of that is the destabilization in my opinion the greatest destabilization

or the destabilizer of communities like ours no matter who lives there right if you got it took people out of the community

yes people should have been held accountable even in the free Tony Lewis movement I never said he went to a political prison I never was like he should have never

went to jail his ass should have went to jail but just not for that that's real that's real I should he went to a political prison. I never was like, he shouldn't have never went to jail. His ass should have went to jail, but just not for that. That's real. That's real. I should have went to prison. I'm mad enough to accept my responsibility.

I should have went to prison, but not for the rest of my life, man. And it's like one of those situations where you can really do that. It should be a criteria. The other thing is people should not have to go before these judges. And depending on what side of the bed they woke up on your freedom is based on that yeah it should be if you did this amount of time you've shown rehabilitation um you should do it the other part of it though for president biden and vp harris listen not only should people be reunited with their families but you guys should um take the steps to make the federal workforce, which I'm a part of, the federal workforce a model for second chance hiring.

See, we got to clear up some of these barriers. My father did 34 years, but there's still places he can't work and can't live. Think about that. Right. I mean, so. So you're still technically in, you know, in some type of way. Exactly. There's no question about it.

And if he don't got me, right, you know, to navigate this new world after 34 years, you know what in some type of way. There's no question about it. And if he don't got meat, right, you know, to navigate this new world after 34 years, you know what I'm saying, and trying to find your way. But I work and I deal with guys who don't have a meat, who don't have stability. They got to release to homeless shelters and jobs that they qualify for but can't get them after serving their debt to society.

Like, we need to really foster a culture of redemption. You know, if we really want culture of redemption if we really want public safety, if we really want communities to thrive and things of that nature. And I think this administration should lead with that on both fronts. I agree. And it need to happen like now.

Mr. Lewis Sr., how did you feel watching your son, your namesake, be out here fighting for you in that way? That's what kept me going, man. So much pride, so much joy. I get emotional, man, because it's hard for me to explain, but me and my son, we talk about it all the time. So many different experiences.

Guys coming into prison, man, your son helped me get a job, but I messed up because I went back on drugs but he helped me then at the end I'm ready to get out next month can you hook me back up with him I was like man I'll give him your name

but my son be remembering these guys I read your son's book it inspired me so much Slug his book Slug just a wonderful life guide, you know, especially for us coming up in the same hood and the black community.

But just so much inspiration. I'm so proud of him. And to top it off with getting his dad free, because he didn't help to get a lot of other people free. And I was like, son, where did they go get me? You know, because a lot of things that he tried to, legislation he tried to get changed or enacted, we was always looking at it,

thinking it was going to help us like drug minus two. That was the first thing we said we got denied. I mean, the drugs minus two thing was something that was very, you know. What was drugs minus two? It was the legislation that, well, the Senate Commission passed an enactment saying that all drugs, you was eligible for a two-point reduction

no matter what the drugs was or what the amount was. To combat the 86 mandatory minimums. Right, right, yeah. And everybody was benefiting, so we put our motion in saying, oh, you was fighting for that son, the dad should get it, put the motion in. Judge was something. Yeah. And everybody was benefiting. So we put our motion in and said, oh, you was fighting for that son. Dad should get it. Put the motion in.

Just get it. Denied. Denied how? Oh, you had too much crack cocaine. Too much. Y'all said all drugs minus two no matter what. But for me, it was always some technicality that, you know, even the first crack cocaine was two points minus two.

That was separate from the two points minus drugs. But the crack one, we got denied on that too. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. So it's been multiple things that, you know, and actually on the drug minus two, again, you know, shout out, you know, to the pusher. He helped. We did it right.

I spoke about that when I was up here five years ago. But even, you know, for context, for a lot of the listeners, like a lot of people heard like Big Meech got a reduction. That's what he got. Yeah, Big Meech got a two-point reduction. Based on the two-point reduction. He got the two- like uh you know a lot of people heard like uh big meat's got a reduction that's what he got yeah based on the two-point reduction he got the two-point you know i'm saying we so something that we helped push through uh you know like britney got the two-point for him britney was his attorney as well wow yeah because she hit me and said uh yeah i got a bit big big me still i think he got like off the two plus maybe seven years off his sentence got six left but they denied me you know

so for the same thing but it was all good the judges had the discretion and that's the other thing about these things with the mandatory minimums the judge ain't had

no discretion if you met a certain guideline they had to give you that amount of time but now in the thing that was supposed to bring relief based on the mandatory minimums

the judge got full discretion I felt like that was sort of ironic now if you got like I don't want to use the term left no more but if you got a judge that's more for those things then yeah you in good shape but if you got a conservative judge a hard line

I'm not trying to hit that this wasn't for people like him guys that was considered to be leaders. And imagine me as an activist, as an advocate, and I'm seeing this happening around me all the time. Everything that I'm helping to push, I'm not the sole guy responsible. I'm lending my influence. And my dad can't benefit from it.

But I couldn't stop, though. You know what I mean? I knew that there's no way my father was going to die in prison. But we up against the federal government and the United States government but I just always felt with the push of my D.C. community and abroad

we were able to make this happen. And I hope this is hope for the 10 million children in this country that have had an incarcerated parent for people that's in prison. But I think the main thing for me, not to be talking too much, but I think it's so important. That's what you're here for, bro.

Yeah, bro. It's so important to note, though, that, you know, it was also my dad didn't, my dad had two, in 34 years, only like two infractions. He did things to get better. He did things to help other inmates. He did things to help our community. So it wasn't just me his actions as a man you know i mean you know could have he could have been you know turned up

and then yeah exactly a lot of there's a lot going on in prison and even if you don't want to get turned up it sometimes you're forced to just get and being from dc we you know i love my homies but we stay in we stay in stuff in prison you know what I'm saying and then Baltimore mass collaboration because when I was when I used to be in the prison it was crazy so I can relate you know but I came home so Man, don't listen to me. Don't listen. Just every four minutes, I know I'm going to get ready to be hairy. I just didn't know how much. I ain't do too much. I ain't know how much.

I was letting people know. Don't play with me out here. Why was you the only person still serving time? That's what we was trying to figure out. That's what we was trying to figure out. Why was I the only? Everybody was like, every time I called home, called for me. I'm like, what the fuck? Why are they letting me on? All your Cody Finners gone. Why was I the only, everybody was like, every time I called home, called friends, like, Tom, what the fuck, why they letting all,

all your Cody Finners gone? Why you the only one? Yeah, why you the only one? I'm like, man, I'm fighting, that's all I can say. I don't know why I'm the only one. Was it because they looked at you as the leader, or kingpin? Well, with him, Rayford Edmunds.

Rayford Edmunds, yeah. But you know what he did, so he was already set to come home whenever, no matter what. But I had to fight. My son had to. If it don't be for my son, I'd be still languishing in prison. You know? Yeah.

When you watch the shows like the Snowfalls and the BMX, because I heard you say earlier you don't want to glorify it. But how do you tell your story without glorifying glorifying it? Right. See, I tell the story, but then even in the middle or at the end, I say I'm not glorifying what I'm saying, and I'm not. But it's the truth. Yeah.

I got to tell the truth, you know, good or bad. But still, I'm not glorifying. If I had to do it all, if I had the opportunity to do it all different, I would do it different. I wouldn't sell drugs. I wouldn't have broken the law. I would have tried to find another way, but... I'm going to say this, though.

When you compare, you know what I'm saying? Like, all them other stories, and I say it's all a difference of humility, but all them other stories ain't got a me. Yeah. That's the difference. Like, this, like, this, like, this, like, and it's fiction

but I'm saying it's like I'm with I'm with Vito wanting Michael to become like I'm this the godfather

in real life this if I took the family legit you ain't got this in them other stories and that's serious and not to mention

you know I climbed the crooked ladder and sent back down the straight one in my city um you know what I'm saying? You'd be hard-pressed to find somebody that's helped more people.

I'm talking about people from this circumstance. People went, people, all through federal prison, D.C. guys, when they come home, they say, I got to see Tony Lewis Jr. Because he going to help me. And that's real. You know what I'm saying? And that's the part that sometimes. They have me every day in prison.

Every time somebody get ready to get out, six months before. They might ain't say nothing to me the whole time they been in the unit. Hey, Tony, I've been meaning to get out six months before. They might ain't said nothing to me the whole time they been in the unit. Hey, Tony, I've been meaning to talk to you, man. Your son still helping people get them jobs? I said, yeah,

he's still helping people. Man, can you hook me? Here's all my information. Can you do that? I said, I'll see what I can do. But I said, I'm watching your action. I tell a lot of times

when I see how you moving here and then you come to me to try to get me to reference you to my son. But I've been seeing how you've been moving and if you ain't moving the right way i'm not doing that my son name goes on everything that he does when when he connected and trying to get people employment or housing or you know or whatever the case may be and i'm not putting no bad people when i've

been watching you for the last year to moving in here the way that you move no i can't do that i just be in awe of how God works because you had an unfortunate circumstance because of some poor choices, but then that became your life's work, your purpose. And we always piece of the other thing. It's crazy.

It really is, bro. And I'm saying I live, it's just so many dynamics. It's like I'm saying, I don't even, growing up, I ain't never moved. I'm on hand,

you know what I'm saying? I live on the same block, you know what I'm saying? And to do it from there, that the whole community have watched my journey I didn't go away to college, I went to college, I went to all the local universities but I didn't go away to school, everything I did and I lost so many friends the streets, gun violence

and prison overdose and it still impacts my life but still everyday, still getting up to help my people and then we talked about DC's gentrification and the native Washingtonian you know even me and my homegirl my partner Angel Gregorio yeah man you know we started this whole thing DC Natives Day just to force our city to recognize people that grew up in DC because it's like all the energy was focused on all the people moving to the city, you know? Right.

And we need a part of some of the progression. And so with that, though, it's like I've realized that has brought me a lot of clarity, though. That's why them bullets ain't hitting me. That's why when my friends went to jail on conspiracy, they ain't grabbed me. You know, that was my purpose. And to now have him beside me now, you know, I mean, I just, I'm so excited about what the future holds for us and our city and our family.

This is going to be, like, the biggest thing for your daughters, though. Yeah. Like, seeing that they six and nine, you said. Yeah. Seeing that, you know what I'm saying? Just, like, their standards are going to be so high for these black men. You understand what I'm saying?

And that's really, really good. I'm serious. You could have really went another way with this, you know, but your daughters are going to always be a king. You're going to be a king, you know, to them for the rest of their life. And they got granddaddy back. Yeah, man. Yeah. you know to them for the rest of their life and they got granddaddy back yeah man yeah yeah

babysitting babysitting them going to school with them going to gymnastics practice doing all that just everything anything they want

pop up here and I'm loving it yeah that's what I dreamt about do they provide you with any resources like mental health resources yeah

for you know for you to help help you adjust and I'm sure you got PTSD that you're dealing with. I can imagine. It's like, you know, I know that the city has those things, but you got to go and try to get them. It's not like how it should be that the minute you hit that,

look, just come on over here. We have access to them, and we're going to engage them too. And again, I've been part of that ecosystem to help build that ecosystem so we you know the program that I you know

designed it you know we had a joint it's crazy you know we ain't got no hat we already you know everybody you do you break a local law

federal law you do go to the feds in D.C. but we don't even have a halfway house now so our halfway house is actually people go to Baltimore so

but a program I did out there with Angel, we actually, the bedrock of the program was one-on-one therapy. That's really, you know, I want us to do family therapy. We've just been running around the last 60 days, but that's definitely a part of it, right? And I absolutely appreciate, you know, all the push you've been doing for wellness and mental health. You know, I was growing up as a kid with a mom that dealt with mental health.

Like I said, my only child. I went through all that with my mother to this day, right? I understand the value of that. And to destigmatize that for our community is so important, to make it accessible and affordable and to make you not crazy. We all need that. I tell youngins all the time, if you break your ankle, you be hooping. If you break your ankle, you can just go in the house

and just lay on the bed and let that joint heal. Now you go to the doctor. So we got to look at mental health in that same way. So it's definitely something that we know is necessary in the trauma

that black men and women all across this country has experienced via incarceration is something I think that's definitely something that we don't talk about enough. I'm saying?

That shit real. What's next for y'all, man? The don't get taken movement. Anti-incarceration, anti-violence movement. Don't get taken. All the youngins out there, exactly that. Don't put yourself in a

position where you get taken, either from the community via criminal justice system or, you know, obviously the cemetery. Too much violence and carjacking and robbing. Got to put the guns down, young people. We got to. We got to put the guns down.

Well, Pop, what you always say, you can't tell them the word. What would you say? How you be putting it? Well, we can't ask them to put the guns down without picking something up. And it got to be a job or training or some type of more opportunity. And I always say this to our good mayor, Mayor Bowser, and the D.C. City Council, we need more opportunities. Young people need more opportunities, more jobs, more training

if we want to put the guns down. And if they've been in trouble, that's the other part, just to the barrier piece. In D.C. and everywhere else, if people made a mistake, they paid their debt, we cannot continue to hold them, like, put that scholar letter on them and they can't engage. Because then the cities or the counties or the towns, whatever, create these, quote, unquote, pathways or these opportunities. But if you got a criminal record, you can't do it. That's who you think need it the most.

You understand what I'm saying? And that definitely go for a place like Baltimore and New York and Philadelphia and Atlanta, wherever. You know what I'm saying? And that definitely go for a place like Baltimore and New York and Philadelphia and Atlanta, wherever, you know what I'm saying? Wild and everywhere. So what am I left to do? And my baby crying on them lights still got to be on. So yeah, we got to get people to listen.

Hopelessness is probably the most powerful thing there is. And so when we start talking about our young people in our communities, if I've accepted death and I've accepted that death or incarceration is gonna be my fate and in some in some instances that my glory you cannot deter me with that you cannot deter me with something i've already accepted it's gonna happen yeah right so we gotta do is that hope we gotta and hopefully this is make people feel hopeful. But we got to create systems that promote hope in these communities,

that there is something other than the street. You know what I'm saying? And really, for me, I feel like you can't aim that at youth. You have to aim that at family because the adults

are destabilized. What you think will happen to the youth? Any young and in trouble, look at you, ask who does he belong to? What's the state of that household? That to the youth right exactly any young and in trouble look at you ask who does he belong to what's the state of that household that's the answers right there so we got to attack that in my opinion how do we support the don't get taken movement um right now man we we really just trying to brand it um put it out in consciousness yeah you know i got it in slug being

here today being here today talking about it we was just at a school yesterday talking to Amamata it's Amamata for real it was amazing and we are

establishing a designing program where we gonna be in community we gonna be trying to work on a PSA that's gonna go out

on social media you know pushing don't get taken and hopefully we can you know get partners around it and really build it up to not just something in D.C.,

but really a national movement, you know, for our young people, man. Don't get taken, man. Any way we can help, let us know, man. Definitely. We have one last question. So I know you say you don't want to ever glorify what you did. You know what I'm saying? But would you ever do a story?

If somebody came to you and said look everybody else got their story no question that's what we want to do you know what I mean and like you said everybody else story the difference between is there is no you people don't have a you so

would you be oh because this would be the first story like this on TV for sure for sure yeah for sure thank you for that I hope I'm willing to tell it though

that's the thing do America want to tell a story like this a story that ends the right way of a person of people that did it the right way

that's the question and we still fighting for the men that's left behind we still fighting for the black family Spielberg King of Birds Tyler Perry 50 Cent I'm going to say somebody will do it call that And we still fighting for the men that's left behind. We still fighting the families, the black families. Spielberg, King of Birds, Tala Perg, 50 Cent. I'm going to say somebody will do it.

Call at us. It ain't got to be them. Somebody will do it. You know what I'm saying? Sure. If they do it, then they got to highlight the fact that you out here doing God's work. That's right. I don't know if they want it.

Everybody want the drama. They want all the drama. You know? Yeah. You're helping too many people. But like you say just somebody wanna do it

somebody will do it if somebody's going to yeah that's what I wanted to know appreciate y'all for it appreciate y'all for sure Jessica gonna play one of your

drug mules or something from back in the day oh again this is definitely Jessica she can play any role I know you got some pretty girls

from Baltimore running for it I know you did any role yeah I know you did yeah she girls from Baltimore running for you. I know you did. She can play any role. I know you did. Yeah, she's welcome. Thank you so much. Yes.

Hey, Tony Lewis Jr., Tony Lewis Sr., Tony, man, I've always respected the work you're doing. Now I'm glad you got your father out here doing it with you, man. Yes. We appreciate you. We appreciate y'all. It's the Breakfast Club. Hey, y'all.

Niminy here. I'm the host of a brand new history podcast for kids and families called Historical Records. Executive produced by Questlove, The Story Pirates, and John Glickman, Historical Records brings history to life through hip-hop. Flash, slam, another one gone. Bash, bam, another one gone. The crack of the bat and another one gone. The tip of the cap, there's another one gone. Each episode is about a different inspiring figure from history. Like this one about Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old girl in Alabama

who refused to give up her seat on the city bus nine whole months before Rosa Parks did the same thing. Check it. Get the kids in your life excited about history by tuning in to Historical Records. Because in order to make history, you have to make some noise. Listen to Historical Records on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.