'NEW YORK STATE OF MIND' HITS BLACKS AND LATINOS HARDEST

As far as lyrics go, Nas is one of the illest rappers alive. Unfortunately,
most non-rap fans don't know who Nas, Rakim or Raekwon are because the only
rap they are exposed to is the poetically and politically whack.

The rappers with the hard-hitting social commentary, uplifting vision,
complex rhyme patterns and smooth delivery get no real media attention,
which is probably a good thing. good rappers who become "mainstream" seem
to turn into corporate lap dogs.

The rappers who are actually considered (by fans) to be among the most
talented artists are unknown outside of real hip-hop culture. Escaping the
corrupting influence of money-hungry pop music executives is a considerable
benefit. But that benign neglect comes at a price.

The general public's ignorance of rap and hip-hop culture fosters fear and
crushes creativity.

But let's get back to Nas. On his first album, "Illmatic," - a bona fide
hip-hop classic - he had this joint (song) called "New York State of Mind."
If you haven't heard it, you should check it out. It's smooth social
commentary; somewhat disturbing, yet hopeful.. The beat is butta and the
track is laced with an ill saxophone.

Nas also co-stars in the recently-released and halfway decent flick
"Belly." On the soundtrack, the Queens-born orator is in a New York State
of Mind, dropping lyrics in a cut with Method Man, DMX and Ja Rule. Talking
about the U.S. prison system, Has raps: ". . . the Beast loves to eat black
meat/ Got us n-ga's from the 'hood, hanging off his teeth. . ."

And here's the dark side of the New York State of Mind. Today, the Justice
Policy Institute and the Correctional Association of New York is releasing
a study titled: "New York State of Mind? Higher Education vs. Prison
Funding in the Empire State, 1988-1998."

According to the study, New York State's spending on prisons has grown by
$761.3 million over the past 10 years. State funds for state and city
colleges have been cut back $615 million - almost a dollar-for-dollar
trade-off.

For anyone who actually follows this stuff, the findings are not too
surprising, which isn't to say the study is not important. In fact, it's
these kind of studies that should be informing policy but. . .

Blacks and Latinos have been hardest hit by the state's priority change,
partly because of the 1973 Rockefeller Drug Laws that instituted harsh
mandatory minimum sentencing laws for drug offenders, the study says.

"This study spotlights a counterproductive shift in government priorities
that has had a devastating impact on young people of color - and completely
failed to make New York safer," says Robert Gangi, executive director of
the Correctional Association of New York and co-author of the study.

More African-Americans have entered prison for drug offenses than have
graduated from State University of New York (SUNY) every year since 1989
and almost twice as many Latino brothers and sisters were swallowed into
the Belly of the Beast for drug offense as graduated from SUNY in 1997.
More than 62 percent of people sent to New York prisons last year were
convicted of non-violent offenses, with drug offenders accounting for 47
percent of convictions.

Each prisoner in the New York prison system costs taxpayers there $30,000 a
year - enough to pay tuition fees for nine students at SUNY or city
University of New York (CUNY), according to the study.

The study also noted that hikes in tuition fees, which have doubled at CUNY
since 1988, have disproportionately affected people of color. Right now,
fees at SUNY represent 25 percent of the median income for white families.
For black and Latin families, the fees represent 42 percent of their median
income.

Of course, schooling is not a panacea but there's no rational reason I can
think of that justifies cynical snickers at the thought of redemption and
the value of education.

A recent study conducted by the JPI in California this past September found
similar results. For every African-American male enrolled in a California
public university five are in prison. For every three Latino men in
California's fast-growing prison industry, one is in college.

Meanwhile, the illegal drug business does about a half-trillion dollars in
profit every year. Over half of that passes through U.S. banks, according
to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and development (OCED). Of
course, the so-called War on Drugs does not include going after bankers.

When a segment of the population has been effectively locked-out of our
"thriving" economy, bombarded with the idea that human worth is directly
linked to your ability to consume or produce wealth, we're talking mass
hopelessness.

You can't build enough prisons to deal with that. And that's word to Nas.

Checked-by: Joel W. Johnson