@GOLGATHA w/POPZ

In urban America every hood'z got a Hood Popz, He's that one Elder that lil kids love to see
coming and so respected by everybody that even if you dont have a father, you by street
tribal nature call Him Popz, and if you do have a father, your father calls him Pops too.

Pops knows everybody, and no matter how far down the street you are away from Him,
people make it mandatory to yell out His honorable hood acknowledgement:

"Hey Popz I see you"

And even though He may be too far away to recognize you, Popz always made you feel like family with
those famous words:

"Alright now, take it slow, and tell yo mama I said Hello now."

Today, my hood Popz travelled over 500 miles from my hood to visit me on California Death Row,
Yeah, that was me at 18 years old, untaimable, peerless and in selfdestructive mode and had
zero respect for authority, at the time, fatherless, and even the demons of my enemies
didn't want to talk to me, but there was Popz then, and today, here's Popz, in the visiting room,
@Golgatha, as if 5 years of not seeing eachoher face to face never happened, speaking to me as
if there was no break in our last conversation, as if time doesn't apply to him, seriously, check
Him out tho, and it would be valuable that we take PIANKHIs idea for us all to engage our Hood Elders
about the concept of solution based ideas about living longer, on our own terms; Enjouy your reading.

THE ANATOMY OF A ZINE:
Now that I have officially consulted with my O.G., it is with stern confidence, inspite of
my heathenistic current position, that I present the following to all parties involved.
RESIST HATRED, AND FORGIVE Pt.1.

@Golgatha w/Popz
a conversation by: Xzyzst

Date: August 26, 2017
Time: 9am Saturday morning
Location: San Quentin State Prison
Condemned Visiting Room Cages
Format: Hand documented by: Xzyzst
Contributors: 7
1. Xzyzst
2. Popz
3. Mugzy & wife
4. J.Rock & wife
5. Swoop
Category: Interview

THE BACK STORY:

The following experience was generated by the brilliance of our chief editor PIANKHI, that required our
Venting productions to include, introspective challenges of exploratory ideas about solution based resolve
as it applies to the horrific blood exchange on the innercity streets of America between Law Enforcement
officers and our youth. PIANKHI's vision to power up THE VENTS reality with sound strategies towards the
concept of the eraticication of hate, forced me to consult with one of my most adored hood Elders, who
visited me here @Golgatha, to provide extreme confirmation of scriptual context language, "AS WE", Forgive.

@Golgatha w/Popz
a conversation by: Xzyzst

P Man, if it wasn't for it being you I come uphere to see, I would've turned around and gone back home.

XZ What happened Popz?

P Man, they made me do all kind of stuff, stand over here, go over there, take everything out cho pockets,
being all disrespectful, oooh my back stated cuttin up, I didnt think I was going to make that long walk
over here, so outside of cheetos, know you love you some cheetos, whatelse can I get out the machines
for ya? (both smiling)

And tthen, in swift tribal nature, The Hood rushed to console Popz, starting with the ESe homie Muggzy
and his wife in the cage to my lft:

Muggzy's wife Yeah, that's messed up, they got new cops working outhere today, and the lady cop doesn't
know what she is doing and just being rude to everybody, I waited over an hour.

XZ Popz, this is Mr. and Mrs. Muggzy (smiling)

P Yeah, I felt violated, nice to meet yall...

Then the homie J-Rock from Compton jumped up:

J.R. Excuse me, Hey Popz, my name is Jesse and this is my wife and I just wanted to respectfully acknowledge
you first and foremost, but they not suppose to be treating you like that, got these rookies around here
that dont know what they're doing.

P Thank you, and bless yall because I stood outhere in that line so long I almost went back home....
bout to work my last...

Now, mind you, Popz is still talking to us, while walking away from us on his way to the vending machines
to cop some snacks and my cheetos, and as I'm standing there feeling happy and warm and thankful to the
community for helping me console Popz with honor, I couldn't help but to look over at the homie Swoop from
Long Beach staring at the door, becase after hearing how the cops treated Popz, one could only imagine how
Swoops family was being treated.

SW Hell, thats probably what the hold up is, here they come now, yeah, that's fucked up Man.... Popz
alright tho.

I layed that moment out for readers of this issue because on the surface, this is typical of the
mistreatment that goes on that society has become numb to, so, it's, no biggie. However, on another
level, Popz presence alone, by tribal nature, somehow, magically negated the fact that through
the ignorant selfserving recorded eyes of the system, me, the Ese, The Pirk and The Crip are all
supposed to be enemies, and are such a threat to eachother, that they built walk alone cages in the
visiting room, where even our families, and most honored fom our communities are forced to visit us in
seperate cages, that we all psychologically dont see, especially when law enforcement officers dont respect
the loving wives., children, and the education administrator with a phd, community leader and church pastor
in a space designed for intimate human engagement.

Me and Popz talked for almost 2hrs about the state of the hood, family, the good old days, you name it,
it was like I was floating on His every word, until he said:

P Now you sent me something you wrote, sounded pretty important to you so I had to see you face to face
about it to let you know that you are spot on about the lack of meaningful connection to the streets,
bloodshed exchange between the police and the youth and forgiveness; thats some territory.

XZ Yeah, I wat to put it in one of our zine issues, but I had to check with you to see if I was using
the Lords Prayer out of context, I mean, i wrote it anyway, but I wasnt going to do nothing with it
until I ran it by you, because people will call you out about misquoting scripture, especially
heathens like myself (both laughing)

P No, at first, I read it and saw that it was so good, I thought you may have gotten it from somewhere
else, but it's good man, and up to that point where Jesus is teaching this prayer, it's the first
time He says "OUR Father", which is critical because the word "Our" makes us Family, us, yall, police
and then we can get into "AS WE". Yeah, ummhumm, let 'em read it man, thats some good stuff, short,
simple and very powerful, good job Son.

(pages 6&7 reserved for forgive pt.1 & Popz response note:

P So to answer the question about who's side God is on, well, according to The Lords Prayer, being recited
at all these funerals, God is on the side of the forgiver.

XZ Fo sho, and to sustain reason to not engage forgiveness means that what? We all should continue to make
funeral arrangements?

P Forgiveness is Godly, and everybody aint built to apply Gods word to themselves, and the exposure of
surface level hatred is everywhere right now, you and lil Byron stay on it.

XZ I know you need to catch that airplane back home, thank you for coming to see about your boy, and I
can't wait to stir the pot abdout the concept of forgiveness, I love you man, and aint nothing you can do about it.

Escort Officer You ready to go?

XZ Hell nawh!

(everybody sharing a group laugh, and a prayerful farewell to Popz ): )