"I'm Charles S. Dutton." "Last summer, I came back here to Baltimore, Maryland... to film a story about life on the corner." "I grew up and hung out on a corner just like this one... not too far from here." "A corner like thousands of others across the country." "It's a place to go if you wanna be seen, and to a lot of folks... it's the information center of the neighborhood." "You wanna know who got the good drugs... you wanna know who got killed last night, why, and who did it... you come here." "The contradiction of it is... on one hand, the corner pulsates with life." "The energy of human beings trying to make it to the next day." "But also, it's a place of death." "Be it the slow death of addiction, or the suddenness of gunshots." "Back when I was hanging out here, it was bad." "But 30 years ago, Maryland had only five major penal institutions." "Today, there are 28... and more are being planned." "Yet the corners haven't gone away." "There are 100 open-air drug markets in Baltimore... thousands in America... whether the rest of the country wants to think about them or not." "This film is a true story of men, women and children... living in the midst of the drug trade." "Their voices... are too rarely heard." "Gary, how long have you been shooting dope?" " Hardcore?" "About four years." " And you're how old now?" " 34." " You started kind of late." "I didn't mess with these drugs for the longest time." "But everyone around says things were going very well for you." "You worked two full-time jobs." "Yeah, plus a home-development company I started on the side." " You drove a Mercedes Benz." " Things was going good." "So why did you start shooting heroin?" "I'm gonna get me a cigarette." "I need a cigarette." " Hey how's it going?" " What's up, man?" "A cigarette." "You weren't kidding." "Yeah, 25 cent apiece." "It'd be a lot cheaper to buy a pack, wouldn't it?" "Yeah, well, you know..." "Why buy a whole pack, 'cause you know I'm gonna end up giving half of them away." "So I just buy only one." "These matches, man." "You know, Koreans own this place now." "Used to be Lendler's." "Jewish man and his brother." "I used to work here." "He gave me a job, like, sweeping up and things." "As a matter of fact, this was my first job ever." "I remember Fat Curt." "Hey, you guys talk to Fat Curt yet?" "Yeah, I met him." "I remember he and his brother Dennis used to come in here... and slide a couple of gin bottles in their coat pocket... and then walk out." "One day, Mr. Lendler sent me there after them." "I'm 9 or 10 years old." "And I walk up to them." "I go, "Mr. Curt, Mr. Dennis..." ""Mr. Lendler wants to talk to you about them bottles that y'all bought."" "He looked at me and go, "Who do you think you're talking to?" ""Your little ass is as black as mine." "Get your ass off this corner."" "I watched this place burn down during the riots." "But I had jobs." "I had good jobs." "I was a supervisor for Beth Steel down at the Point." "You worked hard." "My father came from Carolina, I remember, weren't nothing but 14 years old." "Landed him a foundry job the day he came off the bus." "He worked hard every day of his life." "He's still working, driving a cab." "My brothers and sisters, they're doing just the same." "So what happened, Gary?" " Man, you just don't know." " Well, tell me." "See, I'm gonna stop, all right." "I'll get it right." "Have you ever tried to quit before?" "Yeah, I'm gonna get past this." "You'll see." "You got another?" "No, man." "Hey, look here, man..." "I'll talk to y'all later." "We'll do this later, okay?" " I can't talk right now." " All right." " Take it easy, Gary." " All right, man." "Pink tabs in the hole!" "You think I'm playing with your fucking ass." "I'm saying your shit ain't shit!" "I'm fucking tired of New York niggers taking money for shit... that don't even get folks out of the gate." "You're a lying bitch!" "Your ass is high as shit right now!" "You think I'm out here getting niggers high for free?" " Shit ain't free!" " No, I'm gonna get $10 back." "Or I'm gonna find a phone and call the police." "I should take a bat against your head for even thinking some shit like that." "Do what the fuck you got to do, motherfucker!" "Yo!" "Where the fuck are you going?" "Hold up!" " Hold up!" " I'd bust that bitch in her head." "You ain't shit." "I said, hold up, goddamn it!" "Damn, you're a soft motherfucker." "I'm gonna get you two more pills." "But don't come back with that crying shit... or I'll whip your ass for sure, most definitely." "Bitch!" "You're crazy, girl." "Ronnie baby." "Damn, man." "You're fierce, girl." "Man, you took that Gee Money for what, two of them bags?" "That nigger knows he's gotta kill me... or I'm gonna call them jump-out boys on his ass." "You think that nigger gonna kill me for two bags?" "I think you can always get that shit up." "Fuck Gee Money!" "Fuck that boy." "Got the shit." "That's right." "You know what you're talking about, girl." "I used to live here with my girlfriend and our son." "Man, I wish we had some coke with it." "We'll get to that later." " What?" " You ain't hear that?" " Come on." " Shut your mouth." "Someone's downstairs." "Just do the shot, Ronnie!" "I ain't gonna be fucking with this shit if someone's coming up to bank our asses." "Shit, it might be the police." "Man, I ain't gonna do shit till you get back." "Nothing but a rat, that's all." " I knew I heard something." " Yeah, well." "You know this shit will make a person paranoid?" "You know this shit will make a person paranoid?" "You been known to run game on people." "Not on you, I ain't." "You gonna have to learn... how to trust the people you love a little bit." "I ain't feeling much." "Me neither." "This is some shit." " We got doo-doo here." " Gee Money ain't about shit." "What're we gonna do?" "I can't even pimp that motherfucker no more." "I even did that." "Then the motherfucker might really try to beat my ass." "We're gonna figure this shit out." "Shit." "What?" "I've gone and left my hat upstairs." "You wanna get it?" "You're the one who left it." "So that's how you gonna do me." " What's up, Gary?" " Hi." "How've you been?" "See you later, Mr. Lendler." " Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Avery." " Hey, Gary." "It just didn't happen that way" "Darlin', it just didn't happen that way" "It's all right" "It's all right" "DeAndre." "Why you ain't at school?" "Half day." "Half day?" "Yeah." "Hey, love, what's up?" "I'm looking for you." "What's going on?" "Charlene's been put out." "All her shit is in the street." "Best money in the sofa." "The cushions don't match, but the rest is like new." "This is my cousin, Tony." "You and him gonna carry that shit down to the second-hand shop." "Where's the sofa right now?" "Baby, I gave Scalio a cig to guard it." "Now come on." " That's Scalio." " Only in America." "Only in America, in the ghetto, can life be so fine." "This is why they hate us." "Goddamn niggers lazing around in the street." "Shit." "My boy." "This is a real good couch right here." " We've got to go to fucking work!" " Fuck y'all!" "Keep driving, man." "What're you looking at?" " Hey, Gary." " Everyone else ate?" "Don't fret." "I saved you some." " You get paid today?" " Next Friday." "I got paid today." "Mr. Lendler said that, from now on, I get paid $15 every week." "That's a raise." "Mr. Lendler say I'm the best worker he's ever seen." "Shit, Maurice." " What's that?" " Fuck that." "No, that ain't right." "Bitch!" "Everything I bring in here is phat." "That was my turn." "That's my hit." "There ain't no water in the tap!" " Say what?" " Ain't no water." "Come here!" " Yes, it is." " It ain't!" "Let's go." "You were supposed to pay that damned water bill." "Now there ain't no goddamned water." "Look, when I started this here metal game, there were only a few people doing this." "Look, when I started this here metal game, there were only a few people doing this." "There was a time you could find a vacant property... or a row house renovation..." "You know, go in at night and rip up all that good plumbing." "It got to the point where the contractors put plastic plumbing in... because they know that the metal got legs." "And all this metal gets melted down, up in Pittsburgh, or somewhere." "I don't know who owns this place, but I bet they got a mansion in the county." "While we're out here hustling." "It's good copper right there." "$18." "$18?" "Come on, look here, Chief." "I know the value of good metal." "This has got to be at least $25." "You want the $18?" " This ain't even right." " You don't want the $18." "Yeah, I'll take the $18." "We need two more bills." "I could probably get by with this." "Check it out." "There go the engineers." "That's what they call them." "Lord, look at that train." "Moe, you're wearing the city out, man!" " So, are you gonna go?" " I'll make it work." "I'll catch you back at the place, all right?" "All right, man." "Yo, Blue." "Yo, Curt." "My boy, Tony, he went to go cop for me." "You tell him to get with them gold star." " They're right as rain." " Oh, man, please." "I had a gold star two days ago." "It wasn't much." "That was two days ago." "Check out Bread." "Gold stars, yo." " How'd he do that?" " What, the dope fiend lean?" "He ain't falling down." "Please." "You know gravity don't mean shit when they toking." "What did you get?" "Black and whites." " Ain't no problem with the $18?" " No." "You had no problem?" "No, come on, man." "This house is where I live with my girl and my son." "It's Victorian, man." "Victorian design." "There's a lot of money in a house like this." "It's easy making money." "Making money is always hard." "Okay, like in school." "I went to Mergenthaler High School." "Vocational school." "They taught us how to make a living, but they didn't teach us how to live." "Money ain't that easy." "You see what I'm saying, man." "If you get past the money, you know what I'm saying... past these drugs even." "The human mind, we don't even realize how powerful our minds are." "We don't use nearly any part of the power that we have." "You see, if you study it scientifically... if man ever progresses to the point of using all of his mind... then all things are possible." "Miracles." "Are you feeling it?" "Something." "Not like yesterday, though." "Yesterday was the bomb." "This is where miracles come from." "Man uses all of his mind... and he'll be able to do all things." "Move mountains, and live underwater for years at a time." "Fly, even." "You're feeling it." "Better than you thought, Tony." "I remember when I bought this album." "Hi, Gary." "Hi, Fran." "What's going on?" "Come over here." "I have something for you." "I bet your mother don't know you be selling this." "It's only weed." "All this time, I'm thinking you're one of them church-going McCulloughs." "You got some street in you." "I'm doing this to get some money together before I go to college." "That's all." "How much I owe you?" "Nothing." "Look, I gotta get back to work, all right?" "Get on the ground!" "Put your hands up, man!" "Turn around!" "You right there, come here!" " What's up?" " Police." "Dang, man." "Here comes Ronnie." "If she finds out I didn't let her in on the blast, I'm in trouble." "Ronnie always been a little bit evil." "Gary!" "Gary, you up in there?" "Get down on your fucking knees!" "Why you be with her, Gar?" "When it come to coke and dope, she knows how to make things happen." "I'm telling you." "Your cousin, she got it going on." "If she knows we're up here together, she gonna find us." "Let's go out in the back, man." "We'll split up." "Come on." "Hey, love." " How're you feeling?" " I'm okay." "You got anything?" "People saw you in the window, Gary!" "You high." "And you ain't seeing to share it with me." "That's some cold shit." "Much as I do for you." " You wrong, honey." " You high, you shit!" "Now you're gonna say you ain't got nothing left?" "Look, I had just a little." "You'd best come up with some." " I ain't got none." " Where the fuck are you walking?" "I ain't got none!" "Get away from me!" "You don't do me like that." "All right, you're gonna see." "You lying bitch!" "I'm saying the sandwich is cold." "You buy half-hour." "You take it hot, now cold!" "It was cold when I took the first bite." "Give my money, you chink bitch!" "Too late, very sorry." "Suck this, then!" "No!" "What the fuck is you looking at?" "Police come for you right away!" "Young hoppers today, they're crazy." "It was hot before, now cold." "Not right, what he say." "I'm sorry for all that." "The boy, he just don't know." "He very bad." "All the time, very bad." "Yes, ma'am, I'm sorry for all that." "Can I get a single Newport?" "35 cents." "That's a little steep, don't you think?" "A quarter's bad enough for singles, now it's 35 cents?" "You buy pack?" "Cheaper." "All I have is a quarter." "Can I get one at the old price?" "Sorry, 35 cents." "James from Essex." "Hello." "Yeah, I wanna comment on what that other woman said." "I think all this crap about slavery and racism... being responsible for people that don't work..." "I think that's a bunch of crap." "You don't hear Italian people or Irish people complaining... and they was treated real bad when they got to this country." "When are we gonna stop hearing about racism?" "Slavery was more than, like, 100 years ago." "There are so many people taking drugs." "They just do that to make us feel sorry." "You were driving late?" " Lot of fares?" " Some." "Driving tomorrow?" "Every day." " Goodnight." " Goodnight." "Black and whites, man?" "Oh, heck." "Gary?" "You awake?" "Are you all right?" "Hi, Ma." "What you need?" "Could you run up to the store for me?" "They need five pounds of potatoes... and two boxes of Hamburger Helper up at the church." "That'll be enough, Gary." "Five pounds of potatoes... and two boxes of Hamburger Helper?" "Okay, Mom." "Nine." " Lot of bags of bomb today." " Yeah?" " My men are on their way." " Oh, yeah?" " Here's your change, Ma." " Thank you, baby." " You want me to fix you something to eat?" " No, I gotta go." "Where are you headed at?" "Boy, I'm talking to you." "What are you here for?" "You barely breathing." "I'm up." "Yeah?" "Where you get the money?" "I made a move or two." " Ma, it won't hold air." " So what you want me to do?" "You're having an asthma attack." "You think a shot of dope gonna do you good?" "You're having an asthma attack." "You think a shot of dope gonna do you good?" "Your brother Stevie around?" "He's upstairs." "Why are you always coming down here to get Stevie to cop for you?" "You think he don't get burned?" "He get burned, everybody get burned." "It's all in the game." "I know." "Gary, you shoulda never got caught up in this shit." "Yeah, all right, Fran." "And your son's starting to run wild." "He don't need to be out here, neither." " What's DeAndre doing?" " What do you think he doing?" "He's starting to creep out on them corners." "Where'd you think he got money enough to hand you off $10?" " You can't put a stop to that?" " Gary, that boy's 15." "As much as you and me been messing up, he feels he ain't got to answer to no one." "He ain't in school?" " Warming up today." " Hey, Stevie!" " You rolling out?" " In a minute." "Come on up." "Coke or dope, what do you need?" "Little of both?" "I got coke, red-tops." "All right." "I'll take four." "He's coming back, right?" "Be cool." "Ain't nobody trying to run a game on you." " Y'all have a nice day." " Slow up." "I still need some dope to go with that coke." "See that man right there with the cane?" "Go see him." "Who's got good dope?" "Wake up!" "Quit playing, Bugsy man." "Now what if I was police or a stick-up boy?" "You standing here like some no-thinking motherfucker, with your money all out." " Yeah, but I'm cool with it." " No, you're not." "I'm trying to school you in this shit, and you don't want to know." "I've got re-up soon." "You've got mine, I've got yours." "Not here, fool." "What'd I just say?" "I'll send Boo down the way." "Are you still working with him?" "He's about the dumbest." "Boo's cool." "Which one?" "Any of them." "That one right there, with the hips." "I got to her already." "You got the one, but you're ready for the rest?" "I'm 16 this summer." "My dick stay hard." "Andre... where you been at?" " Working." " Working how?" "I'm out here all day, on the clock, getting it done." "It's a hard life, girl." "You been out here that long, I know you've got money for the movies." " I don't know, I might." " Who got the boy?" " You got the heroin?" " Across the way." "I want to go back down to Harper Park." "And see the one where that man cuts up all them people?" "The scary one?" "Yeah, I saw it." "It ain't that scary." "Come on, Andre!" "You done already said we was going." "Whatever." "And you said you're gonna get some new tennises for me, too." "Damn, girl!" "I hate a begging-ass bitch!" " I can't stand no broke-ass man." " Oh, shit." "All right, I'm gonna holler at you tomorrow." "Whatever." "Tyreeka is fine as I don't know what." "But all she think about is money, man." "I'm down to maybe 6." "No, we gotta have more than that still." "7?" "Man, your count is always late." "What's up with that?" "Let me check again." "She about the money?" "Your girl?" "She's cool when we're together, but I just can't tell sometimes." "Want to know if she for real or not?" "Next time you're in her house..." " ask her to fix you a sandwich." " A sandwich?" "If she throws some dry-ass baloney between two pieces of bread... you know she ain't keeping it real." "If she go back there and puts some lettuce and mayo on... maybe some chips and a pickle on the side there... then she damn sure in love with your black ass." " I'm serious." " Wait." "Chips and a pickle?" "I don't like pickles." " First floor?" " Right." "That's a whole lot easier." "Stereo, television, refrigerator, all that good stuff." "Let's do it." "It's real quiet around here." "I think most of these places are vacant." " Ronnie knew what she was talking about." " She can make things happen." "You empty the refrigerator." "I'll check out the back room." "Come on, start packing stuff up." "Hey, what's wrong?" "Nothing." "Come on then!" " How much do you think we'll get for this?" " I don't know. $200." "I'll go get that thing." "There's someone across the way." "Oh, yeah?" "What's up?" "What's up?" "I see what's up." "Look here." "Y'all hook me up, I won't say nothing about it." "Hook you up?" "Yeah, we can do that." "All right." "That's it." "Mentality, I don't know..." " What?" " That was the man's neighbor." "Rollers." "You think they're worried about us?" "Rather snatch up some corner boy with a few rocks in his pocket." "Less work for them." "It's all in the game, you know?" "Where's my change?" "You ain't got no change." "I bought you two packs before." " You owe me." " You're on that bullshit." " You got that $10 for me, right?" " Yeah, you wait for it." "Jump out!" "Yes, Lord." " Boo, what the fuck are you doing?" " Jump out." "You best leave that shit be, now." "I've gotta snatch it now." "It won't be there when they roll out." "Oh, shit." "Everybody up against the wall." "Right there, let me see your hands." "DeAndre, get your ass over here." "You going somewhere?" "Now, up against there." "What's up, Bob Brown?" "You got anything in your pockets?" "Little man on a big corner?" " No, I was just passing through." " Just passing through?" "Get going." "Why don't you let your partner search me?" " Is he going?" " No." "He's got a mouth, but he's clean." "I even see you looking out a window today, you're taking a humble." " You're saying I can't be outside?" " No, not today." " That ain't right." " You're on my corner!" "I decide what's right!" "Now, get." "Ain't you got better sense to be talking back to Bob Brown?" "He ain't all that." "Where's Hungry?" "He got my shit." "Wherever he at, your vials is right along with him... and they get along right fine, I know that." "I'll beat your ass!" "You all right?" "Where Hungry at?" "Where Hungry at?" "Who else gonna ask, "Where Hungry at?"" "Hey, Bread." "What are you talking about?" "Nothing." "Don't miss that line." "Who you talking to?" "I'm just worried that the sight of my fine black ass... might make your hand shake." "Scalio, you're too crazy." "Asses come and asses go." "Rita don't never blow a shot, and you know that." "Long?" "Thirty on the hypo." "Going, going... gone." " What you got?" " Spider bag." "Them spider bags was good yesterday." "Not so good today, I think." "Ain't been no good dope out here worth a goddamn for 10 years." "You got that right." "It's all just chemicals now." "Back in the day, that shit would drop a nigger." "Yes, Lord." "Now we're down to bullshit." "Tell it, Curt." "We ain't even addicted to drugs." "We addicted to the needle." "Curt's still talking that shit." "Saying dope ain't dope." "It ain't dope." "Not no more." "Motherfucker, I'm high right now." "You think you high." "Nigger, you ain't shit." "Instead of shooting chemicals, remembering what good dope was." "I'm about to go get me some more chemicals... and do me some real remembering." "I'm saying, you shouldn't cut him in on this." "That man's neighbor, he don't deserve no blast for doing this kind of dirt." "Man, I agree with you." "Would you sell your next-door neighbor out like that for shot of dope..." "The mentality out here..." "Besides, man, we bring him back a blast, he still might call the police." "Ma, got $10 I could borrow?" "No, Gary, I don't." "All right." "If I had it, I'd give it to you." " I'm looking for Ronnie." "Ronnie at home?" " No." " What about Tony?" " He don't live here." "Hey, Bread, have you seen Ronnie?" " Did I see Ronnie?" " Yeah." "She was here." "She ain't here now." " Hey, is Stevie here?" " No, he's gone somewhere." "What about Fran?" "Her, too." "Can I bum one cigarette?" "Last one." "Go check that thing." " I'm looking for your mother." " I don't know where she at." "Guess I'll be moving along then." "It's coke, but maybe you could trade it for what you need." " Even up." " Three for two." "Come on, I need a little coke to go on top of the dope." "I got the killer weed today and they're going for straight $10." "You want to keep a little coke, go two-for-one, you still have a red-top left." " Two-for-one's worse than three-for-two." " Depends on what you need." "Come on, you all, Bob Brown's got a wagon." "Roll-out time." "Got to go." " Get against the wall." " I know." "Where you going?" "Come on." "Trying to run away from me?" "Let's go." "Even up now." "I'm going one-for-one." "All you got to do is pick them up." "Lord have mercy." " How's your family, Officer Tucker?" " Yeah, whatever, man." "Testers." " Motherfucker, get off my face!" " My bad." " Man, who gave out testers?" " Found them in the road." "You got one?" "Got two, motherfucker." "Let me have one." "Come on, I'm going ill, man." "Man... you're looking flat-out rough." "Can't get started." "Man, I can hook you up." "I found this spot." "They practically asking you to take their shit." "It's out the county." "You up?" " I'll need a jumper first though." " I caught two of them testers." "I can get you out the gate." "Then everything from the store we split." " What are you boosting?" " Kitchen shit, steam irons." "This one store's been keeping me well all week." " What's security at, man?" " Ain't about shit." "Come on." "All right." "Is your name Doug?" "You be over there at the Dew Drop Inn?" "You mean where Fran and Stevie live at?" "I think I've seen you there before." "My name's Gary." "Okay, so this is how we're going to do it, right?" "We're going to go in separate." "Then you follow me up the escalator, where they got the shelf with the irons." "You be the lookout." "I'll scoop." "Ain't nothing to it." "Ma... it's Gary." "I'm locked up." "I'm out in the county." "They locked me up." "I was with a friend... we were coming out the JC Penney, and these two security guards... they grabbed us and said we stole something." "No, it's some kind of mistake, Ma." "Will you see if Cardy can get the money together?" "Please, Ma, just see if you can bail me out." "Okay." "I'm all right." "You all just get me out of this place." "McCullough!" " Come on, the city's taking you." " The city's taking me?" "Assault one." "Assault?" "I haven't assaulted anyone." "Complainant is a Veronica Boice." "Know her?" " Where're they taking me?" " Eagle Street." "Come on." "Bullpen." " Phone call, Gary." " Who is it?" "Didn't say." "Hey, Fran." "How're you doing?" "Gary, there's something you should know." "Are you sure?" "Officer!" "Shut the fuck up!" "You ain't going to no infirmary, motherfucker." "I guess we need to pick out some names then?" "DeAndre!" "I heard you got locked up." "Yeah." "The city jail ain't no joke." "I'm leaving that stuff alone." "Know what I'm saying, don't ask me for anything." "No, please, I wasn't thinking anything like that." "Hey, R.C., what you got there, man?" "We're trying to put the rim back up on the backboard." "We're trying to get it straight and tight, but we ain't got the right screws." "You need washers." "Washers?" "Yeah, let me see that thing." "You have to have this like this to go right up here." "You need washers, or somebody get hurt." "Well, it's up there, anyway." "That's cool." "Thanks, Mr. McCullough." "No problem." "Here, take this." "Get this out of your way." "Ball up!" "All net." "You got a little something." "But not with me on the case, watch." " What have you got right there?" " What you gonna do?" "Damn, Dre." "Right here." " 'Cause it's tilted." " Ain't tilted." "Excuses." " Five by one." " Make it ten." "Come on, you know they call me Ambo." "You know I got that asthma." " All right, five, but you got to win by two." " Ain't no problem." "I'm gonna win by five or six." "Hey, love." "Be right back." " Why you put that charge on me?" " You shouldn't have hit me." "You know I didn't." " You had me locked up for nothing at all." " You was locked up for boosting anyway." "They took me to Eagle Street because of your charge." "You should have never cut me out of that blast." "What's yours is mine." "Hey, love... welcome home." "Them spider bags, they're the bomb today." "DeAndre!" "Curt... you've been out here on Monroe and Fayette a long time." "Who're you telling?" "I've been on this corner since that lamppost over there was a goddamn twig." "I'm a soldier." "I guess you've seen the younger ones coming up." "Seen a lot of people come on the corner for the first time." "Do you know Gary McCullough?" "Yeah, Gary." "Gary had it going on." "Money, cars, houses." "Used to play the stock market." "Gary was making crazy money before he stumbled." " Gave lot of it away, too." " Yeah?" " To who?" " People around the way." "Anyone who needed it, really." "Gary was always soft." "Good hearted." "Let me ask you something." "Why did he fall?" "Started fooling around with that pipe." "Gary McCullough started out on crack?" "That ready rock changed the whole game around." "Used to be different." "Used to be rules to this shit." "With that rock... you saw people becoming drug addicts." "Made heroin look like it wasn't shit." "It weren't menfolk either." "Had women on the pipe, children, too." "That's when it really started getting bad." "But in Gary's case... what led him to the corner at all, do you think?" "I look at it like he got hurt." "He gave so much away, and so little came back." "Hey, now." "You know how it is." "But the world can be that way." "So he's hiding the hurt in the drugs." "He's just like everybody else, looking for a little love." "Everybody got to have some love." "Is there love in drugs?" "Shit!" "So what is there?" "I mean, I'm asking." "And I'm telling you... every motherfucking dope fiend out here is chasing after something... and never quite getting there." "So what are you chasing, Curt?" "Let me tell you something." "When you get that first shot of dope... it's the best motherfucking feeling in your life." "It's better than sex." "And every time after that... you looking for the first time... over and over again." "And?" "You sure you don't mind talking?" "No, man, we're cool." "So, how old are you, DeAndre?" " 16 in May, if I make it." " You don't think you'll make it?" "I'm gonna be thick out here, you know what I'm sayin'?" "It's Monroe and Fayette." "Niggers be dying." "You don't think you're being a little melodramatic?" "Overly dramatic to make a point." "I know what it means." "You think I gotta be some college-ass motherfucker to know what words mean?" "I'm saying niggers be thinking this a game." "This shit is for real." "It's hard work selling drugs in the Baltimore ghetto." "Hard work being a black man in America." "You've been selling drugs how long?" "Since I was 13, off and on." "You ever been arrested?" " Twice." " So you've seen jail?" "No, I got recons both times." "But I still gotta go to juvenile court, though." "But it's not like that's all I'm about." "I'm just trying to get some money right now." "I'm going back to school this semester, get put back on the rolls." "What grade are you in?" "Ninth." "You're almost 16, and you're only in the ninth grade?" "I got put out." "If I'm cool with it for a while..." "I'll get a social promotion to the tenth grade soon." "What's a social promotion?" "It's when they promote you for being cool with it." "Let me ask you, DeAndre... why do you sell drugs... knowing what heroin has done to your father?" " You know my father?" " Yeah, we talked." "So, how do you sell drugs, knowing where they left him?" "People who use... they're gonna use." "They'll buy it from somebody somewhere." "Might as well be me." "Does your mother use drugs?" "Look, I didn't mean anything by it." "I was just asking." "Listen, DeAndre." "Death row." " Hey, Curt." " Hey, Blue." " What's up?" " Check Hungry out." "Hungry on the hood." "Boy got that look in his eye." "He better not be thinking about stealing." "Who are you talking for?" "Scott." "Them New York boys don't play that shit." "Take it easy." "Them men don't worry about the consequences, that's what it is." " Hey, darling." " 'Morning, Ella." "Mr. Blue, Mr. Curt, how you doing today?" " Anything to help the Lord." " I hear that." " How about yourself?" " I'm doing fine." "We still need you at the rec center." "I've been thinking, Miss Ella, I ain't pulled my paints out in a while." "The kids love arts and crafts." "I'm going to keep bugging you till you come on by." " I don't mind that." " All right." " You all have a good day." " Have a good day." " What's up?" " Scalio!" " What you got?" " Diamond in the raw." "That shit is ripe." "Any clean works up in there?" "Talk to Reno." "Hey, Miss Ella, how you doing?" " Why aren't you in school today?" " It's half a day." " I thought Wednesday was half a day." " Today is Wednesday." " Damn, Tae." " Today's Thursday." "It's half a day today, too." " Teachers meeting or something like that." " Yeah." "Teachers meeting." " You said we can have a basketball team." " I said I'd think on it." "Come on, we be good." "I'll talk to Miss Davis at Francis Woods and see if she'll let us use their gym." " But we gonna get uniforms, right?" " I said I'll talk to Rose Davis." "Red and white for the Bulls." "If we do get a basketball team... the boys who play will be the ones who go to class." "R.C.'s gonna ride the bench then, 'cause he'll never go to school." "Yo, what can I say, man?" "Ringing the bell don't say nothing to me." "Hello, Kayla." "Come on in." "Come on in, DeAndre." "Yo, Dre." "Miss Ella said we'll have a basketball team and can play in the Rec League." " Boo didn't come with you?" " No." " What up?" " What's up, boy?" "Hey, Kay." "Girl, you're strong." "Check it out, R.C., she can lift more than you." "Fuck you, man." "Sorry, Miss Ella, I forgot where I was." "Let's see what there is to eat." "Come on, you know you got $5." "I got $5, and I'm gonna keep it." "Yo, Boo." "I'm down to 16." "All right." "Don't make me chase you, motherfucker." "We ain't done shit." "You ain't done shit that we ain't seen." "Get your hands on the fucking wall." "You ain't done shit that we ain't seen." "Get your hands on the fucking wall." "Why y'all messing with us?" "We ain't doin' nothing." "You name Big Daddy whoever, but you're doomed." "Put your face down on the ground, hear me?" "All right, we're cool." "Get on that ground and stay right there." "Shut the fuck up, or I'll smack you, you hear me?" "Where you hiding it?" "What?" "Where's the ground stash at?" "In my pocket." "I was gonna put it down, I didn't get a chance." "I got called that you took my son." "I guess you want him back." "Not really." "Agent Cassidy, Line 78." " Am I going to Hickey?" " You're 15?" "16 in May." "You're not going to Hickey." "If your mother shows up, you'll go home." "Disappointed?" "I ain't never been to Hickey." " I ain't never been locked up." " You keep at it... you'll get there." "I can jail if I have to." " Is he McCullough?" " Yes." "His mama's at the desk." "What was it this time?" "Distribution, coke, 16 pieces, man." " You ain't find no drugs on me." " No, we took the money off you." "The money's on you, you go." "I'm saying, I don't sell drugs." "And I'm saying, we watched you." "And I'm saying, ouch." "Any of y'all know Bob Brown?" "Yeah, what about him?" "He be snatching up bodies every day." "You wanna say hi to Bob Brown?" "That won't be necessary." "I'll give you some advice, DeAndre." "You want some advice?" " "This is your brain on drugs."" " No, wasn't gonna waste my time." "I was gonna tell you, if you're gonna juggle coke on my corner... you need to cut them dreads." "We made you from three blocks away." "Stand out too much, man." "Yeah, but I look good." "Damn, Boo's dumb as shit." "He got the ground stash right in his pocket." "I wonder what else he's got down his pants." "Guns, knives, a hand grenade maybe." "I ain't going to tell you again." "This shit is not for you." "Yeah, all right." "Think you're a man?" "You're not." "You're still my child, and this is not for children." " Please, come on." " You see what this shit did to your dad." "You see where I'm at with it." "This ain't no fucking joke." "You keep on with it, and I'll put your ass out of my house." " All right." " I'm serious." "And you're going back to school, too." "How much did they get?" "16 pills." "And all the cash I had on me, like $200." "Bugsy gonna be mad." "I'm just glad they ain't get the rest of the G-pack." " You still got the rest of the package?" " Yes." "We had just re-upped." "I'll have to get rid of it all to pay Bugsy back." "That shit's dead." "What do you mean?" "I mean that shit's dead." "When you got locked up, the police took your whole stash." "They just took 16." "You're going to put it with the police, okay?" "You tell Bugsy the police got your whole pack." "Then you re-vial that shit as something else, and you sell it somewhere else." "Now you see?" "You're still thinking like a little boy." "But you just told me you'd put me out if I keep slinging." "Now you're telling me to put the rest of Bugsy's stuff out there?" "Just give it to me, okay?" "I'll take half, and I'll give you the rest." "I'm not saying I want you playing at this, but, damn, Dre." "You want me to let you make a fool of yourself?" "You get locked up for some other man's shit... and the first thing out of your mouth is how to pay him back?" "That whole package got to be dead." "Now, what about school?" "What about it?" "Your teachers tell me that you're bright." "That you can actually do the work." "It's more a matter of you choosing to be here... and not doing stupid things to get suspended." "Is that how you see it?" "Yes, Miss Davis." "So I take it that you're here today to actually attend a class." "Yes." "That being the case, I intend to hold on to you." "Sit down." "You're gonna get your act together?" "And you're gonna come to class." "If you attend most of your classes..." "I will see that you're promoted to the tenth grade." "Is that what you want?" "Yes, Miss Davis." "I should see you every day of the semester, not just the first... and then you're off running the streets with your friends." "No, I'm gonna do right." "I want you to write it down." "Metaphors and similes are creative ways to use language to express your moods." "Rappers use metaphors all the time." "We'll look at some examples." "Right now, let's hear some creative ways to complete this metaphor." ""Some people are hammers, but I am a blank."" "Wait till you see this backyard." ""Some people are hammers, but I..."" "Look at this place." "Hey, come on." "I don't know, Gary, what do folks do out here?" "You saying, "Where the party at?"" "What you want me to be?" "Twirling around the kitchen with an apron, baking cookies and all?" "That ain't me, okay?" "Ain't none of this me." "What the hell are you watching?" "This ain't shit." "Stop watching this shit." "Come on." " You're a punk?" " Stop." "Stop it." "You're giving me hiccups." "All right, down there." "Drop your weapons, and walk this way with your hands up!" "I don't know." "I don't know what you'll do when you got to run the streets." "Can't say you don't want to fight 'cause you got hiccups and shit." "What was it like when they locked you up?" "Ain't no big thing." "They used handcuffs?" "Yeah, they always do." "Ma says she's gonna put you out." "So?" "I carry that, too." "I've been taking care of myself for a long time." "Where are you headed?" "Boy, you think I'm playing?" "I have to whoop his ass." "He's getting too big for that." "To be honest, I don't know how much of a coach I'd be." "You'd be great." "I got heart trouble, endocarditis, been shot and cut a few times." " I won't do a lot of running." " That's okay." "As long as there's adult supervision, we can use the gym at Francis Woods." "I can do that much." "Be down there to keep them out of trouble." "Like last time, we're gonna hit 'em up." "What's up?" " Staying out of trouble?" " I'm staying out of trouble." "Hey, Dre, here's that little fool I was talking about the other day." "DeAndre, Dinky, everybody." "Everybody settle down, Tae, Boo, R.C." "Hey, everybody." "Settle down." "I want you to meet House." "This is gonna be your coach." " We got us a coach?" " Yeah." "This is the basketball team." "How you brothers doing?" "Check me out, Coach." "I got skills." "You got skills, you got played." " What?" " You heard me." "They just need some discipline." "You're too much." "All right, calm down, please." "Now go on over to the school and have a good practice." " Hey, stop crying, come on." " I'm out of here." " See you later, Miss Ella." " All right." " Talking shit." " What are you talking about?" "You're gettin' bumped this time." "It's always the same game." "Just know, this time, you can't walk five steps." "You're broke, man." "Death Row putting out a new package." "What, testers?" "Them fiends lining up for their free blast." "Come on, pass." "Give me the ball." "Nigger, what you want?" "Give me the ball." "Give me the ball." "R.C., you gotta pass the ball sometime." "You're a damn hog." "Let me have the ball." " Coach, you see that shot?" " Give me the goddamn ball." "What's wrong, Coach?" "Man, we gotta start with some basics." "I want you to line up." "Give me two lines." "We're gonna do a lay-up drill." " Come on." " Give me two lines." "It's team ball." "It's not every man for himself." "You wanna play team ball, line up, we gonna do some basics." "This is basic stuff." "Okay, come on, let's go, man." "Come on, next man." "Come strong." "Hey, my man." "Come here, man." "What's your name, man?" "They call me Black." "You like to do things your own way?" " I guess so." " You need to check yourself." "Could we just play?" "Can we run the game?" "Go ahead, run the game." " Give me that ball." " Right here." " What are you doing?" " Writing down stuff I want for my birthday." "Making a list." " We ain't got no cereal?" " Where was you at last night?" "I went to the movies." "Bunchie told me she saw you on Fairmount." "I told you to leave them corners alone." "You don't think I'd kick your ass out of my house?" "I ain't been slinging." "You must think I'm stupid." " Do you?" " What?" " Think I'm stupid?" " No, Ma." "Then what was you doing down on Fairmount?" "Boo be selling off everything we got left." "But he keep messing up." "So I went down there to get him straight." "That's all." " Get upstairs." " What?" "You don't want him to hear?" "You think he don't know he live in a drug house?" "Be quiet." "I'm trying my damndest to stay calm right now." "You don't think he know what you do in the basement?" "Let me tell you something." "I'm still your mother." "You are my child." "As long as you're living here, you're gonna respect my house." "I ain't no child." "You can forget that." "You're a man now." "You ain't gotta listen to nobody, right?" "Not to you." "Get!" "You wanna play it like that?" "All right." "You've never dealt me a decent hand." " You cheat." " Cheat?" "I win, I don't cheat." "Hey, Fran." "Hey, Bunchie." "Bunchie, can I get, like, one cigarette?" "It's my last." "I put DeAndre out." "I told him if he kept on selling for Bugsy I was gonna put him out, and I did." "Okay?" "Now he's up there on Monroe, or down on Fairmount, almost every night." "You hear me, Gary?" "I put your son out." "Put his little ass right out." "I'm guessing he's gonna go over to the old place and set up shop, like Superfly himself." "That is till he gets tired of living with no water or electric." "What?" "You down at your mama's, right?" "I stay at the old place sometimes." "You got a roommate, then." "You're a smart man." "Charge him rent." "He makes enough money from Bugsy to pay." "Finally, I get a decent hand here." " Play something." " Yeah, okay." "We can paint this." "There's gonna be a nice coat on that." "Gonna look nice." "Come here, DeAndre." "Come here, son." "Gary." "The ceilings are so high." " You like that?" " I like it." "Now, how in the hell is one all-alone woman... gonna fill this thing up with clothes?" "This here is Victorian style." "It's, like, very Victorian." "There's money here, baby." "This here is money." "Down in the yard space, there's a place to play." "Check this out." "Come on." "This spider bag looks light." "What the..." "It's all right." "You scared me, creeping like that." "You had the headphones on." "Yeah, I was deep in a vibe." "Ma got mad, put me out." "You cool with it, right?" "You're always at Grandma's house, anyway." "Come on, let's go." "Come on, love." "If you wanna try, you better get on this row." "Death row, last call." "White folk money always on time." " Most definitely." " What time you got?" " Ten past." " Shop closed then, man." " Ten past." " Shop closed then, man." " We still got, like, 20." " Shift changeover, fool." "You got to give them jump-out boys some respect now and then." "What do you mean?" "See, you got to keep your mind on things." "That's your trouble." "Right now, the police, they done change shifts." "The rollers who've been here from afternoon to midnight... they've taken the cars back to the district." "The rollers that's getting on at midnight... they just now hopping in them cars, getting ready to hit the streets." "They gonna be all bright-eyed and shit, all pumped up." "They'll go around the first hour snatching up bodies." "How you gonna play that?" "How you gonna play it if you know shift change is coming?" "Damn, Boo, man." "This ain't brain surgery." "You just gotta think on it a little." "You stay out when the police is on shift change, Boo." "After they been out for a while, they're all tired and shit." "That's right." "You'd best roll out when fresh police come out." "Yeah, that's what I meant." "You see him there?" "That nigger with the key chain, he's running the crew." "He ain't never gonna touch a vial." "He won't go near that shit." "So the police know what he about." "They can't fuck with him." "He has a gun though, right?" "If you don't wanna take a charge for holding drugs... what the fuck you be standing out there with a gun for?" "No, man." "The gat's over there... on the back tire of that car." "And that other nigger across the street, he muscle, too." "Why else you think he's holding an aluminum bat at 1:00 in the morning?" "Motherfucker ain't Babe Ruth." " They might wanna lock him up then." " For what, a bat?" "Ain't no law against baseball, right?" "It might not seem like there's a lot of thought to this shit." "But that's because most motherfuckers don't think." "These boys, Death Row, Diamond in the Raw... they got most of the fare 'cause they're smart." "Diamond in the Raw been out here forever." "The police ain't have shit to say about it." "We got Fairmount and Gilmor wide open." "That's our corner now." "We just got to be cool with it." "You know what I'm saying?" " You hear me, Boo?" " Damn!" "How they get their pussy to look so pink that way?" " Hey." " Hey, Blue." "What you need, man?" "Let me get an apple." " So, what's the bomb today?" " Diamond in the raw." " Oh, yeah?" " Without a doubt." " I see that in your face." " Bet you can." " Hey, Blue!" " Hey, Gary!" " Where you headed?" " I got this, you know..." "I'm in hell or something." "I haven't." " That's cool." "It's okay." " Well, you know." "I know." "Just trust me." "Hey, that hurt." "Be gentle." "Like this?" "Okay." "Maybe I should get some boots instead." "Whatever." "Yo!" "You all got the new Jordans?" "The one with the red stripes?" "The Grant Hills?" "No, man, I ain't talking about them off-brand shit." "The new Jordans got a red stripe where there was a black one." " Them shoes is the bomb." " You sure?" "They're priced at $139, but I think you'd like to be selling them for less." "We selling any Jordans with a red stripe?" "Those are new." "On order, coming in tomorrow. $139, price them at $125." "You're down with it, son." "Grant Hills?" "Please, man." "He said, "Grant Hills."" "This is what I'm talking about." "What the fuck?" "Come on, quit moving, or I'm gonna blow the shot." "Rollers." "Rollers." "DeAndre, my man." "What's up?" " You need to get yourself a new corner." " Man, I'm clean." "Why don't you call it a night?" "We roll past here again and see that mop you call a hairdo... you're gonna take a humble." "Oh, man!" "You might have to chill for a little bit." "I need a break." "How come you're always in my stuff?" "You coming back?" "Can I?" "You gonna keep up with school?" "Yeah." "You gonna be bringing none of that shit in my house." "I ain't slinging no more." "I told Bugsy I need to be doing better things." "Got anything left?" "A few dollars." "No vials." "I think my father been robbing me blind back at the old house." "I'm gonna do good, Ma." "You gonna see." "You need to stay the hell away from it." "As you all know, Robert was to represent the class in the public oratory contest... but with him out sick, we'll need someone else to step forward." "So, volunteers?" "Anyone at all." "I'll be giving extra credit." "I wouldn't expect you to memorize the speech on such short notice... so would anyone like to at least try reading it?" "Yes, DeAndre." "I'm volunteering... to give that speech." ""And when we allow freedom to ring..." ""when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet..." ""from every state and every city..." ""we'll be able to speed up that day when all of God's children..." ""black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles..." ""Protestants and Catholics..." ""will be able to join hands and sing, in the words of that old Negro spiritual:" ""'Free at last, free at last." ""'Thank God Almighty, we're free at last."'" "See him with the bald spots?" "That's how you can tell he's a thalidomide baby." "They don't grow no hair." "They don't grow..." "Hey!" "What you up to?" " Going to see about a job." " A job?" " Where?" " Crab House, where Uncle Cardy work at." " He gonna hook me up." " Bay Island?" "Let me know how it goes." "You know you can't eat none of them crabs?" " Yeah, I know." "I got an allergy." " That's right." " My baby gonna see about a job." " Yeah, I heard." "First, you're gonna scrub out these steamers using steel wool." "Then you're gonna put the crabs into the steamer, okay?" "Don't worry." "We'll give you thick gloves so they don't pinch you." "And when that's done, you're gonna come up here and empty this out." "Ricardo says you're Gary's son." "Yes, ma'am." "I remember when Gary first worked here." "He was about the age you are." "How is he?" " Fine." " So when can you start?" "I know you're not serious." "How will he learn about money if we don't show him?" "He don't need that kind of money." "He don't know what to do with a dollar yet." "I can afford it." "This money comes from working, Andre." "This money comes from your daddy working hard every day." "You know?" "Give me a hug." "Thanks for sharing, Gary." "When I have it, I give it." "And there go your problem, right there." "You still got our stuff?" "I'm surprised you ain't taken it to a second-hand store." "Hopefully one day I'm gonna use it." "Don't wanna stay here forever." "I remember when we bought this here dining room set." " Whatever it was, you know I'd pay cash." " I know, baby." "We had it, didn't we?" "It don't make sense." "The way they were all so glad to see us fall." "My whole damn family was glad." " Look where we're at with this shit, Gary." " I know." "And DeAndre, off the corners, looking for a job and going to school." " Looking for a job?" " Yeah, down at Bay Island." "And, Gary, he's gonna give a speech at school." " Seriously?" " Seriously." " When?" " He gonna let me know." "You know, all I'm saying is, with DeAndre out there trying... we've got to try." "Only if I can..." "I can find some kinda work, you know." "Maybe we can even find a place." "Be a family again, baby." "I might go over to BRC." "They got this 28-day program over there." "I'll go detox myself." "You'll see, I'll get it right." "You need some time to yourself here?" "Yeah." " Where'd you say that happened?" " Down on Baltimore Street." "Them terrorist boys running wild down there." "Niggers banked me last week." "A bullet went right by my ear and shit." "Yo, we need to send a message." "Go down there deep." " You see who it was, R. C?" " I don't know." "Fuck them project niggers." "They ain't all that." "You're not hearing me, man." "I'm saying we should go strong." "Last box, no snatch backs." "R.C., shit!" "Fuck you, man." " What, nigger?" "Stop crying." " Your first time?" "I need more number tens." "You all right?" " I don't feel too good." " What's wrong, man?" "You didn't eat no crab meat, did you?" "I must be breathing it in, though." "Something ain't right." " Let me get these tubes." " No, man, I got it." " Ricardo, what's going on back here?" " It's my nephew, Miss Mary." " I got an allergy." " Shellfish allergy." "I thought it would only be a problem if he ate some... but I think it must be the smell that's doing it." "Especially when I'm cleaning them pots." "Just for today, how about you sweep up?" " Sweep up?" " That'll work, Miss Mary." "I don't think he's allergic to brooms." "So now I gotta push around a broom?" "Be thankful." " Can I help you?" " Yeah, can I speak to Antoinette?" " You got an appointment?" " I just need to talk to her." " I'm Antoinette." "Can I help you?" " Yeah, I'm Fran Boyd, Vanessa's friend." " Right." "You work with Vanessa at the..." " The phone company." " Did you make an appointment?" " No, I just need to talk to you, okay?" "I've got a minute till my appointments come in." "I hear it's, like, an 8-week wait to get into rehab... and I was wondering if I can get in here sooner." " Do you have any medical insurance?" " State assistance." "State bids are scarce." "It's usually six or eight weeks before those come in." "I can put you on a waiting list." "Then it's a matter of you calling here every Tuesday, to check your status on the list." "Every Tuesday?" "That lets the staff know you're serious about the program." "Do you want me to put you on the list?" "Diamond in the Raw are putting out some more testers tomorrow." "Diamond is slinging like I don't know what." "We need to get back out here on the corner with something." " Too slow, nigger." " Quit playing, fool." "I'm sorry." "Yo, Tae, there go that dude." "Who?" "Ain't that him, Tae?" " I think." " Who that?" "Dude who robbed me last week over by Lexington Terrace." "Yeah, that is him." "Yeah, well, he be in the wrong place now." "Take him down." "R.C., don't stop, man." "Oh, shit." "Damn, R.C." "You see that nigger with them boots on?" "I ain't never seen a nigger run so fast in no damn boots." " Damn, R.C., you got blown away, kid." " I got close." "All right, nigger." "But you fuck with one of us, you're fucking with all of us." "Good running, man." "I gotta get back up with Bugsy, man." " You'd like to get back into this?" " Yeah." "Thought you was working at the Crab House." "Fuck that!" "Sweeping up crab shit for $4.10 an hour, man." " You down?" " I'm down." " You all with it?" " CMB, motherfuckers?" "CMB!" "Shit!" "Where's my stuff?" " Where's my stuff?" " I thought you'd leave them corners be." " Where it at?" " You be joking, bringing that shit here." " Suppose DeRodd would have found it." " I ain't playing." "What you bring in my house, under my roof... is mine." "Where it at?" "Gone." "And the.38?" "That, too." " You think that's funny?" " Check yourself." " You gonna have to pay." " Are you threatening me?" " That shit belongs to Bugsy." " So what are you saying?" "You gonna tell him?" "You little shit." "I'll tell him." "I'll tell him about using a minor to sell drugs." "I'll tell him about sending his ass to jail." "Yeah." "Okay." "Don't you walk away from me." "I thought you was supposed to be getting into a detox program." "It takes eight weeks for one of them beds to open up." "So?" "So that don't have a goddamn thing to do with you bringing a gun in here... where your little brother could have got it." "And you." "You who was doing so good." "Why don't you think about doing good sometimes?" "Maybe if you detox, you could get back with my father... and everything could be like it was." "Okay, so you just done lost your mind... because your daddy's just as much a dope fiend as I am." "He'd still be on top right now if you hadn't drug him down." "You know what?" "Gary McCullough is a grown man." "And he made the choice to be out there doing what he's doing." "You brought him down." "Okay, that's it." "Get out of here." "Go." "Out of here." "Now." "Bunchie, bring me a Newport." " You Fran?" " Who are you?" "Black said you took my stuff." "Shouldn't have brought it in my house." "That's between you all." "I want what's mine." "65 vials, $200 in cash, and the.38." "I can get the.38 back, but I ain't got the money or the stuff, all right?" "If you're planning on hurting DeAndre, I could pay you back." "It's just gonna take me a little bit of time." "All right?" "You get me the gun." "He'll pay me back the money on the next go-around." "You ain't gonna hurt him, right?" "He gonna give me my money back." "But you all need to work it out so this type of thing don't happen again." "Who's that?" " Bugsy." " What did he want?" "What would he want?" "Damn." "I can't believe DeAndre went and put his connect on you." "Anyway, you got something to kick in for the rent?" "You got any money at all?" "I ain't talking about that." "Not that." "After paying Bugsy back, I'm busted out." "You've seen to that." "Damn." "I didn't get him nothing on his birthday this year, and I got nothing to shop with." " He's waited long enough." " I know." " Damn." " I thought some shit might've come through." "Look..." "I'm going out to Mercer's at the Plaza before the stores close, to see what I can scoop." "Ain't you bailed out there?" "I been balled out of every mall in three counties." "That don't stop the show." "I'll see you later." "Ma'am, stop right there!" "Give me security." "I have a black female." "She's around..." "Thought you might have had a little trouble." "So you're back to steady slinging?" "No." "Boo owed me a little something from the last go-around." "You ain't gonna re-up?" "No, not no more." "How long have you been here at the rec center, Ms. Thompson?" "Four years." "A little more than that, actually." " So you came here after your daughter..." " That's right." "I decided, after that, the thing to do was work with the neighborhood children." "So I just came down and volunteered." " And before that you were..." " A mother." "I raised five children, and they're all doing good." "You raised your children... before the neighborhood became as bad as it did." "Oh, it's not so bad." "I mean, it's bad, but it can get better." "That's what I tell my son, Keatie, when he tells me he wants to move." "I tell him it will only get worse if everyone just gives up." "So you see the rec center as some sort of focal point for the neighborhood?" "I open those doors every day at 3:00." "When they're little, I get them for three hours a day." "That's a good, safe place for them to be." "What kind of a difference do you think it makes... for the older ones, like DeAndre McCullough?" "Well, I'm hoping to get a basketball team together." "That might occupy their time and attention." "And keep them away from the corners, you think?" "Because you're not naive, Ms. Thompson." "You live on Fayette Street, and you know... that DeAndre and his crew are selling drugs." "People label these children and write them off." "But I see sides of them that you don't see." "I know the corners are a reality... especially when they get to be around DeAndre's age." "But I also know, from seeing them every day, in my heart... that DeAndre, and Dinky, Tae and R. C... have it in them to do good things." "Are you ever frightened?" "I mean..." " after what happened to your daughter?" " No." "Why not?" "I live here." "This is where I live." "Hey, Fran!" "How are things at the Dew Drop Inn?" "All right." "Can we talk a minute?" "So all of your brothers and sisters live here, right?" " Stevie..." " Bunchie, Stevie, me, Sherry." "Subsidized rent, so you each pay about $30 or $40 a month?" "Everybody kicks in." "Tell me about the happy house." "I see you know about that." "Over on Booth Street?" "That was the party place?" "Partying nonstop, all of us... and my brother Scoogie." "We got high every kind of way, cough syrup, wine... weed, dropping acid." "So what do you think about Scoogie?" "Working at Martin Marietta." "He's been clean six years now." "Guess you believe what anybody say." "You think he's still getting high?" "So was it at the happy house when you started snorting heroin?" "No." "I was living with Gary by that time." "I first started messing with heroin when my sister Darlene died." "She got burnt up in a fire." "I didn't know about your sister." "I'm sorry to hear that." "Yeah." "I couldn't hardly deal with it, you know?" "Then this family friend came around after the funeral." "He said, "Do a line of this, it'll make you feel better."" "He laid it out, I sniffed it up." "Day after that, he came around again, laid out some more." "Day after that... he didn't come." "So then it was me." "I was looking for him, so you know how that went." "But that was nothing." "Because like I said, I'd been getting high since middle school." " What about your mother and father?" " Ask me something else." "Annie, you got a cigarette, girl?" "I knew you was holding some." "Thank you, baby." " Can I ask about DeAndre?" " What do you want to know?" "Well, it must be tough raising him." "He's been in a little trouble." "He knows I don't want him getting caught up in this mess." "I threw him out of the house when I found out he was selling drugs." "Don't you think you're sending him mixed messages?" "Basically, you're living in a shooting gallery." "Yeah?" "The right message must have gotten through... because he ain't trying to sling no more coke." "Let me tell you something else." "My sons have never been without a place to lay their heads." "They've never gone hungry." "Not like a lot of these little kids just running totally wild." " I'm not saying..." " I have been there for DeAndre, okay?" "At every school meeting... and every juvenile hearing downtown, I've been there." "And yeah..." "I likes to get high, okay?" "But I have been a mother to that boy, and to DeRodd." "So why don't you move the fuck up off my stoop?" "You nosy motherfucker." "Get that camera, and get the fuck out of here." " All right." "Take care." " Why don't you take your ass outta here?" "Get the fuck out of here!" "Captain Yeller tells me you got yellow tops." "Boo!" " I'm talking about next weekend, you going?" " Yeah, true." "Yo, Black!" "You going to the dance next weekend?" " Miss Ella's having a sock hop." " A sock hop?" " It's like a dance." " Where?" "Up at the rec." " What, you going?" " Yeah." "Me and Peaches." "You bringing Reeka?" "Y'all still together, right?" "Yeah, I might." "Five-0!" "Yo, McCullough!" "Get a haircut." "Andre, your name's still ringing out with the rollers, man." "Scoogie got a new stereo to put in his car." "That boy sound good, too." "He still hasn't paid me back the $20 I gave him out of my last check." "What did he want $20 for?" "Why else he come borrowing money from me?" "I am on assistance, he got a job." "He on the pipe." " He ain't asked you for no money?" " No." "Look at this." "He ain't in school." "Dre, why you not in school?" "And don't give me that half-day shit." "Answer my question." "You still going to school, right?" "Most days." "What about that speech you're supposed to give?" "They said I need a suit." " So?" " I ain't got one." "How big a problem is that, Dre?" " You got a cigarette?" " No." "You think he back out there slinging?" "Ladies!" "What's this nigger into?" "I heard he was locked up." " Doug, where are you coming from?" " Out the county." " What did you boost?" " Check it out." "Fran, look at this!" "Macy's!" "Macy's security ain't shit." "You would think I would have taught him a little something." " So you all know where we can sell these?" " Yeah." " That's what I'm talking about." " Dre!" "I want to ask you something." "I'm talking to you." "Why're you playing me like that?" "Damn you, boy, come back here." " Hey, Fran, can I get one?" " What?" " Smoke." " Fran, you got an extra one?" " Fran, can I get..." " Goddamn, I ain't no cigarette machine!" "Come on, here." " Hello, Fran." " Hey, little Stevie." "There go Hungry." "Motherfucker!" "I'm gonna kill you if I catch you." "What did he get?" "Black-tops, it looks like." "You know the boy learned track in high school." "Yo, Gary." "What's up, Chief?" "I checked this place out on Baker Street, scrapyard up there..." "This place is unwatched." "Not even a guard dog." "They got so much aluminum, copper, and cast iron, you won't know what to do." "Baker Street?" "I went up there myself and creeped out with $30 in aluminum." "I never thought to go that far." "Everything around here to get, niggers done got." "Whole area's been picked clean." "Where on Baker Street, man?" "Back up against the rail bed, by the overpass." "So what do you think?" "Yeah, man." "I'll take you there" "Damn, must be good dope today." " You leaving now?" " Not just yet." "You having a party in there?" "Lord, there goes my song." " Scoogie!" " What?" "You remember the happy house?" "Man, that place stayed jumping'." "Yeah." "Remember that time... we all went downtown to see P-Funk... and you almost fell out of the balcony?" "Not P-Funk, War." "Anyway, you was fucked up." "At the Civic Center, tripping on acid." "I stumble out and flip over the railing." "Thank God somebody grabbed me." "It's all a blur to me now, though." "Glad I left that craziness behind." " Now why you talk that shit?" " What?" "Like you think you're better than somebody, 'cause you've got a car and a job..." " and fucking cable TV?" " I don't think I'm better." "All I'm saying is I'm six years clean, and I'm glad for that." "Six years clean." "Shit." "You're talking about stuff you don't know, girl." "Yeah?" "Then why're you always coming around the Dew Drop if you ain't getting high?" "You're my family, Fran." "How the fuck can I be holding down a job if I'm high?" "Holding down a job?" "You've got a job, and you're always borrowing money." " Is that what it's about?" " It's about that." "All right, then." "What do I owe you, $15, $20?" " Here." " Yeah." "Shit!" "Fuck!" "I'll get your ass." "Fuck your ass." "All right, man." "Here we go." " You sure they ain't got no dogs in here?" " No, man." "This is the Big Rock Candy Mountain, man!" " Didn't I tell you?" " You told me, you told me!" "Grab these old batteries." "They're paying $1 apiece for them over at McVale Street Yard." "Right, no problem." "You know, what we need is a truck." "Where're we gonna get a truck?" "Let me think on that." "What?" "Man, you know, for a dope fiend, you got some ambitious thoughts." "Man, come on and put this in the basket." "Come on, now." "Blue!" " Let me have a Newport." " My last!" "Gettin' through to you yet, nigger?" "No?" "Nigger, you even dream about stealing one of my people's ground stashes... you best wake your punk ass up and apologize." "You hear me?" "I'm talking to you!" "Please!" "Please?" "There ain't no "please" in your game." "You snatch the shit, you get caught, you take all the ass-whipping." "Am I right?" "Am I right?" " Yeah." " All right, then." "Call the police!" "Somebody call 911." "Hungry, you need an ambulance?" "Stay down." "Let me call 911." " I'm all right." " Man, you're messed up." "No, I'm good." "I'm good to go." " How much you snatch from G?" " Seven vials." "He mess you up like that for seven vials?" "It could be worse." "He could have asked for them seven back." "Same shit, different day?" "Yeah, you ain't kidding, Blue." " Got him." " Why did you run?" "Don't run from me." "It's asking for an ass-whipping." " Do what you feel." " Get in the wagon." " You a rabbit?" "Run from this." " Fuck you." "All right!" "Enough of that shit!" "Get him in the wagon." "Ms. Fran!" "Hey, Fran!" " Who is it?" " Ms. Fran!" "What?" " The police got Andre." " For what?" "I don't know." "They got him on Fairmount." "They're about to put him in a jail wagon." "You gonna get him out, right?" "You ain't gonna send him to Hickey, is you?" "A few days in there might do his little ass some good." "Ms. Fran!" "Don't send him to Hickey." "All right?" "Ms. Fran, they're over here." "Reeka, you got a quarter I could owe?" "Who you calling?" "You calling the bail bondsman?" "Ms. Fran!" "Is Antoinette there?" "This is Fran Boyd." "I'm on the waiting list, and I'm checking in." "The neighbor can't find her." "How do we reach your mother?" " I could jail." " Oh, yeah?" "Thank you, ma'am." "Ain't no thing to do Hickey." "Hickey's full." "If your mama don't take you, you're going to Boys' Village." "Boys' Village?" "Mostly D.C. boys down there." "But I bet they'll go out of their way to make you feel welcome." "Get a chance, 4-B." "4-B." "What's your 10-20?" "En route to PG County." "Got 8 clients." "10-4." "Hey, Mr. Blue, what's all that stuff?" "Just some things." "You gonna paint something?" "I don't know." "Yeah, take care." "Is Ms. Fran up?" "Hey, Fran!" "Fran!" "Wake up, Fran!" "I know you ain't even thinking about missing another day." "Phone company going to be fine one more day without me, Gary." "You're messing up, and you'll wind up getting fired!" "You and your job." "Nobody get fired." " Fran!" " What?" "You're early, girl." "I didn't want you to go without me." "Come on, wait up front." "You going to see my brother?" " He locked up." " Don't you think I already know that?" "You better quit playing with me." "Scoot down." "What time are we leaving, Miss Fran?" "My brother say he coming by after 9:00, which means 10:30." "Your hair look nice like that." "How long did it take you to do that with them curls?" " An hour, about." " What time did you get up this morning?" "7:00." "Reeka in love." "You in love, baby!" "No, I'm not." "Don't nobody get up at 7:00 in the morning to do their hair... without sure enough being in love." "Quit teasing her, Fran." "I do my hair like this lots of mornings." "I do my hair like this lots of mornings." "7:00." "Hey." "When you gonna get me out of here?" "They got me in the cages with a lot of D.C. boys." "Some of them, they've shot people, killed people." "And the guards, they don't play." "You can't be on home detention, because we don't have no phone." "They need to check up on you." "I could stay with Aunt Jackie, she got a phone." "Andre." "What I'm hoping is, being in here, you get a better idea about things." "Are you saying you want me in here?" "Guess who come with me?" "Tyreeka." " Where is she at?" " I told them that she was your sister... but they said parents only, so she out in the car with Scoogie." "How're you doing?" "My girl's standing by me." "DeRodd's missing you, too." "I want to go home, Ma." "I seen this one boy, like, 10 years old... trying to make this other boy suck his dick." "It's crazy in here." "I'll talk to Aunt Jackie." "Not making promises, though." "All right, show us how to do it." "All right!" "Hey." "Socks only." "Socks only?" "It's a sock hop." "So take off your shoes, and put them over there." "Sorry, Miss Ella, his feet be stinking." "But the shoes do have to come off." "Hey, man, that's Wynita's cousin." "She's fine." "Which one you mean?" "Her in the yellow?" "Dance?" "No, it's all right." "Forget your manners?" "Yo, you don't want to dance with her?" "That's Dre's girl." "He's my cousin." "Plus he's locked up in a home." "Well, shit... he ain't my cousin." "Psych!" "I'm just playing, nigger." "I'm gonna dance with her." "How long do you think Dre's gonna stay locked up?" "I don't know." "Probably whole summer." "So, you're still with Dre, right?" "So?" "That don't mean we can't dance." "Right." "How old is she?" "Tyreeka?" "I think she's turning 14." "That girl is too bold for 14." "She's just having fun." " Hi, Miss Ella." " Hi." "Come on in, R.C." "Peaches." "Come on in." "Take your shoes off." "Shoes off." "Party down." " I don't want you giving Aunt Jackie trouble." " He won't be no trouble." "You be here every day after 4:30." "They're gonna be checking with phone calls." " I know." " You know what else you got to do?" " Go to school." " That's right." "They find out you're cutting school, you get violated." "Something else I wanna say." " What?" " I've been calling over to BRC." "Every week I've been making that call... just to be sure that I stay on the list... and pretty soon, my bed will be coming up." "Good to hear." "That's so you know that I'm trying, too." "All right, then, you're gonna be all right?" "I got to get with Boo." "He owes me something from the last package." " How much?" " Like $200." "Don't worry about that today." "You don't wanna go and get violated, your first night." "Yeah, you're right." "You can get with Boo down the way." "All right?" "Jackie, I'll see you later." "I got that Mike Tyson." " Is that a Newport?" " Yeah, my only one." "I need me one." "I just went and got your son out of Boys' Village." "Yeah?" "Where's he at?" "Over at my Aunt Jackie, on home monitor." "You need a light?" "You got to get up out of here." "You're not cut out for this kind of life." "I'm serious." "Enjoy your smoke." "Everybody, listen to me." "I need you to wait near this wall for one minute." "Lisa, would you watch them for me?" "Excuse me." "We're bringing the little ones... from St. Martins over to the rec center, and we're coming past here... today and every Thursday following." "I'd appreciate it if you could take a moment... when the little ones are coming through." "Death row!" "Death row!" "Yo, chill, man." "You hear what she just say?" "Hi, Blue." " Hey, Ella." " Today maybe?" "People, hill out!" " Shorties coming through." " Come on, babies." "Let's go." " I got Mike Tyson." " Death row." "You missed most of the semester." "I certainly can't promise you'll be promoted to the 10th grade." "The thing is, I'm here all alone." "My mother's trying to do better, but she's still struggling." "So whatever I need, I got to get for myself." "You're 16 years old, DeAndre, you're not a truant." "Nobody can force you to stay in school." "But I don't wanna quit, though." "I wanna stay and try to graduate." "Is there a way I could get a job and get school credit for working?" "If you're serious, we can look into it." "And do you still intend to represent this school in the oratory contest?" "You still want me to?" "Y'all got something for the rent?" "I'm gonna have to get with you later on that." "Damn, Fran, how're you holding that much, this late in the month?" "Look at y'all, strolling with a quick $30." "$50." "I know you gentlemen have all kinds of receipts for that." "Motherfucker, my mamma gave me this shit when I was born, nigger." "I had it all up in the crib with me and shit." "He's messed up right there." "Yo, where'd you been at, Black?" "What's up, Black?" " Where's my money?" " Your money?" "My $200!" "I want it!" " I gave that to your mom." " When?" "The other night." " No, Boo." " She said she's gonna give it to you." " Nigger, you're lying." " I swear." "Come on." "Hit me back, Boo." "I don't want to." "Nigger, I just knocked the shit out of you!" "I feel sorry for you, man." "Take a shot." "Boo, you're sorry." "I want my money." "Come on, Bunchie." "Come on, baby." "I'm here." "Oh, shit, look at this." "A man on a mission." "I wonder what that's all about." "Whatever it is, it's gonna be a mess." "Grab me that bumper right there." "It's about $20 right there, man." "We're gonna get paid today." "Your girl comes along for kicks, or is she gonna do some work?" "She can't put this stuff on the truck?" "So we split the money four ways instead of three?" "No, don't worry about it." "We're good." "I'm saying let's make use of the time." "No, Tony, we're good, man." "Come on." "Come on." "We're not here for the scenery." "Let's move it." "Come on, you all got to get along." " This is a piece of shit." " It gets it done." " Why are you so negative?" " I just wanna get to the metal yard!" "I don't even know why you're excited." "It's all junk." "We're gonna sell it to a junkyard!" "Seems like bullshit to me." "That aluminum alone will bring us $50, maybe more." "Says who?" "Him?" "Go around!" "Hey, you, pull the fuck over!" "I told you to pull that piece of shit over." "Hey, man, stop it!" "Get out!" "Get out of the..." "Get the fuck out of the truck!" "All of you." "Get the fuck out of the truck!" "All of you." "Get out!" "Hey, you!" "Right there!" "Don't you even try!" "Get over here!" " What's up?" " Over here, on your knees." "Please, you've got it wrong!" "You've got them wrong!" "Please, put the bat down!" "I don't even know them." "They just was giving me a lift." "Shut up." "I've seen you with them!" "Now get over there!" "You motherfuckers think you can steal from me?" "Please, mister." "Give me a reason why I shouldn't kick your ass right here on the street, right now!" " We'll put it all back." " Goddamn right, you'll put it back!" "Yes, sir." "I ought to kill you stinking bastards right here and right now!" "It was his idea." "I didn't know nothing about it." "Please, sir, we didn't mean you any harm." "You didn't mean me no harm?" "Get up!" "Get in that fucking truck, now!" " I'm going!" " Yes, sir!" "Right now!" "Turn around and take all my shit... right back where you got it from!" "You hear me?" "Now!" "Come on, motherfucker!" "I don't want you talking to no other boys." "What do you mean?" "While I'm out here, I don't want to hear about you messing with the rest of them." "Is you jealous?" "Whatever." "I'm serious, though." "I'm saying the mentality around here..." "That man was gonna kill us." "I still can't get over that." "He was gonna beat us up." "But you ain't get hit, right?" "We were all down on our knees, praying to God." "For what?" "$40 or $50 worth of junk?" "You get hit, you deal with it." "You don't get hit, you move on." "It's like me." "I fell out a couple of weeks back, right?" "I heard about that." "What happened?" "I was stretched out on the sidewalk." "Everybody standing around, thinking I overdosed." "But when they dragged my ass up to Bon Secours... the doctor said it's about my liver." "It's fixing to shut down." "For real?" "Your liver?" "Oh, hell, yeah." "He says it's tired of all this foolishness." "And if I keep up with it..." "Goddamn bullshit." "You see that shit?" "Motherfucker selling Arm  Hammer and calling it dope." "Doing the vial method?" "Playing this game with them burn bags." "Call that shit Killer B, it ain't nothing." " That ain't right." " Who the fuck are you telling?" "You know, there used to be rules to this shit." "Nowadays, people do whatever they want... and worry about that shit later." "I'm telling, the mentality out here, Curt..." "You ain't hearing me." "I love to shoot dope, but not a doctor telling me my liver done quit." "I told him my liver got every goddamn right to quit." " What's going on, y'all?" " Hey, Bryan." "If you wanna play this game, you can't cry when the game plays you." "I got to get a job." "A real job." "I got to get back to work, too." "You keep on keeping on." "It's 3:00 in the damn morning." "Hi, Fran." "There's children asleep, Stevie." "Leave the shit be for a little while." "Damn." "Go to sleep, baby." "Miss Davis was saying I could take my core classes before lunch... then get credit for my work-study in the afternoon." "I need a job." "Maybe there'll be something when places start hiring summer help." "I need a job now, Miss Ella." "If I leave them corners be, I need a paycheck." " Maybe I could work at the rec." " We have no money for that." "But let me make some calls." "Blue!" "How're you doing?" "And you brought your supplies, too." "My paints and things." "They're drawing and coloring right now." "Come on over, and let me introduce you." " My timing's good?" " Oh, yes." "Everyone, let me have your attention." "Today's gonna be something different." "We're gonna have an art class, but we'll have it with a real artist." "You know what's great about that?" "He lives right here in your neighborhood." "So I want you all to say hi to Mr. Blue." "Hi, Mr. Blue." "I understand you all like art." "Okay, who can give me a definition of what art is?" " A painting in a museum." " A painting." "But art can be a lot of things." "It can be... a sculpture, it can be a song." "a sculpture, it can be a song." "It can be poetry." "You see, art could be anything you want it to be... to express your moods or feelings." "Now let me see what you're doing so far." " That's pretty." "I like that." " Look at mine." "What's that?" "Freddy Krueger, when he slices somebody up." "Freddy Krueger?" "Okay, I guess that's art, too." " Where are you coming from?" " The rec center." " Aunt Jackie doing all right?" " She's good." "You make that call to that place this week?" "BRC?" "Yeah, I owe them a call." "Man, what the fuck is this?" "Goddamn!" "This motherfucking horse pissed on my shit, man!" " Motherfucker, you owe me!" " I didn't know that was there..." "That horse peed all over Tee-Tee's bag." " I've seen him do it, too." " All right." "Why hit the horse?" "That shit do not make sense!" "I don't think this could ever happen." " What do you mean?" " I see some crazy things out here... but that just don't make sense." "I am not living out in the streets!" " Did Stevie tell you?" " Tell me what?" "Housing department fixing to throw us out." "Bunchie ain't paid the rent." " How long?" " Three months." " Where'd all the money go?" " Where the fuck you think?" "We need $120, quick." "Or the little shit we got is going out in the street." "Tell me something." "How do people have days like this and stay straight?" "Girl, you're talking to the wrong crowd here." "Damn right, this is the wrong crowd." "We're some low-bottom dope fiends." "That's all we're about." "How we look, trying to raise children up in the middle of this craziness?" "This shit has got to end." "You're doing the same goddamn thing as the rest of us." " Where're you going?" " To make a phone call." " We can try going by the house." " I guess." "We have to get ready to go." "Why don't you have your suit on?" " Suit don't fit, Miss Davis." " I know the jacket fits." "Have you memorized the speech?" " I lost one of the sheets." " Why didn't you let me know?" "I don't want you backing out on us now." "You don't want that either, or you wouldn't have shown up at all." "I ain't memorized it, though." "You did great reading off the pages." "Just read it again." "They let you do it like that?" "Go put that suit on." "Let me see just what does or does not fit." "It's country looking." "Get in there!" ""You can take this medal back on up to Washington..." ""and tell them I don't want it." ""Take it back, and pin it on your own shirt." ""Tell him to give it to the ones who keeps this big lie going..." ""and sends boys like Willie all over the world to die..." ""for freedom and democracy, they always get the leavings of." ""I know what you're trying to do." ""I ain't gonna let you do it to me no more." ""He can take it back."" "Thank you." "Maria Allen, ladies and gentlemen." "Thank you." "Our next student is from Francis M. Woods High School in West Baltimore... with a passage from Dr. Martin Luther King's speech... from the march on Washington." "DeAndre McCullough." ""I am not unmindful that some of you have come here..." ""out of excessive trials and tribulations." ""Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells." ""Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom..." ""left you battered by the storms of persecution..." ""and staggered by the winds of police brutality." ""You have been the veterans of creative suffering." ""Continue to work with the faith..." ""that unearned suffering is redemptive." ""Go back to Mississippi." ""Go back to Alabama." ""Go back to South Carolina." ""Go back to Georgia." ""Go back to Louisiana." ""Go back to the slums and ghettos of the northern cities..." ""knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. "" " So, when are we getting evicted?" " Next Wednesday." "I'll be in detox by then." "Oh, yeah?" "Here's $100." "You mess this up, you're on your own." "Where'd you get this money from?" " You still mad?" " I ain't mad." "What did you do?" "You got a look on your face." " I ain't done nothing." " You're happy about something." " I did that speech, downtown." " That was today?" " Yeah." " You were supposed to tell me." " It wasn't all that." " I told you I wanted to be there." "You didn't want me there." "I didn't know if I was going to go through with it." "You was nervous, I bet." "I told you I wanted to be there to see you." " How did you wind up doing?" " All right." " You won the contest?" " No." "Well, that don't matter." "Recite it to me, I want to hear how you sounded." " I ain't memorized it." "I read it." " Read it to me now." " I threw away the pages." " Damn you." "Let me fix you something to eat." "You want a tuna sandwich?" "All right." " Andre." " Hey, Daddy." "'Morning." "Can I have some money to get something to eat?" "Ain't there nothing to eat here?" "What did you have for dinner last night?" "McDonald's." "McDonald's?" "Fran, wake up." "We gotta talk." "I said, wake up." "Wake up!" "Fran, wake up." " Hey, Gary." " Hey, Fran." " Guess what?" " Tell me." "I'm in rehab next week." "My bed came up." "Seriously?" "I'm gonna do it." "I'm gonna get clean." " So when you going in?" " Next Tuesday." "Twenty-eight days at BRC." "So, night before that, Monday... we're having a serious party." "I thought you said this shit got to end." "I'm talking about my last night of getting fucked up, okay?" " What?" " You're crazy." "No, that's how you're supposed to do it." "You come out of detox clean... you go up in there fucked up." "We're gonna party like the old days." "Like them parties you used to hate." "All right, gal." "Come on." "I haven't had a party like this in so long." "We got the funk" " Gonna have some fun" " Come on, now." "We got the funk, give up that funk" "You'll be there?" "Got some more wax." "I knew it, baby." "Scoogie come to get fucked up, too." "I knew it." "No, I can be around it without doing it." "I'm just here to wish you well, that's all." "Hey, Scooge, do "Shine."" " I don't know if I still know it." " No, come on." "All right, you got to give the people what they want." "All right, check it out." "Shine, Scoogie, read me." ""I don't know, but people say..." ""that eighth of May was a hell of a day..." ""when the Sergeant and the Captain were having a few words..." ""when that old Titanic hit that big-ass iceberg." ""Now Shine, he come up from the decks below, yelling:" ""'Cap'n!" "Don't you know..." ""'there's 10 feet of water on the boiler room floor?" "'" ""Captain says, 'Shine..." ""'this ship is safe and sound." ""'I've got 48 pumps to keep that water down.'" ""Shine grabbed that white man by the throat." ""'Look here, Cap'n, can't you see?" ""'This ain't no time to be bullshitting me.'" ""He said, 'I'd rather be out there, on that iceberg..." ""'going round and round..." ""'than to be on this big motherfucker when it's slowly sinking down.'" ""Captain says, 'Shine, if you save poor me..." ""'I'll make you as rich as any black man could be.'" ""Shine said, 'Shit..." ""'there's fish in the ocean, there's whales in the sea.'" ""He said:" ""'You better get your ass in the water and swim like me."'" " That's the story." " All right!" "Give me a little something." "He be drinking up the whole thing." "Yo, turn the music back on!" "Fran, I wanna talk to you." "Come here." "Motherfucker, have you lost your goddamn mind?" "Come on, Fran." "DeAndre!" "Come give me some sugar." "Come on." "Come here." "Come on, Ma, we're out on the damn street." "What, are you embarrased?" " You going up to Scoogie's." " He's gonna drive me." "Listen." "I want you to help Aunt Jackie take care of DeRodd." " I'll look out for him." " You look out for yourself, too, okay?" "Did Boo give you my $200?" "Told him I'd take it up to Aunt Jackie's." "I whupped his ass for it." "It was a dope fiend move, baby, I know that." "But I did use some of it to help Bunchie make the rent." "Anyhow, I'm fixing to get past all that now... okay?" "Ma, come here." "Good luck, okay?" "You want me to go in?" "No." "All right." "Saw Daddy today." "What did he say?" "Nothing much." " 'Morning." " 'Morning." " Do you have an appointment?" " I check in today." "My bed came up." "You can have a seat." "Antoinette, there's one in the lobby." "Can I help you?" "It's Fran Boyd." "Oh, right, Fran, hi." " I check in today." " Who told you that?" "When I called last week, they said, "One more week."" "You're at the top of the list, but we aren't expecting anybody today." " They said..." " lf they told you that, it was a mistake." "A mistake?" "Damn right, it's a mistake." "They told me to come in, last week." "They told me to come in here." "They told me to come here." "I'm just saying that it's a misunderstanding." "I know we have a bed coming open next week." "Wait a minute." "How am I supposed..." "I can't believe this shit!" " I told everybody I was gone." " I'm sorry, Fran." "What am I supposed to tell people?" "You're at the top of the list." "There'll definitely be a bed next week." "I can't go back." " I can't make it." " Yes, you can." "I can't." "Next week, definitely." "If you brought a bigger knife, you probably would've got in." "Hey, Fran." "Officer Robert Brown, how long have you policed the Fayette Street strip?" "I've worked the bottom end of the Western 17 years." "Seen this neighborhood change." " What, from drugs?" " What else is there?" "The rot started in the projects." "Lexington Terrace, Murphy Homes." "Just kept creeping uphill." "You ever feel like you're wasting your time?" "The city locks up, what, 18,000 or 19,000 a year on drug charges?" "Only about 700 of them get prison time." "There's nowhere to put them." "Baltimore has, what, 50,000 users?" "I guess that's not your problem." "Look, there's still good people in this neighborhood." "Ladies let me in though their back doors so I can use a window to watch a corner." "People call me with information." "Church people, working people." "What about the corner people?" "Half of them I've seen come up as kids." "Saw them on the stoops, on the playgrounds." "Saw them go off to school." "It hurts to watch, man." "7" " B to 24, what's your 20?" "7-B, 24, I'm 10-7 at Mount and Fayette." "The corner boys don't like you much, but say the younger police are way worse." "By the time these younger guys came on, this place had already been shot to hell." "They see these people and figure they always were junkies." "Makes them act hard, I guess." "You talking to me?" "Let me ask you something, Officer Brown." "Are we going to win this war on drugs?" "No comment." "You've got a library down here, I see." "James Baldwin, Thoreau, Elie Wiesel..." "A History of God." "What's that about?" "Yeah, that's..." "Judaism..." "Islam, Christianity." "It's, like, three paths to the same god." "So when you get high, you come down here and read?" "Yeah, I read." "I listen to the radio." "And I think about things." "Try to educate myself." " You went to college, didn't you?" " Yeah." "Ohio State, for one year." "And I came back when Fran had Andre." "People say you played the stock market." "You taught yourself how to invest the money that you were earning." "I had this account at Charles Schwab... up to about $150,000." "Then it got sold, and I could pick the stocks... just by looking at the price-earnings ratio." " You know what that is?" " I don't know much about stocks." "Let me tell you something." "There's a science to it." "You've gotta, first of all... see how the company's doing." "And then you've gotta really check out what the projections are." "Gary... you can get yourself back up if you set your mind to it." "Most definitely." "You ever tried to detox?" "It's rough." " It's real rough." " I spoke with Fran." "You know she went in." "Fran's bed came open." "She's in detox now." "Yeah, I heard that." "Now, she says... detoxing is like having a bad flu for three or four days." "That's it." "Maybe, Gary, you've made it out tougher than it is, in your mind." "No, it's different for different people." "You see, Fran don't fire up." "She snorts, man, so it's different." "But you've tried to detox?" "My family, you know..." "They took me down to Carolina, to my brother Dan's house, in Fayetteville." "They figured that if they could just get me out of Baltimore..." "So, what happened?" "There's a corner in Fayetteville, too." "There's a corner everywhere." " Come on, man." " I'm on it." "Move that right there." "Y'all can't keep me waiting." "Let's get a move on." "Come on." " I got fresh ones." " What you got?" "I got some 2s, some females, right here." "Give me 2s." "Put the females against the wall." "All right." "Dag!" "One of them got me, man." "Right through the basket." "You gotta take care." "You know them bitches like to snack." "Damn!" "Now, why your sister be grabbing my brother?" "Hey, Cardy, what's wrong with you?" "What would you do if you were snatched, trucked up, and tossed in a steaming pot?" "You'd be doing all the scuffling you could, too." " God!" " I need a bushel of 32s." " When do you need it?" " Ten minutes ago." "I'm on it, Miss Mary." "Man, you gotta cook these right." "These ain't any old crabs." " These right here are 32s, baby." " We ain't got time for that, Gary." "You can't say that, man." "We make time for 32s." "Folks out there order 32s, they get our best." "Fuck the folks out there." "Fuck these fucking crabs." "Elmo, you can't even call these crabs." "These are crustaceans." "Where'd you get these, Miss Ella?" "A friend of mine." "He got new things, so he's donating these." "So the kids can watch cartoons and stuff?" "I was thinking we could have movie nights on Fridays for you and the guys." " That'll work." " You still interested in a paying job?" "Definitely." "I know the manager at the Checkers on Broadway and North." "She's hiring summer help." "DeAndre, if I put in a good word for you, will you follow through and apply?" "Checkers?" "Cool." "I'll call the manager, then." " No!" " Why not?" " 'Cause I'm tired of you playing me." " You always do better when I cop." "No, you do better." "I usually wind up getting watered." "From now on, you worry about you, and I'll take care of me." "So now, with this little job, you for yourself?" "Spiders, buy one." "Nice spider bags." "See you later." " You got spiders?" " Yeah, spiders." "I'm busy, all right?" "I'll call you back." " Dope fiends!" " Hey, Curt." " Hey, this look light to you?" " Was it a family affair?" "Dope fiends!" "They got that little teenaged girl out there." "Gary, how are the crabs treating you?" "It's good, man." "It's like old times." " Can you lend me $5?" " Say what?" "I got this guy bringing me $20 worth of coke in about an hour." "But if you can lend me $5 now, when he comes back..." "I'll give you half the coke." "Damn, Bread, you all fucked up." "Look at you." "Bread be tasting them pink tops like I don't know where!" " Who, me?" " Come on, Gary." " The coke got you right?" " Me?" "I ain't high." "I ain't high." "You know why?" "'Cause I can't truly be high... unless all my motherfucking friends is high." "I look around." "I see my friends." "You know what I feel like doing?" "What you feel like doing?" "I feel like sharing my shit" "Curt... how long have we been tight?" " You gone and lost your natural mind." " Here you go." "That's... for you." "And Blue." "Blue, baby." "And this..." "This is for you, okay?" "And not just 'cause this happens to be your domicile." "Sexy!" "Rita, this for you." "Same business, okay?" "All right." "See, now..." " I feel right." " Come on, Gary." "I will leave you all now." "Come on over here." "I'll give you half when he comes back." "We got to shoot this shit." "Come on." " What's today's date?" " Come on, Gary." "The date?" "I don't know." "I got this case coming up in the city court, man." "Man, what's that about?" "I got in this beef with Ronnie Boice." "She said I hit her." "Well, you better get with Ronnie." "You give me $5 now, but you get $10 later... when he comes back with the coke." "You see what I'm saying?" " But I didn't hit her." " She said you did." "Tell her, Ronnie." "He didn't really hit me." "You alleged that he did in the charging document." "You're saying you gave a false report?" "I have to tell you, if that's the case... the State's Attorney's Office will charge you with false report." "I just wanna drop the charges." "It wasn't no big thing." "I'm assigned to the domestic violence unit, and I can assure you... the state of Maryland regards domestic violence as a very big thing." " You can't drop the charges." " I didn't hit her." "If you refuse to testify, you'll be held in contempt." "And if you get on the stand and lie, I'll charge you with perjury." "And if she tells the truth, you'll charge her with false report?" " I'll consider a plea." " Plea to what?" "Common assault." "Two years, all but six months suspended... supervised probation and mandatory counseling for spousal abuse." "We're going to court, love." " Who got shot?" " Bryan." "Bryan who be selling them burn bags?" "I knew that boy was gonna catch a bullet behind that Arm  Hammer shit." "You can't be out here selling shit that ain't." "You know what I'm saying?" "Somebody will take it serious and come back on you." "Yes, Lord." "What did he look like when they put him in the back of the ambo?" "He was breathing." "He wasn't smiling or nothing." " Boy looked like he always do." " But he gonna make it?" "Shit, Bryan gets his ass shot twice a year, whether he need to or not." "Motherfucker ain't dead yet." "Oh, God." "What happened?" "You know Bryan Mathis?" " No, I don't think so." " He got in an argument and got shot." "He'll probably be all right, you know." " I'm gonna see you tomorrow, right, Blue?" " Tomorrow?" "The kids really enjoyed it last time." "I guess." "And it's good for them to know this ain't all there is in the world." " I'll see you tomorrow." " Okay." "Hey, you, come here." "Jesus, let me see those arms." "Dave." "Check this out." " Man, you look like fucking Popeye!" " Holy shit." "Bobby, take a picture of this pretty motherfucker." "The shit you see when you ain't got a right." "That's one trifling' motherfucker." "You got something to say?" "What up, cuz?" " Ain't nothing." "Where you headed?" " Down to McHenry Street, to see my girl." " Reeka?" " No, Chanel." "Peaches' cousin." "Oh, you with her now?" "It's summertime." "I'll be with all of them before winter comes." " What's Reeka say to that?" " She don't know." "Even if she knew, she got her own shit to answer for." "I know she been messing with Tae." "And that nigger Dwayne, too." "She a little freak." "I don't think she let Tae mess with her." "Man, she ain't even supposed to be dancing with his ass." "I'm locked down in Boys Village, and she all over Tae?" "Man, fuck that!" "You're right, Andre." "All mad and shit." "Don't even play me like that." "There's something I wanna show your ass for a minute." "What, nigger?" "Inside, I got something." "Up in there?" "Man, this smell like piss in here." "Dinky, where you dragging me at?" "I gotta be somewhere." "Right up here." "What the fuck!" "Yeah, bulletproof vest, Cuz." "Snatched it from a police car on Gilmor Street when we had that jump-out." "We can use this shit on the corner, man." "At least we can if you plan on getting back on the corner anytime soon." "Where your.25 at?" " It's on the shelf, in the closet." " Let's test this motherfucker out." " I'll put it on." "You shoot me." " I ain't shooting your ass." "Come on, man." "I mean the vest." "This is supposed to stop .9s and.44s, right?" "You shit." "Ain't nothing gonna happen... except maybe you put me on my ass, or some shit." "I would ask Boo to do it, but he's always fucking up." "Probably put one in my eye or some shit." "You serious?" "What, are you scared?" " Holy shit!" " Did you hear that?" " What?" " Sounded like gunshots." "No kidding." "In West Baltimore?" "Oh, shit." "You all right?" "Wait." "Just don't be fucking with no kryptonite, and we're cool, yo." "Andre, you crazy shit." "That shit hurt a little bit, man." "If you know what you're doing... you can find one of these penny stocks on the NASDAQ." "You pick the right one, ride it to the top of the market and sell it." "Let it come down, then you buy it, ride it up to the top again." "You know, just keep flipping it like that." "Right there." "It's just finances." "It's easy." "Does he know what the hell he's talking about half the time?" "Who, Gary?" "He knows." " About them stocks and all?" " Gary had all kinds of money and stocks." "I seen the statements they sent him." "He definitely knows." "Cardy, let me talk to you." " What's up?" " Can you let me owe $10?" " You can't wait till payday?" " Man, you know how that is." "Come on, I'll pay you back Friday." "I ain't got it." "If I did, I'd give it to you." "Your ma's gonna hear us." "Where she at?" "She in detox." "DeRodd, get up." "What are you doing?" "Come on." "You're sleeping on the sofa tonight." "Ma called Scoogie." "She wants us to come by on Saturday." "She said visiting is at 2:00." "She know we about out of money?" "She said, "Get some from your father." "Tell him he needs to help out."" "All right." " Who's she?" " None of your business." "Keep going." "Are we gonna visit ma?" "Yeah, Saturday." "Go ahead." "She said we should bring chocolate." "Why does she want chocolate?" "Why do you ask so many damn questions at 2:00 in the morning?" "Get down them steps, come on." "I got things to do." "These are 24s." "I asked for 32s." "What's going on here?" " Working man again?" " My new career in seafood preparation." " Come on in." " No, man." "It made me sick when I did it." "I'm surprised you can do it, seeing as we both got the same allergy." "You get used to it, I guess." "You know I've been taking care of DeRodd and me while ma's in detox." "Scoogie been helping out some, too." "Yeah?" "Ma gave me her DSS card, and I've been only using it a bit at a time for food." "But what I'm saying is, we ain't bent... we're flat-ass broke." "She tell you to come to me?" "I heard you was working security." "Hey, Fran." "I'm running late." "DeAndre needs some new clothes." "Could I borrow, like, $500?" " What?" " He done grown out of his other clothes." " He can't be growing that fast." " Come on." "You know you've got the money." "Everybody knows, and they all got their hands out." " You're too soft." " You're counting on it, ain't you?" "I'm saying with the neighborhood." "But this is your son." "I want to see her." "Why is it white people smoke Marlboros and black people smoke Newports?" " What's up with that?" " I don't know." "Hey, boy!" "You look good." "You look great, Fran." "Really, look at you." "I done already gained six pounds, and the food ain't even that good." "I ain't been straight like this since, shit, high school, man." "Yeah, you're the girl I remember." "Wait a minute, now." "Don't go there!" "But I'll tell y'all something else." "The rest of the people in here..." "I mean, the people in recovery... honey, they're screwing like rabbits." " Damn, Ma." " Not me, the rest of them." "It's, like, you get clean from drugs... and the rest of you starts waking up, you know?" "Fran!" "They only give us one hour a day in the rec yard, and they watch us like hawks." "Now, you brought my chocolate, right?" "Yeah, baby." "Okay." "When the counselor gets to shooing everybody inside..." "I want you to toss it over the fence in the corner over there, all right?" "They don't let us have chocolate." "They say that's a drug, too." " It is." " Hell with that." "I ain't about to give up dope, coke, and Mr. Goodbar all at once." "Hell, no." "I can't get over how good you look, girl." "Look at you." "Come here." "I could talk to some of the people inside here... and get you at the top of the list for a bed in the men's dorm." " I could do that, Gary." " Okay, people." "Time to go inside." "I'm gonna quit." "I'm gonna do it." "Ready?" "All right." "Come on, then." "Let's go, y'all, come on." "You bring DeRodd this weekend." "I miss my baby." "You look good, Ma." "You look real good to me, too, Dre." "It's like I'm seeing you for the first time in a long while." "Gary, while I'm in here, you could think about giving DeAndre a little boost." "At least till the end of the month, okay?" "All right, I'll see y'all later." "Long time coming?" "Yes, Lord." "Look here, I'm giving you $300." "This here for DeAndre." "Next time I see him, I better see some price tags hanging." "'Cause the days of me paying for your drugging are over." "You think I'm playing?" "Listen, I'll say it again." "No way we're getting back together, if you keep messing with that dope." "Who said shit about wanting to get back together?" "So you want to kick?" "Definitely, I need to." "Clonidine." "One patch a day." "It'll help with your nausea and the overall malaise." "All right?" "Is there anything stronger I can get, like a painkiller?" "Not on an outpatient basis." "We can only give you clonidine and some Tylenol, if you like." "You want some Tylenol?" " Tylenol 3?" " No, regular." "You're testing my patience." "I don't need to take your ass to the doctor." " I'm sick of you." " Every time I look, it's the same old shit." " What you bringing with you?" " Death row and a pink top." "Some antibiotics for Rita." "Here you go, sweetheart." " Some what?" " Antibiotics." "What kind of antibiotics?" "One of my little cousins had a throat infection." "Those is what's left over." "How do you figure antibiotics for a throat infection gonna help her arms?" "Why're you getting so upset?" " You need to see a doctor." " I know." "Don't say, "I know." Your arms is getting worse and worse." "I don't want you to catch a blood infection or something... 'cause you don't want to leave the house." "I wasn't gonna say nothing, but your arms do look raw." " I'll go to the hospital and get it checked." " When?" "Damn, all of a sudden you act like you know what's best for everybody." "You know what?" "I was just saying." "And I heard you." "You're not mad at me trying to help you." "Keep saying the same damn thing over and over." "Hey, Scalio, can you give me a shot, man, please?" "You know what I'm saying?" "Why you get to stay here and get blunted while your cousin do all the work?" "I got him the connect." "That's his package." "I didn't even vial it up." "Yo, Tae." "So you ain't Big Daddy Kane no more?" "So you ain't Big Daddy Kane no more?" "No, man." "I leave that alone." "My ma's in detox, I got to look out for my little brother and all." "Everybody run dry tonight." "Just as well." "Some of the district are about to roll up." "Hey, right here, Black." "We got a nice little corner down here, man." "Police ain't deep down here." "Not like Fayette Street." "Ain't no Bob Brown, ain't no Stompin'." "Motherfucker, Bob Brown." "Yes, Lord!" "Here come the drama." "You ain't got to pretend." "I ain't pretending about shit." "And you ain't got to tell her to run away, neither." "'Cause I don't give a damn who you run with." "'Cause I'm done with your ugly black ass." "That ain't what you said the other night." "Fuck you, Andre!" "Fuck you back." "All I'm doing is sitting with the girl." "You're a liar." "You think I ain't been hearing about you and Chanel?" "Hearing ain't knowing." "Fuck you, Andre." "Come on." "Let me go." "You were sitting over here with her." "So, you done with Reeka now?" "Man, Reeka be back." "When the weather turn cool, Reeka be right back waiting for me." "Chanel, come here." "Let me see that blunt, man." "How are those spider bags today?" "I thought you was on that clonidine." " Not working?" " They work a little." "But I'm definitely getting by on this." "Tapering off." "Tapering off?" "So who got those spider bags?" "See my man in the alley." "All right." "Tapering off." "Either you quit drugging or you don't." "Tapering off, bullshit." "We need a bushel of 32s." "Why am I out of 18s?" "Didn't I ask for 18s ten minutes ago?" "You're killing me here." "Got 32s coming in." "Put them on three." "Damn, Gary, you make the rest of us look lazy." "You told the Unit Chief?" "I'm Quality Control, this is my job." "No, man, your job is to look out for the people that you work with... not to make more work for the guys that share your union hall." "You ought to be satisfied they just let you wear that yellow hat." "Damn!" "I'm working hard, right?" "I've had four McCullough boys work for me, and all of them were workers." " Cardy's the best sorter I got." " That's what I'm saying." "I had your son in here two months ago." "That was a different story." "No offense." "But I work." "I got no problem with you." "The thing is, I can't wait every Friday to get paid." "I need to get paid every day, cash." "Gary, we pay everybody Friday." "I know, but me getting all that cash at once is not so good for me." "I think if I got a little at a time, like at the end of every day..." "I'd do much better." "I say you better leave that damn dope alone." "It's only gonna hurt you." "I'm trying." "Come on, I am." "I mean, getting all that money on Friday at one time is just too much temptation." "$40 cash when you punch out." "Appreciate it." "Thank you, Miss Mary." " I'm looking for the manager." " She's not here right now." "She told me to come on Monday, fill my application, and get my uniform." "The shift supervisor's here." "You want to talk to him?" " Can I help you?" " I was supposed to come in today... put in my application, start working here." "I'll take your application." "You can come back for the interview." " All right." " Have a seat at the table." "I need two number 3s." "I just need you to fill this out." "Here's a pen." "What?" "What you looking at?" "You may have to cut your hair." "I don't think so." "Have a seat and fill that out." "Then bring it to me." "Got something in your pocket?" "Could you get my hat?" "That's bullshit." "Yeah, girl, I know." "Hold up." " What the hell he want?" " Same as he always wants." "You need to quit smoking them blunts." " Why you ain't tell me you're pregnant?" " How you know?" "He needs to know." "He the baby's father." "Y'all need to talk." "She can't keep no damn secrets." " Why you ain't tell me?" " Please." "You out here messing around with all these other girls." "So I just say, "He don't need to know."" " How you even know it's mine?" " Go to hell!" "'Cause you know I ain't been with nobody else." " What about Tae?" " Tae and me is just friends." "I ain't been with him." "If he tell you otherwise, he lying." "You gonna have the baby?" "My aunt and me talking about going down to University Hospital." "Get an abortion." " Whatever." " Yeah, whatever." "Let me know." "But it costs $200." "Least you could do is pay for it, since you're responsible." "I'll see what I can do." "You my girl." "Chanel is your girl." "What did he say?" "I told him I need $200 for an abortion." "You gonna get an abortion?" "No, and even if I was, University Hospital will give you one for free." " So why you say that then?" " $200, girl." "Stupid-ass." "$400?" "That's what she said University Hospital is charging her." "And they make her pay before she gets the abortion?" "I guess." "Andre, where in the hell am I gonna get $400?" "Scoogie?" "Shit!" "You sure she don't want to have this baby?" "No, she's having an abortion." " She say that?" " I say that." "It's her body." "She's gonna do what she damn well pleases." "How many times did I leave you condoms on that dresser... and tell you not to be messing around without using protection?" "Forgot." "Come on, Ma." "Look... tell Reeka to come talk with me." "You bring her on Saturday." "$400." "$600?" "Scoogie, that's how much he's saying it costs." "Be real, Fran, where am I gonna put my hands on $600?" "You know what I think?" "I think you're gonna be a grandma." "That won't be so bad, either." " Sorry, Fran." " No, it's cool." "I'll talk with you later, okay?" "Empty your pockets, put it in the tray, and step through." "So, why'd you bring your mother?" "Why you bring yours?" "She was worried, she asked to come." " Thinking it might help if she was in court." " Yeah?" "Mine asked to come, too." "Place them in the tray." "Step through, ma'am." "No, it wasn't like that at all." "I mean, she..." "We got into an argument." "Because of that, you know, things got out of hand." "And you struck her, did you not?" "No, I didn't hit her." "I don't hit women, especially." "Then why would she say you hit her, Mr. McCullough?" "Many people have arguments." "You don't see them going to the police... to have the other person arrested, do you?" "Do you, Mr. McCullough?" "Could you repeat the question, please?" "Why would Ms. Boice go to the trouble... to report to the police that you assaulted her, if you didn't?" "She got mad, we had a fight." "About what?" "What were you arguing about?" "Money." "How much money?" "A few dollars, I don't remember." "You're saying that Ms. Boice made up a story about you hitting her... because of a few dollars?" "And he hit you where?" "Mount Street." "No, I mean exactly where did the blows strike you?" "Mount Street, between Baltimore and Fayette." "Where on your body were you hit by Mr. McCullough?" "Upside my head." "'Course I gave as good as I got." "Who hit who first?" "Look, I don't know." "I don't remember." "It might have been me hitting him." "I don't really remember." "See, I told you it wasn't nothing." "You worry too much." "I'm just glad it's over." "I think the best thing for both our children is just to part ways." "Who in the hell are you talking to?" "You child ain't no better than anybody else's... and the whole world can see that." "Always thinking your family is so high and mighty, and churchgoing." "Shit!" " You ain't gotta listen to this." " You ain't better than nobody." "Your child is out there, scrambling and scraping, same as everybody else... and you want to tell me what's best for my child?" " I'm going to be praying for you." " I don't need your goddamn prayer." "Stop!" "Let her be." "You better talk to your mother." "You gonna pray for me?" "You'd better pray for that sad-ass motherfucker." "Come on, girl, bring your drug ass on." "I ain't going through this anymore, I'm telling you that right now." "I'm not gonna have nothing more to do with her, Ma." "See that?" "See what?" "The minute one of them try to break free... the others just snatch him right back down." "What are you talking about, man?" "The crabs?" "All of them." "In that mess together, all of them... just thinking about themselves." "If they get to thinking... they might see that they gonna rise or fall together." "You sound like you're preaching, Gary." "They're just crabs is all." "All I'm saying is that when I had it, I shared it." "I shared it with my family, friends... with people in the neighborhood who came with their hard-luck stories." "All I'm saying is that when I had it, I shared it." "But you know how people treated me?" "Like one of those top-of-the-barrel crabs." "When I was ready to make my move, they snatched me back down." "Come on, people was proud of you, man." "Your folks was always talking about how smart and hardworking you was." "They were just talking about how much money I was making." "But there wasn't no real pride." "There wasn't no real love." "I thought, when I fell... that people would like me more... for being like them." "Hey, Ma." "You need any money for any groceries, gas or electric?" "We just paid the gas bill, but something's always coming up." "There." "Gary, where are you going?" "I'm going downtown." "I love you." "Thank you." "Which is better?" " Excuse me?" " This one has more iron." "This one seems to have more of everything else." " It all depends." "Your iron poor?" " I'm just poor." "If you're not iron deficient, these are probably better." "Look here, chief." "I'll take these and a couple of your protein bars up front." " Cool, got you covered." " Thanks a lot, man." "How you doing?" "My name's House, and I'm an addict." "I wanna tell you something about the corner." "Never say never... about that corner." "Am I right?" "Yes, that's right." "I never thought I would steal from my mother." "Never." "But my thoughts told me one day that the toaster my mother had... the one that used to burn the toast... was mine." "So I took it." "And I rolled out... went out to the corner, nobody asked me." "They didn't care where it came from." "Sold it." "Went back." "Stole something else." "Just kept stealing from my mother, because it's, like..." "I couldn't stop." "The corner dominates." "Oh, yes." "It takes more, and it gives nothing back." "It took from my relationship with my own." "It destroyed it." "But I was loyal to the corner." "I was so loyal to that corner... that nothing stood in between me and the activity that went on there." "See, in order to be a part of the corner, you got to participate." "You can't be out there stumbling and fumbling, 'cause you gonna miss it." "You gonna miss your blast." "See, my whole makeup... my whole day, consisted of one thing..." "I needed a shot." "If I stole from my mother... your mother, your mother, it made no difference." "Because all I wanted to do... was put something in me." "If you think you live with some morals... or you got some kind of principles to govern your life, step up on that corner... and I guarantee you... in a short period of time, it'll take all that and flip it." "See, the strip won't flip." "And you're gonna go from being a person... who thinks your life is governed by some rules, to being ruled." "That's the reality of the corner." "It cares nothing about you." "It don't care where you come from." "Your color." "Your age." "Your religion." "It's big enough to take us all." "Any day now." "I'll take one for Schindler's List." "You're in the right place." " Here's your blankets." " All right." "Now some rules." "Rules?" "No drinking and drugging." "You will be dismissed for the night." "Anyone caught loitering around the building will be dismissed for the night." "The second time around, take you to the director." "Your bunk is over there in the corner." "I saw Joe Layney the other day..." " riding around in a new automobile." " Oh, yeah." "Joe's doing good." "Motherfucker was just as much a dope fiend as any of us." "Now he's in college and shit." "Anybody know when Blue's getting out?" "Joe Layney." "Yes, Lord." "He's proving this shit ain't gonna kill us all." "What was that?" "I said, this shit ain't gonna kill us all." "Somebody's always gonna see the other side." "You feeling it?" "They say them pink tops are pretty good." "I went to see this movie." "The one about what they did to the Jews in the war." "You went to see a movie?" "Lord, what they did to them people." "What kind of dope fiend goes to the goddamn movies?" "The Germans decided that they weren't human no more." "They just said:" ""No, you ain't human like we human," and when they said that... hey, man... it just got easy for them to do all kinds of dirt." "By the end, all the Germans could do was get rid of them." "Kill them all." "'Cause you know, they couldn't see them being anything better than rats or bugs." "That sounds like a miserable-ass movie." "But it was real, all right?" "And I'm sitting there, and I'm watching this movie." "And I'm realizing... that it's happening again." "How do you mean, Gary?" "Man, we're sitting here, day after day, making ourselves a little bit less human." "And the world's happy to see it." "It seems like they're happy to see it, man." "I mean, when I was making money, it didn't matter... 'cause I was still a nigger." "Now that I'm sitting up here, getting high with y'all, it's still the same." "You talk some crazy shit, Gary." "Don't you see what I'm saying?" "The Germans made the Jews into niggers." "That's what that was about." "That's what this is here, except we're doing it to ourselves." "It seems like the world just can't wait for us to finish... until we all end up dead." "Man!" "Just shut up and shoot dope." "Really." "Oh, girl!" "Look at you." "That's Francine." "Saturday, I'll be a month clean." "Hey, now." "One day at a time." "Damn, Fran." "You don't even look like yourself." "Come here." "So you're home now?" " I feel like I ain't got no home." " What you mean?" "Baby, run up and get anything you need." "We're gonna stay up at Scoogie's till we get a place of our own." "Bunchie, I can't go up in there." "Stevie, you got a quarter?" "I'm gonna call this number they gave me about one of them Section 8 houses... over on Lexington." "Fran, good to see you." "Looking good, girl." "She look good, don't she?" "Yeah." "We'll see how long it'll last." "Mom's back." " Where she at?" " Out front." " Scalio, what's happening?" " Bread fell out, up inside Andy's house." "He on the couch." "His eyes all rolled back in his head." "He ain't breathing right." " What was he chasing?" " Spider bags with them pink tops." "Doing a lot of coke, man." "Fat Curt's up there with him now." "Don't even think it, motherfucker." "They still working on him, right?" "Can't get him stabilized." "That's what I heard the man say." "Oh, man." "Bread." " He's gonna be all right, Curt." " He looks real bad." "All my friends is gone." "All of them." "Blubber, Hooch." "All of them gone." "Me be the last." "That was Bread who fell out?" " What was he firing?" " Spider bags with pink tops." "Man, I got to get me some." "If it knocked Bread on his ass, that shit got to be right." "Hey, stranger." "Look what I brung you." "So I get them charges took off your ass, now you don't want nothing to do with me?" "That's some rotten-ass shit!" "Charge had no business being on me in the first place." "As many times as I got your ass high, now you wanna do me like this?" "How long you think this little Crab House shit gonna last?" "This is the last time that I'm gonna say it, Ronnie." "We ain't together no more... and I don't wanna see you no more." "Motherfucker." "It's like this every night on Vine Street, isn't it?" " What was it like when you moved in?" " Nice and quiet." " That was when?" " 1955." "Were you the first black family to buy a house here?" "One of them." " And what happened?" " Nothing." "Got along with people, black and white." "And the black families moving in, they own their homes?" "They wanted the same things as everyone else." "But the whites moved out, did that bother you?" "Some." "Because I wasn't raised to think about black and white." "I got along with everyone." "Then, after a few years, all the whites were gone." "A lot of black families moved out as well, out to Woodlawn, Catonsville... out to the county." "As soon as people get enough money, they move out." "But you raised 15 children in this neighborhood." "But the neighborhood, the drugs, it's only gotten worse." "And even in this family, as strong as it is..." " you have a child, like Gary, who..." " lf it was up to me..." "I'd get rid of all of this." "Stop it cold." "How would you do that?" "All these people selling these drugs..." "I'd get them down at the penitentiary, all of them." "I'd run that gas chamber till all this here stopped." "Gas chamber?" "What, all of them?" "You mean that?" "I didn't think so." "So Ella got your team into the mayor's citywide tournament?" " What was your summer league record?" " 0 and 10." " Well, where's your coach?" " We're kind of in between coaches." "R.C.'s brother coached us a few games, then there was this dude, Pumpkin." "But he had his own problems." "We talking to Pat Riley now." "Let me ask you something." "What does CMB stand for?" "I mean, that's what you call yourselves, right?" "That's not the team's name, that's just us." "The team's The Martin Luther Kings, named after the rec." "But what does CMB stand for?" "Crenshaw Mafia Brothers!" "Word up." " CMB, baby!" " Crenshaw is a boulevard in Los Angeles." "How'd you come by that name?" "We saw Boyz 'N' the Hood, got it from there." "That's the gang in Boyz 'N' the Hood." "Do you consider yourself a gangster?" "What?" "That's a dumb question?" "DeAndre, I want to ask you about something you wrote." "Yo, did Boo say he was coming?" "Hold up, DeAndre." "I want to ask you about something you wrote." ""Those silent screams..." ""and broken dreams." ""Addicts, junkies, and pushers, and fiends." ""Crowded spaces and sad faces..." ""never look back as the police chase us." ""Consumed slowly by chaos, a victim of the streets..." ""hungry for knowledge, but afraid to eat." ""A life of destruction." "It seems no one cares." ""A man-child alone, with burdens to bear."" "Wow." "You wrote this at Boys' Village?" "I was locked up." "Yeah." "Ma gave that to you?" "This is good, DeAndre." " Is it a rap?" " Just something I wrote." "Yo, Boo, what up?" "What up, man?" "So your mother's doing good since she got outta rehab, isn't she?" "Yeah." " You playing, or what?" " Yeah, man." "Put me in." "DeAndre, can I ask you about Tyreeka?" " What about her?" " You preparing yourself for fatherhood?" "Come on, man." "Come on!" "Get me in here." " You were going the last time, too." " What the hell?" "Give me these." " What's this?" " You shoot." "Bob Brown, coming up now!" "Come on, let's roll." "Close it down, shut it down." "All right, now." "Y'all ready?" "Here it is!" " Man, I'm going upstairs." " Hey, I want to pick my room!" " I will fill all this up, watch." " The whole house?" "The room down the hall is yours." " This room here is mine." " The hell it is, Andre!" " You said I could have my own room." " Not the biggest one." "Come on, you take this room over here." "Oh, man!" "All right, yeah!" "Yeah, boy!" " Ma, this house is right!" " Yeah?" "Well, money gonna be tight." "Most of my check gotta go to the rent." "I gotta see about getting me a job." "That would be real good." " How do you like your room, DeRodd?" " I got that whole room to myself?" " All to yourself." " I like it." "You all right?" "Hey, Fat Curt!" "Hey, House." " Been a while." " Yeah, man." "Look, something I want to give you, man." " It's from Bread's funeral." " Bread's funeral?" "Yeah, man." "There weren't too many old heads represented that day." "I meant to go." "Nice service though, man." "I thought you might want that." "Look at him, in his army uniform." "Look, man." "I gotta go." "Take care of yourself." "Bye." "My hours have been cut back." "I can see things are slowing all around." "I just think you can give me more hours." "Gary, by now there ain't no crab season left." " I know." " I'll have you back next summer for sure." "Next summer?" "Come on." "I can keep you on this Sunday, and next, but that's it." "Sorry, Gary, but that's the way this business goes." "I know, but you could..." " Need some help?" " I'm looking for the manager." "I'm the assistant manager." "What do you need?" "They're hiring?" "We're not hiring now, but you can fill an application." "Why should I, if y'all ain't hiring?" "When it gets closer to Christmastime, we'll be hiring then." "Yeah, all right." "Come on, hustle." "Pass that ball." "There you go." "Let's go." " Fuck that." " Come on." "You from the Martin Luther King rec center?" " Where's your coach?" " I'm coach." " Yeah, he like a player coach." " No." "You gotta have a real coach, if you're gonna play this tournament." "We're looking for another coach." "You're gonna have to forfeit this game till you get one." " Hold up, hold up!" " Come on!" "Look, I heard problems about these boys." "We can beat them!" " I'm telling you, I've seen them before." " I know." "Okay, that's your call." "All right, fellows." "We're gonna let you play today." "But you gonna need an adult coach by the next game..." " or else you're gonna forfeit." "Okay?" " Cool." "Now, let's do this." "Hope y'all fools came to play." "All right, we ain't win one game yet." "Miss Ella was kind enough to make us these T-shirts." "You gonna go out here and win one for her." "All right?" " Done." " All right." "Start lining up." "Turk, Boo, R.C., DeAndre, and Dinky." "All right, you're gonna sit on the bench." "Ready?" " Let's see you hype it up." " CMB!" "One, two, three." "Good press." "Keep on playing!" "Foul, 23 black!" "That's bullshit!" "25 cents." "Pay at the scores table." " What?" " Profanity is a 25-cent fine." " No, fuck that." " Make it 50 cents." " Suck my dick!" " 75!" "Yo, Dre!" "Come on, man!" "Come on!" "Just play the game." "Suck my motherfucking dick!" "Hey, 23!" "Make it a buck." " I'm throwing in the M.F. for free." " I ain't paying." "Then you ain't playing." " To hell with this shit." " Pay the fucking fine, man!" "Dinky, let's go." "Come on, man." "This ain't shit!" "Forget it, stay." "Play ball." "Play the game!" "Get in there, Brooks." "They don't even need to play!" "Let him go, man!" "If you apologize and pay the fine..." "That man was only enforcing the rules." "That's his job." "Miss Ella, I don't want to say anything to disrespect you... but I ain't apologizing for what I am to anybody." "You were wrong to curse that man." "You know that, DeAndre." "If I pay the fine, will you apologize, and stay with the team?" "We ain't much of a team, anyway." "You cannot go your whole life being afraid to extend yourself." "I ain't afraid." "As soon as they saw us coming with our homemade jerseys and all... they figured we was just a bunch of broke-ass West Side niggers." "That's all we was to them." "I grew up in this neighborhood, the same as you." "Let me tell you what I learned when I saw a little bit more of the world." "Not everybody is out there to judge you badly, all right?" "For those who are, that gives you no reason to beat them to the punch." "DeAndre, look at me." "I know you have a better heart than what you show people." "I know it." "Blue?" " Hey, girl!" " Hey, yourself!" "Look at you!" "Turn around, let me see!" "You look good!" "So what's going on?" "You going to meetings now?" "Let me tell you what happened, all right?" "You'll laugh." "I'm on Monroe Street." "This cop walks up to me, and says:" ""What's your name?" I say, "George Epps."" " You told him?" " I thought I could!" "I hadn't done anything lately." "So he runs a check, and as it turned out, I had violated my probation." " I had an outstanding warrant, I forgot!" " Man, Blue!" "Even the cop had to say, "Why'd you tell me your real name?"" "So, off to jail I went." "I detoxed in there, and when I came out..." "I just couldn't go back and stay at that house." "So I gathered up my paints and things, went over to the South Baltimore Station." " You know that shelter they got there?" " But who's at your house?" "Rita..." "Fat Curt... all of them." "How long you been clean?" "Three months, including detox." "That's good for you, girl." "That's good for you." "Everybody, we're ready to start the meeting... so can you take your seats, please?" "Find seats." "Can I have the reading of "Who's an Addict?"" "Five stitches." " Can you still play?" " I can play." "She ain't cut the muscle." "She just cut a little bit of the skin and the meat right there." "Peaches, though, she just too fucking jealous, man." "Come after me with a damn blade." "She thinks I'm messing with Deena... which I am, but still, you know what I'm saying?" "I bet, if somebody was shooting at you... and you move your hand just right, you could block the bullet." "With your hand, with the side of your hand." "You could block that shit." "I'm saying the bullet will bounce off the side of your bone." "Like this here." "Bullet's coming." "Just hit it right there." "How're you gonna move faster than a bullet?" "If you move fast enough, man, you can block that shit." "Man, you as high as shit." "Whatever." "What's up, ya'II?" "Where'd you come from, Boo?" " Home." " Home?" "What're you doing at home?" "Hitting that pipe." "Told you, I think Boo be on that rock, man." " Quit playing, man." " Don't lie, Boo." " You be sucking that glass dick." " I ain't messing with that shit." "Where you be half that time?" "Missing practice and shit?" "Fuck you all." "Just be at home." "Let me holler at you a minute." "What up, Cuz?" "Brooks and these other boys, they're too young." "They keep messing up." "They got so many excuses why the money ain't right." "You want this done right, you need to be on the corner with me." "But I can't do that, Dinky." " I got a child coming, man." " I understand all that." " But we can't be losing money." " Matter of fact... after we finish with this package here, that's it for a while." " No more dealing." " All right." "I can't be locked up when my baby born, man." "Boy, you know what time it is?" "I said, do you know what time it is?" " Damn, Ma, don't you ever sleep?" " It's 4:00 in the morning." "Come here, come up here." "You're smelling like weed." "I will not be having this, Andre, not in this house!" "Yeah, well... what do you want me to do?" "Your breath smell like alcohol." "From now on, there's going to be a curfew." "Your ass in this house by midnight, every night, you understand me?" "Yeah, all right." "You think I'm joking?" "If I smell this shit on you again, I'm calling your probation agent... and you're getting piss-tested." "They find the weed in your system... you'll be back on home monitoring, just like you was with Aunt Jackie." "You're gonna snitch me out?" "If you're not in this house by midnight, Andre... yes, I will." "Who's the foreman?" " I see y'all rehabing these houses?" " 40 units, right." " Who's the developer?" " It's a nonprofit thing, grant money." " What they selling for?" " $50,000 and up." "I used to do this, you know, rehabing houses." " I mean, if you're hiring..." " I got everybody I need right now." " I really had a company." " No kidding." "I got everybody I need, excuse me." " You worked for the telephone company?" " For five years." "And then for a temp agency after that." "But there's no work history for the last eight years." "That's right." "My marriage ended about that time... and I had to go on public assistance to support my son... and then I had my second child." "What I'm determined to do now is to get back to work... because I miss that feeling of earning a paycheck." "I admire you for that." "Thank you." "Let's see." "It's a cashier's position." "Pay is $6 an hour." "I need to talk to you." "Excuse me a second." "I need me a cigarette." "Denise Francine Boyd." " Yes." " Recognize me?" "No." "You were barred from this store a couple of years back for shoplifting." "I told you never to show your face here again." "Remember now?" "Reeka!" "Tyreeka, let me holler at you!" "Holler all you want." "I don't care." "Come on, girl!" "Stop walking." "I've been calling your house." "You're carrying my son, we should be talking." "Who said son?" " How you know it's not going to be a girl?" " I just know." "Whatever." "If you think I'm messing with other girls, you're wrong." "Reeka, let's go." "You know Ma got us a new house?" "Over on Harlem Avenue." "So?" "I'm looking for a job, too." "Got another cigarette?" "Let me light that." "Thanks." " It was a good meeting." " Yeah." "Usually, I go to the ones up at James McHenry." "I'm Marvin." "How you doing, Marvin?" "I'm better now." "What's your name?" "Fran." "Black, guess what?" "Deena says she's pregnant." "Yeah." "You was the first, but you ain't the only." "You gotta get your shit together if you're gonna be a father." "Of course, definitely, come on!" "Do Peaches know?" "I ain't told her, I know that." "That's him." "Who?" "Nigger who robbed me and my brother." "This nigger?" "Motherfucker!" "Shit." "Yo." "Do you know who you're fucking with?" "CMB, bitch!" "Yeah, motherfucker!" "You motherfucker!" "Asshole!" "You made my fucking shoe come off!" "Yeah, boy." " CMB." " Bitch." "Take your motherfucking clothes, too." "Yeah, he looked like the one anyway." "Say what?" "Look like?" "I'm saying, that might be the same boy." "Boo, you're an asshole, man!" "Man, what time you got?" "11:30." "What's up?" "I got to go." "I'll see you all tomorrow." "You're so fucking stupid, man." "Welcome to the show." "That's the Dog Pound over there!" "And tonight, we have 37 people who were all ironically fired from KFC... for doing chicken wrong." "I can't believe it." "Welcome to the show." "I'm your host." "My name is Arsenio." "Ma, you should talk to Reeka." "She's still acting like she don't want nothing to do with me." "Yeah, I need to talk with her." "She should feel like she's part of this family." "Tell her to stop by this weekend." "You tell her." "We ain't talking." "You ain't talking?" "She got your child, don't she?" "What up, Bryan?" " You got all them bullets out?" " All except the one in my leg." "You got a souvenir there." "I must be losing my motherfucking mind." "Motherfucker, where's my stash?" "What's up, Curt?" "I can't find my stash." "It ain't where you left it?" "I can't remember where that is." "Maybe somebody snatched." "Yeah, but from where?" "Hey, Gary!" "Up here, man!" "Tony!" "What's up, man?" "Tony, you working here?" "Yeah, how about that?" "I asked them for work, they said they had none." "How did you get hired?" "Just walking down the street." "Man calls out:" ""You want a job?"" "Just like that." "Right place at the right time." "Couldn't figure how to say no." "What have they got you doing?" "Carrying shit." "Maybe you can put in a word for me." "Sure, but you know... give me some time, make sure I don't fuck it up for myself." "What're you doing down this way?" " Don't act surprised." " What do you mean?" "I ain't here to see you, no way." "So you came all this way just to see my mother?" "Yeah." "Come on, girl, give me a hug." "Are you taking care of yourself and my grandchild?" " He's moving around a lot." " Nothing wrong with that." "Have you been to see a doctor yet?" "Not yet." "We need to do that." "Make sure everything is going okay." "I'm gonna go with you all." "What kind of things will I need when the baby gets born?" "I know, like a bassinet, right?" "Yeah, lots of clothes." "I'm gonna help out with all that." "How do you intend to help, Dre?" "With money." "I'm gonna do good by my son." "Your son?" " He swears it's gonna be a boy." " Lord have mercy." " Ain't got no use for a little girl." " Whatever, Dre." "Listen, I'm gonna run down to the store and get a couple of sodas." "Why don't you and Reeka have a little talk while I'm gone?" "Why you acting like this?" "You know I'm done with Chanel." "We been broke up." "But that's not what Peaches be saying." "Peaches don't know." "I ain't been with her since..." "Damn, I don't even know when." "For real." "Listen, Reeka... things are different." "I'm ready to do right." "Thought you were sleeping." "No, man, I can't sleep." "I feel like shit." "Did you come here for me?" "I heard you fell out." "You're a good man, Gary." "Anything I can get you?" "How about a bag of red-top?" "What did the doctor say?" "There're talking about dragging my ass off to some nursing home." "Someplace where people go to die and shit." "You're gonna die?" "Couple of months." "It could be more if I stop shooting dope." "You've been out there on Monroe and Fayette since forever, man." "Ever since I was a little kid working at Lendler's, I mean..." "You used to pull up in that Cadillac with the extra cones." "Yes, Lord." "Mr. Curt was the bomb." "Mr. Curt, I'm finished!" "Did you do the rims, boy?" "Young'un don't miss a trick." "The workingest little man." " Come on now." " You're giving me $20?" "Yeah, but look at me." "Who's gonna love me?" "You know, every mother's son got to have some love." "But who's gonna love me?" "I can't even say I had it bad, 'cause fuck it..." "I had me a good life." "I mean, I love to shoot dope." "This right here..." "This right here is how it ends, Gary." "Listen to me." "Go back to doing the things you was doing with that money and jobs and all." "You get your ass off them corners." "You hear me?" "Hey, Gary." "How're you feeling?" "My doctor here." "Go watch the hallway while I do this." "Got one of them plastic straws all ready and waiting." "Direct deposit." "This shit is the bomb." "Ain't no good dope out here no more." "It's all just chemicals." "Curt, you talk... the same shit every day, don't you?" "The doctor said if Curt quit drugging and all... he might have more time." "Time for what?" " How many people knew you had the TV?" " Everybody in the neighborhood." "'Cause we show children's videos every Friday afternoon for the kids... and movies for the older ones every Friday night." "It was probably someone who knew what they were after." " Not any of my kids." " That's not the case." " You work here?" " I volunteer, teaching art." "All kids here have a lot of respect for Miss Ella." " They know better than to steal from her." " It wasn't my kids." "I know what much." "I'll file a report." "Do you have insurance?" "I'm not sure." "I have to check with the association... because it was a used TV that was donated." " What happened?" " Somebody took the TV and VCR." "They broke in through the window, it looks like." "I'm sorry to hear that, Miss Ella." "You heard anything about it?" "I'm gonna look around back." "I'll join you." "This is fucked up, you know." "I got them Jumbo 60s, baby." "They're right as rain." " Spider bags, here." " No, I'm doing that no more." "Girl, you're looking good." "Looking real good." "Come take a walk with me, Gary." "How're you doing?" "I'm all right." "You dropping by the old neighborhood for a visit?" "I'm stopping by to see how Stevie and them are doing." " You ready for some news?" " What?" "You are gonna have a grandson." "You're gonna be a grand-daddy." "Your son is having a son all his own." " With that girl he been with?" " Yeah, Tyreeka." "Now you want another shock?" "I just got me a job." "At this factory way out in the county, Hunt Valley." "They put together these makeup kits." "It's damn near two hours by bus, but I got it." "I did it." "I got the job." "That's real good." "Think you can let me hold $10?" "Is that Daddy?" "Why don't you let me call over at BRC?" "Get you put on the list for a bed?" "I'm tight with the girl that does intake there." "I'm just asking you for $10." " I never turned you down when I had money." " But I don't have it to spare." "This new house we're at now..." "I'm renting from a friend, but it still costs me $255... and I got to still cover groceries, DeRodd needs school clothes... and with this new baby coming, I ain't got it." "Forget it." "Never mind." "You're right." "So, when's the baby due?" "December, the doctor said." "Thanks for letting me know." "I can always use a little good news." "Oh, Jesus!" "What's going on?" "You tell me." "Nothing much." "Why you ain't at work?" "Work?" "I... uh... shoot." "Sparrows Point." "I'm between things right now." "You know what?" "I got to go because I left something out there." "Not you, baby." "Andre!" "I'm in the kitchen!" "I got that job." " Ma, I need new shoes." " Goddamn, I don't even start till Monday!" "Seriously, that's good about the job." " I'm proud you're doing what you're doing." " Thank you, baby." "Now, what're you gonna do?" "We ain't at the Dew Drop no more, baby." "Here, you got to earn your keep." "You ain't gonna stay here just eating, sleeping, and running the streets." "What do you mean?" "I'm in the house by midnight." "Either you go to school or you get a job." "You hear me, Andre?" "Excuse me." "Y'all hiring?" " How old are you?" " 16." "I need a job bad." "I thought I'd be the only one out here." "Why would you think that?" "'Cause it's 6:00 in the morning." "You'll get used to it." "Today, I'm gonna do your laundry... and after that, I'm gonna wash your car and mow the lawn." "Who are you, and what have you done with our son?" "I forgot how much bullshit goes with having a job." "Yeah, the bullshit's worse than actual work." "Like when I was at the phone company?" "Those women would laugh and laugh... about shit what just wasn't even funny." "But because them white women were running the place..." "I'd be laughing my ass off right along with them." "Yo, Ma!" "Check me out." "Look at you." "I want you to meet somebody." "This is Marvin." "He catches meetings with me over at the church." "That's my son, Andre." "What's up?" "All right." "So, tell me, how did your first day go?" "What happened?" "They got me clearing tables and cleaning up to start." "But the manager said if that goes well..." "I could work at a grill or the register." "And they're not even making you cut them things off?" "Andre, I swear you're turning back into my child again." "No, I'm a working man." "And I'm gonna show you by helping out with the bills." "First I've got to save up for a bassinet." "You know, maybe some toys, baby clothes, and stuff." "So you're for real about this, finally." "Yeah." "Got to be a father to my son." "You hauled this thing down here yourself?" "Sure did." "200 pounds, bulk metal only." "Here you go. $2." "Every little bit helps." "Looking for somebody?" "A friend of mine, Tony." "He working for you last week." "Tony got locked up." " Excuse me?" " That's what I heard." "What did he get locked up for?" "How the fuck do I know?" "You need another day laborer?" "I got everybody I need today." "Why do I need you to steal my car?" "Me and Will will make it so no one will ever see this car again." " Not police, insurance company..." " What's the blue book on it?" "$1,500 or so, $250 deductible." "That leaves you with $1,200 at least." "Give me and Will $50... and you can keep the rest of that money to put down a new ride." "How do I know you ain't full of shit?" "I report the car stolen." "Three days later, police come telling me it's down at impound lot." "Then they charge me to tow it home." "Bullshit." "Come on, trust me, Chief." " You give it to us, she ain't coming back." " We're going to recycle the motherfucker." " What if they ask whose car it is?" " Tell them it's mine." "If they ask for proof?" "They just make you sign a form if it's older than '86." "You've got it all figured out." "It came to me one day, $50 from the owner, $40 for the bulk metal." "A lot of people parting with their old cars, gotta get rid of them." " Some caper." "You rewrote the game." " You know I'm the guy to do it." "Don't let the trash get that full before you empty it." "Make sure it's full." "Sometimes those bags burst, and you don't want that." "I see a lot of tables that need to be wiped down." " Do that first?" " First the tables, then the trash bags." "Shorty, get me a soda from the icebox." "You don't have to get it, let him get it." "You got a problem?" "No." " Then watch your tone of voice." " Watch my tone of voice in my own house?" "I'll get you a soda." "I don't care." "Why are you even here?" "Ma's at work." " Get used to that." " What do you mean?" "I'm moving in." "I'm going to be staying with your mother for a while." "Moving in here?" "Bullshit." "When she come home, ask her." "After that there'll be no more of cussing me, so get it out of your system now." "You hear me?" " Hey." " Hey." " How's it going at Wendy's?" " All right." " What day you work last?" " Saturday." "I keep asking the manager for more hours, but she don't do it." "What about that bankroll you're carrying?" "I just saw you out there with your cousin." "What, got back to slinging coke?" "He owed me that since September." "I'm supposed to believe you ain't hustling, as much time as you spend on the streets." "I ain't hustling." "What about you?" "When did you last go to Narcotics Anonymous?" "I'm the parent." "You're the child." "I don't need to explain myself to you." " You stopped going to the meetings." " I don't need it no more." "Them people up at that church chase meetings like they chased dope." "All they're about are being ex-drug addicts." "I'm past that." "Yeah, all right." "Get back at him." "Don't make me have to beat both your asses." "You all want to hear some crazy shit?" " Peaches saying she's pregnant, man." " Seriously?" "That means Deena and her are pregnant?" "No, I'm saying, she's just saying it." "That might be coming from jealousy." "The bitch don't look no heavier, know what I'm saying?" " What if it's the truth?" " Then I'll handle my shit like a man." "I don't give a fuck." "Fuck that." "Don't you know who you're talking to?" "You all got to move on." "This is our corner." " What?" " Y'all standing on our corner." " Your corner?" " You talking to us?" "Y'all standing on our corner." "Y'all got to move." "Don't be standing here tomorrow, I'll have something for your punk asses." "Fuck you!" " What the hell was that?" " He said to get off the corner, it's theirs." "Shit." "I got my.9 in the stash house." "You wanna go get it?" "Them look like D.C. plates." "Y'all see that shit?" "What you want to do?" "Fuck them!" "What do you want to do?" " $40 or $50 a car." " Them cars ain't made of metal." "What's up, man?" "Check this out, I'm looking for a tout." "Y'all trying to work?" "I'm paying 2 bills on half a G-pack." " No, I'm not with it." " I'm with Gee Money today." "All right, straighten up, I'll be here if you'll need some work." "Slip." "That motherfucker can't be from around here if he's giving Hungry a package." "Like I was saying, when that car crusher gets through with it... it's like a brick, a big metal brick." "Yeah, Gary, that's some real deep thinking." "If you know anybody that need their car disappeared, let me know." "Thing is, Gary, cars disappear whether folks need them to or not." "Look around." "Cars all over the place." "It ain't about that." "The car owners make out all right off the insurance." " Hey, man, did you see that?" " Speak of the devil." "They're doing it without me." "Hey, Will!" "That's my caper." "That's my caper." "Well, Gary, you're the nigger with the ideas." "He the nigger with the truck." "It's fucked up." "We ain't doing right... but how somebody tell us get off the corner when they do the same thing?" "That's what I'm saying." "Fuck that." "I ain't giving up that corner." "Shit belong to us." "There was nobody out there before us." "If the niggers are for real, they'll be coming back tonight." "What's up?" "You ain't saying nothing." "Gonna be out there with us or what?" "My son's about to be born, man." "So, you want the D.C. niggers to take our corner?" "I ain't saying that." "Listen, if somebody gets hurt, that's another story." "If something like that happen, I'm right there with y'all, all right?" "All right, cousin." "What's up?" "Rollers!" " Man, what's up?" " Are you coming to fuck around, R. C?" "Why are you here bullshitting?" "You're supposed to be there." " D.C. niggers probably won't even come." " We'll find out, won't we?" "Don't fall for your bullshit, like this ain't real." " I know it's real." " Act like it, then." " What's going on?" " What are you doing over here?" " I came to see what y'all talking about." " You all just don't get it." "This ain't no damn game, man." "Get the fuck out of here!" "Dinky!" " Who was shooting?" " I don't know." " You see nobody, no car going by?" " That wasn't them." " Who started shooting?" " Don't know." "You all right?" " How many was it?" " I couldn't tell." " Boo, you all right?" " Yeah." " You see nobody?" " No." "Chill." "What the fuck was that, man?" "I'm running, bullets flying right over my head." " How many?" " Must've been at least five or six of them." "They ran away like some bitches, too." "D.C. niggers ain't shit." " The niggers were shooting right at me, too." " It's all cool." "I think I bust one of them in the leg." "Me, too." "I hit one of them niggers in the arm." "I heard him go, "Oh, shit."" "Serious." " Goddamn!" " Yeah, Black, you missed it." "I'm telling you, man, they picked the wrong corner to fuck with." "Ma said to come and find you." "You gotta go." "What's up?" "Reeka's having the baby." "Come on, you gotta go." "What are you waiting for, boy?" "Go ahead." "Come on." "Go handle your biz." "You'll have to start pushing again." "Come on, you doing good, baby." "You just gotta push more harder." "You hear me?" "You wanna get this baby out, you have to listen to her, okay?" "You just need to push more harder, just a little harder, all right?" "That's good." "Keep going." " Where in the hell have you been?" " I couldn't get a hack." " How's she doing in there?" " Get in there and see." "I think I'll stay out here." "What the hell is wrong with you?" "You blunted?" "You been smoking weed, ain't you?" "Well, if this don't mess with your high, nothing will." "All right." "Come on, push." "Push, push harder, Reeka." "You can do this." "The harder you push, the sooner it'll be over." "Come on." "And push." "Come on, push with all your might." "You gotta get her to push." "Boy, you gotta talk to her!" "Come on again, Reeka." " Again." " Bear down for 10 seconds." "Once more, come on." "Keep it up." "One last push." "One last..." "It's a boy." "Listen to him." "A beautiful Thanksgiving baby." "The Apgars are 9 and 9, and his weight is 7 pounds 8 ounces." "That's a nice size baby for a tiny thing like you." "You should be proud of yourself, you did a great job... and you have one fine looking son to show for it." " What are you going to name your son?" " deante." "Look, Miss Fran." "Ain't you a sweet thing?" "Can I ask you some questions about you and your baby?" "Okay." "The first question's a big one." "Do you feel ready?" " Ready like how, like what, to be a mother?" " Yeah, right." "Ready or not, it's happening." "It ain't like I planned it or something." "You don't use condoms when you and DeAndre sleep together?" "Damn, y'all be askin' everything." " Don't answer it, if it's too personal." " I'll answer you." "No, he don't like using them things, he say he don't like how they feel." "But I want to answer the question you asked me before." "Yes, I do feel like I'm ready to be a mother... because I'm gonna give my baby lots of love and my baby'll love me back." "Miss Freeman?" "Yeah." "Everything looks fine, your due date is still the 20th." " Okay, thank you." " You're welcome." "So what you were saying?" "Do you think..." "DeAndre is ready to be a father?" "I know that he ain't the type to turn his back on his child... or the mother of his child." "'Cause I know him very well, and I do feel like I can say that." "Does that mean..." "Do you see a future for you and DeAndre together, as your child is growing up?" "You know what?" "Miss Fran, that's DeAndre's mother... she's real honest with me when she talks to me... and she's already told me:" ""Don't think that just because you're having his baby..." ""that he's gonna stay with you."" "But I know he loves me." "I feel it in my heart... and I just feel like he's gonna stick by me." "He's gonna be there for me." "And I love him." "Thank you very much." "Fran!" "Y'all late." "You said you'd call me when Tyreeka went into labor." "It got hectic." "What can I say?" "What kind of contrary child fixes to get himself born... on Thanksgiving Day." "How's Tyreeka?" "Good." "She did real good." "How's the baby?" "7 pounds, 8 ounces." "deante Tyreek McCullough." "Came out quiet, like he knows the whole damn story already." "Congratulations, Dad." "You got money for a soda?" " Which cab are you calling?" " Royal." "They said five minutes." "He seems to be taking it in his stride." "You should have seen him a couple of hours ago." "Maybe that'll get him to step up, be a father to his son." "It might happen." "What do you think?" "Well, I think he's watching you." "Me?" "Yeah, he's watching you, Fran, with one eye... waiting to see if you'll stumble or not." "What's that got to do with him?" "He needs to do what he needs to do, regardless." "You still taking classes at the Community College?" "English and Algebra." "Got to pass them before I could take anything else." " How you doing with it?" " English is fine." "But I don't truck with no Algebra." "All that x and y nonsense." "What the hell you need that shit for?" "And you're working over at Hunt Valley, at the cosmetics factory?" "Two and a half hours on the bus... to stand there and pack boxes all day long for minimum wage?" "I could do better than that." "Got my cab." "I'll catch you down a little later." "Okay, Grandma." "Lord!" " Hey, happy Thanksgiving." " Same to you, DeAndre." "Spiders." "Buy one." "You might get one for free." "Last call, y'all." "Better get the last of the spiders." " Grandma!" " Don't even start." "Girl, you know you love it." "Ma, this mean I'm an uncle, right?" "Good Lord." "That don't even sound right." "Uncle DeRodd." " How's the girl doing?" " Oh, my God." "That little girl had to work!" "And the baby?" "He's already acting out, just like Andre." "Yes, Lord." "So, DeAndre, you was right there when your son was born?" " Yeah, boy." "I carried him." " Don't you go telling lies." "You was a scared little boy in that room." "Did nothing but stand with his mouth open." "No joke." "Reeka was all screaming, I didn't wanna have nothing to do with it." "I tell you, after seeing that, I have much respect for women." "Have a seat, Daddy, you and Grandma here." "Y'all missed the first round, but y'all in time for the second." "It all came out great, Fran, I mean every last dish." "Damn, we look good." "I mean, even Stevie dressed up." "The Boyd family got its problems, but we clean up real well." "Ma, if I'm an uncle, does that mean deante is my cousin?" " Your nephew." " He'll still have to do what I tell him, right?" "Boy, don't nobody in this family know how to do what they told, all right?" "Look, someone do a second grace." "Okay." "Come on, y'all." "Dear Lord... thank you for giving us this meal together, as a family... and for getting us to this day, in spite of so many things." " Amen." " Amen." "Let's eat, y'all." "Marvin ain't around?" "He's probably still up at his mother's." "She's cooking for the holidays, too." " Ma." " What?" "I'm just saying, we're doing good with this house and all." "Marvin, he's just bringing the family down." "You don't know that, Dre." " I don't wanna go back to Fayette Street, Ma." " Neither do I." "Tonight, we was like a family." "Nobody was acting stupid." " It was great." " I know." "We should do it again for Christmas." " I'm saying, it ain't no coke." " Stop your crying." "It doesn't matter." "Baby powder, huh?" "I'm selling the same shit they sell at the grocery store." "It's still a crime." " Need any help?" " Just waiting for the wagon." " Coke or dope?" " Baby powder." "Am I remembering right?" "You got shot this summer behind selling burns." "Yo, Bob Brown!" "I ain't seen you around much." " I got promoted." "I'm downtown now." " You a detective?" "Bob Brown, a knocker." "Damn!" " You miss me already, do you?" " Shit." "I was the devil you knew." "These young police coming on nowadays, ain't gonna be the same love out here." "He's out of his damn mind." "I just come out of the hospital." "The whole damn world turned upside down." " Hey, brother." " What's up, man?" " Hey, man, I see they got Bryan." " Yeah, selling burn bag." "Curt, you seen Ronnie Boice?" "All right." "This is harassment." "Shut the fuck up already." "Get in there." "I'm sick of your shit." " I'll talk to my lawyer about this." " Get your ass down, and shut the fuck up." " Take that to the Feds, pig." " Fucker." "But I just kept playing with that thing..." "I mean, a long time after getting high was fun." "Because I was scared." "I was scared of all the pain that was waiting for me in the straight life." "I don't know nothing about that kind of pain." "See, the pain of addiction..." "I wasn't scared of that." "You know what I'm saying?" "I'm not scared of that." "Because when I was out there... my thinking was telling me:" ""Yeah, this is pain." ""But it's pain I understand."" "It's a pain I knew, you see." "And that's what we gotta understand in these rooms." "Stop taking drugs?" "That's the easy part, y'all." "That's a piece of cake." "The hard part comes after that." "When we gotta go back and deal with the same life... that we were running from in the first place." "That's the deal." "Thanks y'all for letting me share." " Hi, my name's Barbara, and I'm an addict." " Hi, Barbara." "Donna just gave y'all the word, people." "Y'all have done the easy part by getting clean." "But for every 10 of you here, only one is gonna stay clean." "Those are the odds." "So don't even think of resting on no laurels." "Now, is there anybody here with six months clean?" "There you go." "Fran, you've got six months." "Go over and get your key chain." " Three months clean?" " Why not?" "I got mine last week." "Next time, maybe." "For the most important person here tonight, is anybody here with one day clean?" "Hey, there you go." " Thank you." " Keep coming back, girl." "The bus from Poplar Grove was late, man." " You working today?" " Hell, yeah." "You ain't on the schedule." "You was on for yesterday, man." "Nah, today." "You missed your shift yesterday." " My day was Wednesday this week." " That was last week." "This week you were Tuesday and Thursday." "We don't need you today." "We needed you yesterday." "So what are you saying?" "Take the rest of the week off, DeAndre." "I need the money." " That's bullshit!" " Take it easy." " You got a problem?" " Evidently." "What you need to do is go home and chill, and think about things." "Yo, Andre, hold up." "Man, fuck her!" "No, man, you can't say that." " Nobody told me they changed days." " You're supposed to look at the schedule." " So now it's my fault?" " Even if it ain't, man..." "Just tell her that you messed up." "Fuck that." "I ain't kissing her ass for no minimum wage." "I had the same thing you got going on now, when I first started." "You got to carry things different." "This ain't no corner." "What you saying?" "I mean, out on the corner, you ain't apologizing for shit." "Man, it wasn't easy for me neither, know what I'm saying?" "Edmondson and Brice, yo." "Been there, done that." "What your boys think about you slinging burgers and fries?" "Yeah, all right." "I'll be back in a few." "I'll see you later." " Y'all didn't leave nothing behind, did you?" " There's good money in brass." "But this came from a cemetery, man." "Cemetery." "You coming back, right?" "Look at me." "I could barely walk." "You think I'm gonna burn you, and run like I'm some damn track star?" "What's up, Curt?" " You still looking for Ronnie?" " Yeah, where she at?" "She's down there on Vine." "She's selling for Gee Money today." "Thanks, Curt." " Fuck, no." " Not even one time?" "Maybe once or twice." "But I didn't get deep with that shit." "My pops got killed behind that ready rock." "They don't lock anybody up behind the shit?" "The police saying that shit ain't even murder." "He up in Lincoln Park, with his jacket pulled over his head and shit, beat to hell." "What the fuck they think?" "He beat himself to death?" "Yo, man." "It's been quiet out there since them D.C. boys rolled out." "What's up?" "That's 'cause we fucked them up, niggers." "Motherfuckers probably still in the hospital and shit." " Snatch pops!" " Fuck, Deon." " The three wise men, huh?" " Ho, ho, ho, motherfucker." " What's up?" " Not much." "There comes Boo." "What's going on down at Wendy's?" " Ain't nothing." " Look at this shit." "Boy, you gonna change that shirt?" "You wearing the same motherfucking shirt for three days now, Boo." " You all working out?" " Why you asking?" " Who got the package?" " Me, Brooks and Deon." " Can you give me 20?" "I'll help you sell." " I ain't giving you shit." "You fucked up the last shit we put you with." " Give me 10." " Fuck you!" " You fucked up." " I'm cool." "You cool with that pipe, nigger." "That's what you mean." "You're fucking dusty-ass, Boo." " Give me five, then." " Get out of here, man." " How long he been like that?" " Like a month." "You ain't noticed?" "Damn, he tore up." "Shit." "All that hair." "Yeah, just like Andre with his dreads." "Lord." "I hope he ain't like Andre." "He said he wanted us to get a place together." "I told him we can't do that right away." "That he got to get himself a good job, and put some money together first." "He claims he wants us to be a family and all." "Reeka, now I told you months back... that if you were having this child, you were doing it because you wanted to." " It is what I want." " Andre won't stay just 'cause of this baby." "'Cause my son..." "I know him." "He's gonna play at being a father, then be right back on them corners." " He says he's tired of it." " He says that." "But he ain't doing nothing to stay away from it." "He ain't going to school." " He ain't get no more hours at Wendy's." " He's looking for another job." "He's trying, Miss Fran." "He don't wanna go back out there." " Hey, brother." " I got some boys for you." "Give me one." "That worked out real good, didn't it?" " I feel like somebody gonna roll up on us." " Ain't nobody gonna do shit." "I've seen people get hurt behind this game." " Bryan Mathis got shot this past summer." " Bryan Mathis?" "He didn't do it like we're doing." "When you sell burns, you sell out... then you move your ass off the corner." "You don't stand there waiting..." " or your ass will catch a bullet." " I was out there for a while, all right?" " They'll come back on me." " But they didn't, did they?" "They didn't." "Okay, and now we got $40 right here to share between the two of us." "Now bring your ass on." "Y'all hiring?" "No." "Cool." "Least you could do is keep the shit out of my room." " You got to get some help." " Yeah, I will." "You either get back down to BRC, or you got to go, Marvin." " I'm gonna call." " You call, or you gather up your shit and go." "I said, I'd call." " What you thinking about?" " Nothing." "How can you sit there and not think about anything?" "I did it all the time in school." "You think he knows I'm his father?" "Ain't no other man in this room every night, is there?" " I don't think your aunt likes me up here." " She's cool with it." "Besides, this is my room, and you're deante's father... so I'm not trying to hear it." "I don't feel like a father." "I can't pay for shit." "I'm just another broke-ass nigger that can't do nothing for his child." "You're doing what you can." "You're looking for work, right?" "Ain't nobody gonna hire me." "They take one look at me and know what I'm about." "DeAndre, you're smart." "You can do anything you put your mind to." "No, I'm a corner boy." "Except, I ain't even that." "No, I'm a corner boy." "Except, I ain't even that." "My cousin Dinky's been carrying me, letting me stay in the background." "But you know how that is." "You ain't on the corner with your package, you lose most of what you make." "People fucking up or ripping you off." "I ain't been about shit for months." "You gonna go back?" "Reeka, I can't do anything for him without money in my pocket." "I don't have enough to buy him shoes, clothes, or anything else." "He's got shoes." "He got all those things behind my check money." "Yeah, off-brand shoes." " I've seen babies in little Nikes." " What do babies know about Nikes?" "He don't know." "He don't even care." "What he do need is a father." "How do you do that, if you're on the corner getting locked up or killed?" "You didn't talk all that shit last summer." "Back then, whatever I made on the corner, I spent on you." "The money's not important." "You're trying to find an excuse to go back down McHenry Street." " DeAndre." " I'll be back." "You know what?" "It just slammed!" "Let the boys be boys, slam!" "But wait, it gets worse I'm not watered down, so I'm dying of thirst" "Comin' through with the scam The fool-proof plan" "The B-boys make some noise You know it, and just slam!" " Just slam." " Over here." "We need some heavy lifters." "Thank you, baby." "Be careful of that glass." "What's up, Miss Ella?" "We're making this garden, and we can't dig in the middle here... until we get these large stones free." " So you're looking for a man?" " She got you instead." " Fuck you, Dre." " Hey, boys." " Sorry, Miss Ella." " Why're you making a garden here, anyway?" "You're right here on the corner." "They're gonna be slinging drugs here 24l7." "When they see what we're doing, maybe they'll move somewhere else." "'Cause this is gonna be a memorial garden." " Memorial for who?" " Mr. Powell." "The gentleman killed in the supermarket robbery..." " on Baltimore Street last year." " I remember that." "Some stickup kids rolled up, ran inside and lit his ass up." " Yeah, Melvin Powell." " Oh, you remember him, then?" "Yeah, he was my uncle." "Oh, Tae, I didn't know that." "Come on, you guys." "Roll up your sleeves." "Help out." " C'mon, y'all." " What about the other thing, man?" "That thing we was gonna do, man." "I'll meet y'all down the way." "All right, man." "Whatever." "Sorry, Miss Ella, but we've gotta roll out." "Yeah, whatever." "Come on, Tae." "This one is real heavy." "Take care." " Mr. Blue!" " Hey, Dink." "Red tops, man." "No, son, I ain't up no more." "I'm going in a different direction." "I'm glad to hear that, man." " You take care." " You, too." "Later." "DeAndre, how's your mother doing?" " She's good." " Yeah?" "How're you doing?" "I'm cool." "I'll take four." "Yo, Black, we're selling out, man." "We'll have to vial up again while these red tops are ringing out." "What's up, man?" "I thought you had that other thing with R.C. and Dinky." "What are you planting, anyway?" "I mean, it's wintertime." "Irises, tulips and crocuses." "See, you plant the bulbs in the winter... and the flowers come up in the spring." "What if they don't?" "They will, DeAndre." "Anyway... the community association got the deed to the property." "So if we don't stake our claim to it now... there'll be all kinds of garbage, and everything else around here in springtime." "I need a job, Miss Ella." "What happened to Wendy's?" "It didn't work out." " I didn't get along with the manager." " And whose fault was that?" "Hers." "You have to be patient with life, DeAndre." "You can't get everything you want when you want it." "Come on, help me with these." "This one over here." "Looks good, huh?" "Yo, Dre." "CMB." " Mount, Fayette" " Get your guns out" "Yo, Tae, get your guns out Yo, Brooks, get your guns out" "Yo, everybody, get your guns out" "Fran, baby... where am I gonna go?" " I don't give a shit." " I called." "I called down BRC." " No." " Fran." "I called for a bed, and they got me on the waiting list." "You know I want that for myself." "I've been through detox." "I've been clean with you." "I want to get back to clean." "Ain't but a few weeks till Christmas." "And you're gonna put me on the street?" "Even after I called BRC for a bed?" "You know that ain't right." "Let me stay the holidays." "By then I'll have that bed and be gone." "I swear." "You're 18?" "Because I can't hire you to work these hours if you're not." "I'm guessing." "You didn't bring your ID." "Let me talk to the other manager." " Who are you?" " Is Joe here?" "Where the hell did he go?" " What're you..." " Where's he?" "Or you're going with him." "He went out back." "Goddamn it!" "I'm tired of this Western district nickel-and-dime bullshit." "Outside." " Yo, Cardy, tell them who you is." " This ain't him." "No, our kid's younger." "Y'all got a working man there." "That boy's got a job." " What're you doing around here, anyway?" " Visiting my mother." "Yeah?" "Where does she live at?" "This is a designated drug-free zone." "You loiter, you go." "The next time we roll past, you'd best not be around." "Walk on, or take a humble." "Fuck or fight, gentlemen." "I'm serious." "Don't make no sense." "You there." "Come here." " Ma'am?" " You want this?" " Thank you, ma'am." " Take it away from my house." "Yeah, you're gonna be stylin'." " Thank you, ma'am." " Check out that lemon yellow." "Not bad." "Yeah, all right." "Real good." "We've got more than enough, cuz." "Just finish up what's on the mirror." "I'll grab some of them sandwich bags and we'll divide up." "Cool." "Where'd you get that jacket?" "You like it, Officer?" "Where the fuck my money at, man?" " You hear me?" " Come on, man." "That's what the fuck I'm talking about." "Five-0." "7-A-14, I need an ambo at Roe and Fayette." "10-4, 7-Alpha-14, medic to Monroe and Fayette." "Y'all see what happened?" "Hey, come here!" "Don't you walk away from me when I'm talking to you." "Motherfuck, I said single file!" " You ain't in line here." " You told me I could move up in front, man..." "This motherfucker here don't get served." " I don't..." " Who the fuck is you talking to?" "Get your ass out of the line... or none of these other motherfuckers are gonna get served." "Y'all gonna start with a bomb." "Y'all remember where y'all caught this blast from." "Motherfuckers." "Y'all some ugly-ass, dope fiend bitches." "Shit." "You might have had enough respect for me to at least put the mirror back where it was." " You just don't know." " Ma, come on..." "DeAndre, I'm begging you, leave this shit alone." "Baby, you don't wanna know where it's gonna take you." "You're high right now." "Look at you." "You're all dusty." "No, I just smoked some weed, that's all." "So are you snorting that shit now or smoking it?" "No, I just smoked some weed, and I shared a 40." "That's all it is." "If I catch you with any of it, I swear to God I'll put your ass on the street." "Ain't nobody getting high." "Are we ready?" "Give it a tug." "For your daughter too, Ella." "We kept it a surprise." "Thank you." "Thank you all very much." "Why are you running, Pooh?" " Hey, Moselle." " Hey, Blue." " Where's Ella?" " She's over there." "DeAndre, why're you chasing my baby?" "Did you do that?" "Now you know better than that." "Tell him you're sorry." "Sorry." "Now go home and wash your face." "That was hard for you?" "Out there." "The memorial." "I wasn't expecting to see Pooh's name." "But I'm glad they did it." "I am glad they remembered." "Everyone remembers, Ella." " One shot, back of the head." " Yeah, check for rape, too." " Someone called the M.E., right?" " Yeah." " My baby." " I'm sorry, ma'am." "We need you downtown." "You know, she was gone a year before I came down here and started volunteering." "And a year after that, I was the one running the place." "And now it's been five years." " And you know my youngest boy, Keatie?" " Sure." "He'll be graduating from Francis M. Woods... and he asks me all the time if we could just leave here." "And I understand it." "But I just can't." "I can't leave." "I feel like my baby's soul is out there... somewhere, trying to get back to me." "She's out there." "And if I leave my house, or my street... how will she ever find me?" "West Side dope ain't shit, man!" "I know, 'cause I'm from the East Side." "The best dope is the East Side dope, you know what I'm saying?" "I just got one thing." "What the fuck are you still doing here?" " Look at you." " How're you doing?" "Is Rita here?" " It's been a while." " Yeah, it has." " How you been?" " Better than I was." "I hear that." "Where's Curt at?" "Upstairs." "Curt, man, come on down." "Who yelling?" "It's Blue." "You do look good, Blue." "You look real good." "Yeah, well, you know how that goes." "You know, girl, you need to get some attention for yourself." " You can see that." " That's okay, I can use some antibiotics." "You need a doctor, Rita." " How've you been?" " Same old, same old." "Look at you." "That's what I'm here about." "I know it'll sound strange coming from me, 'cause I started this craziness... but I feel like I gotta be the one to put an end to it." "I mean, I ain't judging nobody." "You know that." "And I'm not saying anything to hurt anyone." "But, man, this has got to stop." "I mean, at least here, in this house." "We're gonna be somewhere, Blue." "Yeah, Scalio, but not here, man." "Come on, man, please." "This used to be my mother's house." "You look good, Blue." "Real good." "If any of y'all need help, I'm there for you." "You know that." " I spoke with Daddy today." " Where did you see him?" "Where else?" "Under that same liquor store." "I don't know why you bother to talk with Daddy." "I don't know." "You the one always saying he never liked you, or your children neither." "You're the one he used to beat up." "But you're always the one to go to Baltimore Street, see if he's still around." "Ain't got but one father." "Sometimes that's one father too many." "How's DeAndre doing?" "I swear, if I didn't know any better, I think the boy getting high." "And that man Marvin I met at them meetings, Marvin Parker... girl, he back to the same old shit." "Things started to disappear around the house, my toaster..." "DeRodd's Sega Genesis games." "So, you want to do one?" "I'm going home." "He's saying he'll pay $20 for six." "Fuck that!" "This ain't K-Mart." "$5 apiece, no discount." "I'm tired of negotiating with y'all motherfuckers." "How're you doing, Miss Davis?" "Boy, where you going?" " Good pulse, he may have popped a lung." " Can we tube him?" "No, let's go." "We'll get a line in on the way." "Let's get him on the board." "Trauma's on fly-by." "He goes to University." "Y'all need to step back." "Step back to the curb right now." "Who's that?" "Got my man, Boo." "Who shot Boo?" "One of them Vincent Street niggers, I think." " No, it was one of them Terrace niggers." " Which one?" "I don't know, man." "That's what I heard, anyway." "They lit Boo's ass up." "That nigger looks dead." "Man, fuck it." "He done burned too many people chasing that coke." "Most definitely." " What the fuck happened?" " Boo got popped." " Ambo took him." " Who did it?" "Probably a nigger with a gun." " It's not funny, motherfucker." " What are you doing?" " Come on, Dink." " Let go, man." "Boo gonna be all right." "What the fuck is up with y'all, man?" " Man, chill, come on." " No, cuz, fuck chill." "Boo is CMB." "They have him in the back of a damn ambo." "He gets popped, we supposed to go deep." " Yo, man, Boo fucked up." " He's still CMB, motherfucker." "What?" "Fuck you too, nigger." "Bitch-ass!" "Y'all going to take this like some bitches?" "Ain't about shit no more." "Man, where Brooks at?" "Y'all be fucking up my count so bad, I gotta figure he'd been getting high." " Where are we headed?" " Poplar Grove." "We gonna sell baking soda up in the Grove." "Crazy." " It's all in the game." " You gonna get me killed." "Just trust me, all right." "You gonna see." "People getting shot on Poplar Grove all the time, just for standing there." " You have me up there burning people?" " We'll do a couple, then we gonna roll out." "Mr. McCullough, over here." " You Andre's girl, right?" " Reeka." " What you doing all the way over here?" " This is where Fran and Andre live at." "You seen Andre?" "I'm visiting with the baby, and he ain't been around." "Is that the baby?" "You wanna hold him?" "Yeah, hold on." "There you go." "Look at that baby." "Yo, man, he's got Andre's mouth and his cheeks." "His eyes, too, I think." "He got a lot of Andre in him." "Hey, you, hey, boy." "Not that I want him to be too much like DeAndre." "No offense, but I was hoping he'd take after my side of the family... in some things." "DeAndre is a little rough, all right, you know." "Was you looking for Miss Fran's house?" "No, we just strolling." "But I'm glad you seen me, so I could take a look at the little one right here." "I'm staying over on Reeves with my aunt." "Anytime you want to come past, you're welcome." "You is his grandfather and all." "I'll be right back, okay?" "You know who I am?" "Do you?" "Yeah, you do." "I'm your grandpa." "You know what I am?" "Do you?" "Look here, I got to roll now." "Mr. Gary, you take care." "You, too, darling." "Take care of the little one." "He's beautiful." "I'm a drug addict." "That's what I am." "Stop talking bullshit." "Growing up, thinking about what you might be... you never ever think to yourself that I'll be addicted to drugs." "We just gonna do this shit, then we gonna slip away." "Ma." "What?" "The food is gone." "What?" "Boy, what in the hell you talking about?" "Where the food at?" "I heard him come in last night." "He didn't come upstairs." "Damn!" "I'll be damned." "He even took the box of cereal." "How much you think a nigger gonna get for selling a box of Cheerios?" "Did Mr. Marvin take our food?" "Go get dressed." "Where are we going?" "Get dressed." "Get your ass dressed right now!" " Ma, he's got to go." " Shut up, Andre." "I'm just saying, he's bringing us down." "He ain't the only one." "I can't take this shit anymore." "Shut up!" "You take DeRodd to Scoogie's house and tell what happened." "See DeRodd get fed." " Where are you going at?" " Out." "Come on, Ma, you been doing so good." "Shift changed over." "They'll be rolling past soon." "Fuck them." "We making money." "No, fuck them." "I'll go get the stash." "Motherfucker!" "Snatch pops." "Steal from me?" "Please!" "Be cool, Dinky." "Snatch pops." "Fuck you, R.C." "No snatch backs." "Give me my shoe." "On that fucking pipe, ain't you?" "Where the pink tops at?" "That young boy that had them earlier, where he at?" "He's gone." "Where?" "It's 4:00 in the morning." "He's gone." "What you got?" "Spider bag and black tops." "Let me get a one-on-one." " You were doing so good." " Don't talk shit." "One-on-one, come on." "Go on home." "Goddamn, you gonna stand there like you forgot how to sell drugs?" "Go home." "Please." "You scared me." "I thought you came up here to vial the bag." "Ain't nothing to vial." "Nothing to vial?" "I know we ain't gone through a half ounce already." "R.C.'s stealing again, man." "Motherfucker on the pipe and shit." "Come on, Tae." "He getting high for real." "That shit is fucked up." "Ball up!" "That's the Impressions with the classic, People Get Ready." "I hope you're ready, because another cold day is on the way." "It'll be sunny today." "A high of 35, but clouds will roll in." "You know how that goes." "Tonight, a low of 25 degrees." "The good news is, coming up, I've got more of your favorite classics." "All that shit for her birthday." "Yeah, she'll be 10." "Last year, she made 10, too." "Count it up, maestro." "Yeah, Tae." "What's up?" "My last one, right here." "This shit's done." "So?" "That shit's finished, right there." "Get down!" "Get on the ground!" " Move!" " Get on the floor!" "You, come here." "Put your hands up!" " Coke on the table." "Raw shit." " Forty pieces at least." "This ought to jump you right up out of juvenile." " Might get you to Eager Street this time." " That shit will hold you." "So, that's where I am now." "Looking to move into this group home over on Hanover Street." "Just take it light... 'cause that's what my sponsor tells me I need to do." "You see, there are times when I want to make my own plans... do my own thing... but that's what got me here in the first place." "All that nonsense." "Always telling myself I could do what I wanted when I wanted it." "Always telling myself I could do what I wanted when I wanted it." "Right?" "But, now, I got to listen to somebody else." "You know, and this is hard." "It's real hard." "But you know what?" "Ain't no job harder... than being a drug addict." "Everyone here knows that nobody work harder than a dope fiend." "You wake up in the morning... man, not a dime to your name." "No friends, no family, nobody that got your back." "But by the time you roll out of wherever you lay your head... you know where you're gonna get $10." "And you get it." "Ain't no job harder in America." "That's why I got to keep reminding myself... that compared to that... this way of living got to be called easy." "You see?" "Anyhow..." "I talked too long." "Thanks for listening." "Thank you." "Anyone else have a burning desire to share?" "I just wanted to say that... my name is Fran..." "Hey, Fran." "...and I am a drug addict." "Welcome, keep coming back." "A year is an arbitrary measure of lives lived." "This story goes on." "Decisions are made and unmade." "Only the corner is fixed and certain." "Despite occasional arrest..." "DeAndre McCullough continued to sell drugs... at McHenry and Gilmor." "And he continued to use both heroin and cocaine." "Today, at the age of 22, DeAndre lives in Baltimore... struggling with the temptations of the corner." "His cousin, Dinky, was shot to death in 1995... ambushed by a crew from the Lexington Terrace Projects." "As for the other Crenshaw Mafia Brothers..." "R.C. is free after serving most of a year on drug and assault charges." "Tae also was recently released from jail after a shooting case was dismissed." "And Boo, who survived his initial wounding... was shot and killed on McHenry Street a year later." "Tyreeka Freeman is now a part-time college student... and full-time hospital employee." "Her son, deante, attends the first grade." "Tyreeka and DeAndre have been apart since 1995." "Rita Hale died from the infected abscesses on her arms." "Scalio was badly beaten by dealers... in a dispute over a light package." "He died a year later... having never fully recovered from his injuries." "Fat Curt outlived them." "He collapsed for the last time in early 1997... and was admitted to a West Baltimore nursing home with chronic liver disease." "He died there, six short blocks from his corner." "Veronica Boice lives in West Baltimore." "At the time of filming, she had 33 days clean." "In 1996, Ella Thompson moved to a middle-class neighborhood." "She did so reluctantly... only after her Fayette Street home was burglarized." "Yet, she continued to work with the children of West Baltimore." "Two years ago, Ella died of a heart attack." "She was 47." "George "Blue" Epps remains clean... and is working for a drug treatment program at Fayette and Monroe Streets." "Bunchie Boyd detoxed in 1995... but died of lung cancer the following year." "Denise Francine Boyd now lives in Baltimore County... where her younger son, DeRodd, attends high school." "Fran has been clean for more than four years... and she is employed as a drug outreach worker." "In March of 1996, in his parents' basement..." "Gary McCullough died of a heroin overdose." "After the funeral, Gary's son DeAndre said these words:" "I know this sounds wrong... but I'm almost glad for him." "I feel like he was never going to get out of it." "He was never going to be what he was." "I think he was sad from knowing that." "I feel like he's at peace now." "Hey, Fran." "Come here a minute." " You the real Fran Boyd, right?" " Yeah, that's me." " Okay, ready to do this?" " Yeah, let's do it." "All right." "There's what, DeAndre..." "Tyreeka." " That's the real Blue, right?" " Yeah, that's Blue." " How y'all doing?" " How you doing?" " You're the real Blue." " Yes, I am." " George Epps." " Yes, sir, how you doing?" "All right, okay." "Now we are on this corner." "Let me ask you something, Fran." "Like any story, what would be a happy ending for this one?" "Just to see..." "I hope that this story can help some people... in a positive way." "Hope that... the message will get out there, as far as drug addicts are concerned... that we are human beings." "Maybe... get some people to open more treatment centers... and just help people to get off drugs." "You've been clean now four years?" " No turning back?" " No turning back." "After watching this..." "After watching this and watching Khandi, who portrayed my character..." "She really made me... have the opportunity to see just how I used to live." "And just watching her has made me... even stronger than what I was before the movie even started." "So, just looking at that..." "I hope that there's no turning back." " And you, Blue?" " I'm clean six years." " And you, Blue?" " I'm clean six years." " No turning back?" " No turning back." " Absolutely?" " Absolutely." " Positively?" " Positively, without a shadow of a doubt." " How you gonna do that?" " One day at a time." "Doing the necessary things I have to do... always making sure that I don't forget where I came from." "'Cause if I do, I could wind up back on Fayette and Monroe... doing the same negative things." "I keep God in my life, 'cause he brought me through." "And Tyreeka, you've been the quiet one of the bunch for a long time." "What's your thoughts on all this?" "My thoughts is, I think this movie is a good thing." "I hope that young girls my age..." "At first I thought it would make me... be thought of as, "Oh, my goodness, she's dumb." "Why's she doing that?"" "But now that I'm older, and I see a lot of young girls... going through the same thing as me, I know it just wasn't me." "If I could, I wish I could help someone to know that... let young girls know that life is real... and some things you just gotta wake up on." "DeAndre... a lot of this movie, of course, is focused on you." "What are some of things you're gonna do to be able to deal with your own struggle... insofar as addiction and drugs, and thug life, and whatever?" "There's really not a whole lot to that, you know what I mean?" "It becomes a time where the corner just gets played out." "It's like, it's old now." "You know what I mean?" "The things that I used to do, when I go back to the old neighborhood... they give me a headache now." "Everything has changed." "The game is so watered down now, it's ridiculous." "You couldn't buy a friend after '88." "So you can't really trust nobody." "I'm staying at a halfway house by choice... to put some structure and discipline in my life." "Learn how to be responsible, grow up, learn how to be a man... be a better father to my kids." "Tyreeka, my baby's mother, the situation that we was in..." "I got her pregnant when she was, I think, 13 or 14." "And through all that, she still finished school." "She's continuing going to college." "She just got promoted at her job." "She has her own place." "If not for her, I don't know where my son would be." "With your son, deante... what's some of the ways you're gonna try to get him to avoid... what could be the inevitable, the corner?" "Just by being as strong as I can be." "If I'm not strong, I can't make him be strong." "Just by teaching him what he sees, letting him know what's wrong and right." "Just by being upbeat my own self." "I can't preach it to him, if I'm not doing it my own self." "Looking at this picture, the inevitable question for me... is sort of remembrances of your father and your husband." "What has it done to those memories of Gary?" "It's hard dealing with my father's situation... because me and my father never had that father-son relationship... that I see a lot of kids have with their fathers." "My father was there for me financially, except his addiction caught up with him." "After that, it was like hitting and missing." "Me and my father didn't have that relationship... like when I needed to learn how to shave, my first girlfriend." "When I got into fights, he was there to discipline me and give me money." "He pacified me with $100 bills." "Let me ask Fran a question now." "What do you want from him now?" "What I really want from Andre... is for Andre... to understand that, number one, he is not alone." "A lot of times, Andre thinks that nobody cares... nobody's in his corner." "Sometimes I get to the point where I just have to let go... not because I don't care, but because I know... that I'm harming him more than helping him." "I'm just waiting for that day to come... that Andre and I can sit down and have that mother-and-son talk." "I love him so much." "Andre is the love of my life... which is another reason why I know I have to stay strong." "All I can do is be an example." "I know that I hurt Andre in a lot of ways, but I can't change the past." "I want him to know that I'm here for him, and always will be." "But until he comes to the point... where he wants the same type of life that I want..." "I can't help him." "But I want you to know that I love you, and I'll always be here for you." "On that note, I think we can... say goodnight to the corner, at least for tonight." " Thank you." " Thank you." " Thanks so much." " Okay, sweetheart." "All right, DeAndre." "All right, homie." "All right, George Epps." "The real Blue." "All right, Tyreeka." " Thank you." " You're welcome, sweetie." "And cut."