Everyone has a story
9-11
The day everything changed
Including
"We the people"
...
I have my own memories about that day
And the many days after that day
And how my life changed
Because of not just the event
But the actions of many of you simple people
And I do mean many of you people
Do YOU remember how YOU acted towards other people?
Let me re-paint that picture for you
Two days before 9-11
I was on a mini tour with Gladys Knight
I was the "Back line tech" for her band
She was one of my principle groups I teched for often for about 5 years
The others included The Isley Brothers, Tina Marie, and a few others
I set up their band gear for them and did some lite production
As well as other clients I worked for as a A/V tech and Sound tech and a Stage Hand
I had been doing that kind of work for over 15 years
As well as being a party promoter and percussionist and a DJ
Based in the Atlanta area
I was spoiled
I lived Downtown
I was a freelance tech and a artist
I made good money and was respected by many
And my name is
HAFEZ
A muslim name
But I digress so you can see how my name played into this
"Shituation"
I was in Dover Downs for two nights with Gladys Knights band
Two great shows
And then we had to be in Canada the next day
So we packed up the gear and loaded the truck by ourselves
And headed through New York to get to Canada
We saw the towers and the traffic a day and a half before 9-11
We barely made the show due to the long drive over the boarder
And got there just in time to set up the show while the opening acts were preforming
Local 103 London Ontario rocks!
And that was the last show on that weekly tour
And we had busted ass to get everywhere they were due to play that week
And just like the other gigs with other acts
We got paid
And now we were off with money in our pockets
And time on our hands
I remember us trying to get into the only club/bar that was still open after the show
And they would not let us in
At first I thought is was a Black thing because they would not let "my kind" into their club/bar
But my truck driver "Dallas" who was white was told the same thing
As we asked why we could not get in they told us
"Because you are American"
And we was pissed!
So we took our money back to the hotel and talked mad shit about them racist ass bitches
And packed and got ready to go home
America
As we got to the boarder we went shopping at the duty free store and then crossed the boarder on the way back down south from Canada
We went through Pa, Ohio, and headed down I think 75 to Ga
The ride was interesting
We talked about how fucked up it was to be discriminated on in Canada by the cops at the door at that club/bar
And how there was plenty of people who looked like us who were let in even after we left
And we compared Canada to America
And as we argued down the road we noticed that the sun had not come up as usual and how time seemed to drag as we got through Pa and Ohio with ease
And then came this freaky ass fog
It was thick and moved over the road like something out of the Twilight Zone
It also turned blue, then red, then green too
And that freaked us out
So we rolled up the windows and drove through it as fast as we could until we got to the moutains
As we went up the mountains the fog cleared to see that the sun had been up for some time but you could not see any sun due to the fog
As we drove up the mountain we noticed the road crews had stopped working and was all standing at the edge of the mountain looking out as if something was wrong
We didn't pay it much attention until we came back down the mountain to notice the fog was back and the sun was barely out in the mid day
We gassed up at the station and that is when "Dallas" my driver saw the TV fr the first time
They were showing the first building falling over and over
He called for me to come see as he went to the pay phone to call home as we gassed up
I was shocked to see the tower falling but even more shocked to see the faces and the moods of many of the people who were running around seemingly with their heads in a cloud
And all we wanted to do is get out of Tenn and get to Ga to drop me off so he could head down to Fla where he knew some Radical white groups who had compounds in Fla that he could hide at just in case this was the end of the world
*blank stare*
And we hauled ass back to Ga
I lived down town
And as we drove into down town it looked like a ghost town
There was not even a homeless person on the street
Most of the people in my building was gone too
It seemed as if everyone was thinking that Atlanta was gonna be next
And I stayed next to the Eleventh court of Appeals and the old Treasury Department building
So most folks thought it would be next
So I unpacked my gear, got my money, and went inside to watch the news like everybody else
And I knew there was no real place to run at that time and felt that if it was my time to go? I was gonna go in my crib
And all day it was cloudy and lonely
And then the hate came
What hate you ask?
The hate that was advertised by the media about who possibly did this act
Muslims
And the country shut down
And when something tragic happens and people stay home?
The entertainment business gets hit hard
Because nobody wants to go out and spend money
And so I sat and waited to find out how bad it was because I was booked solid for mounths
But all my artist was not feeling like taking a plane or bus or running the risk of being killed in another terrorist attack
So I was stuck
And then I watched as the hate spread
Anyone with a muslim name or a look was shun
By everyday people
And as work started to pick up I noticed how many of my clients were not calling me or speaking to me
I wondered why at first
And then I remembered my own name
And wondered if that was the case
I got one call from the Union for a private gig that I was told that I had to go work
I wondered why me, but it was work so I went to the GWCC for the gig
When I got there I saw few people in the building but then noticed Secret Service around and as I asked they told me it was the Presidents first speech after 9-11
"We the people"
And I was one of the only stagehands that was allowed to secure the stage that the President was to speak behind his bullet proof podium to the country for the first time after 9-11
And at that point I thought my fares were over
The government trusted me to secure the platform that the president spoke on top of
So maybe the rest of these other Americans would trust me too
Not the case
As I sat along with everyone else in America and watched his speech on the platform I built
And listened to his words in hopes that my struggle was over and I would be treated like I was
As a Vet (USMC) as a American Black Man
And as a skilled laborer with a skill set of over 15 years
And after that speech I sat hopeful
And the phone did not ring
The same feeling I got before the speech came back
I called people and they acted like I was Usama's son or something
I got one call from my client to set up a show for Gladys Knight in Memphis at the Fairgrounds
And as the truck came to pick me up we hit the road again
And I was happy to be back working and making money
Prior to that gig I took all my money out the banks
I didn't want to risk loosing it
So I stashed it in damn near all the places I could find around my crib
But I digress again
So as we got to Memphis to set up the show
I met a little black man who was security at the back of the stage
He spoke to me
He said
"How you like Memphis? ... You know WE killed King here!"
With a smile as if he was proud to brag on something
I was floored
But I shook it off and set up the band for the show
I have watched many of these artist preform for years so I could tell what mood they were in
And Gladys was scared shitless!
She could barely sing for fear that something was about to happen
She cut her show short and sang
"GOD Bless America"
And left the stage
And that was the last time she played until she took the offer to do her show in Vegas
And the last time I set up a show for the rest of that year and it was on the beginning of October
I didn't work for 68 more days!
Nobody wanted to touch me
My friends were also the same way
I was not happy
Because if I was trusted by the government to keep the president safe
Surely I should be ok for everybody else
But work was slow
People were still out of work
And what little work that was being had I wasn't getting
And then I called a old friend of mines who had a circus that he needed help with getting started
And asked me to help
But could not offer me much money
And I was so desperate for work I took it
It was 27 weeks on the road working the second tent for
Universoul Circus
With a bunch of Canadian Verilight techs
My nic name was
"Pimpy the clown"
Because every city we went to I found people in the area that would service the crew
lol
Anywho
As the tour got going I was unable to go back home to go to court about my late rent
I was sending money back to the land lord so that he would not have to use that "rit for posession" that I got for not showing up due to work
But I have lived there for over 4 years and never had any issues and the and lord was getting payments from me
So all was good
And then while working I got a call from my cousin say'n that I had made the news
I ask how and he told me that all my shit had been evicted on the street of down town and there was a feeding frienzy that stopped traffic for 3 hours in down town rush hour
I found out that the land lord had gone on funeral leave and had left the desk to a ex con dyke chick who along with some of the cleaning crew had found alot of shit in my apartment to steal
And they covered it up by evicting my belongings
And the land lord had my money that I had to get back
But I had loss much more than my stuff
I lost my money that was hidden in my stuff too
And I was on the road working 3 shows a day for 5 days and two shows on the weekend and then we broke the tent down after the last show on Sunday and was off to the next city
So I had no time to do nothing but work
As I talked to the owner about the improvement of the second tent on tour, he told me that he was not making enough money to keep the show out on the road and that he had to curb cost somehow
So he hired a crew from South Africa where we had been the year before
And I helped train them with the agreement that I would not be let go too
Because I had nowhere to go
In theory
And as we broke the tent and packed up in Loisville Ky I was given a letter that stated:
"Thank you for assisting the Universoul Circus, we will no longer be needing your assistance"
With a check for bus fare back to Atlanta in a check
And there I stood in the lobby of a air port hotel with two g=bags of work clothes and a lap top
And I had to find a friend off of Black Planet who I had met while there and ask her to stay there until I found a place to go and what my next move was gonna be
It was Derby week and no hotels were available
And stay'n with people you don't really know can get scary
And it did
lol
So I talked to my little brother and moved to the DC area
Why DC
Because DC has a Union that is the 3rd highest paying union in the country and the only one that staffs black techs with the backing of the union in masses
No other place in my craft respects tech of color but Dc
Because DC had a black and a white separate union
At one time
So that was the only place I could get work with the skills I had without being treated like a nigger
No offense but that is real
Anywho
i="" here="" and="" got="" set="" up="" with="" the="" union="">
And found a hole in the wall spot in Dc to live and got to work
And then the Snipper came
And shut down the city
And I was stuck again
And it took a long time to rebuild to where I am not
I had lost alot
I lost over 200k in finances and personal property
I lost my home
I lost friends
I lost respect
And I will never forget the mindset of so many people who had issues with people of Muslim names and ethnic backgrounds
During 9-11
I will never forget the vision of them Towers as we drove by
I will never forget how proud I was to see the President of my country standing comfortably on my stage as he spoke to the nation
And I will never forget the respect I got from so many and so few
And Usama is still alive
Sadam is dead
A war is still killing my people and theirs
And everybody is still walking around with their heads in their butt
And I am still just getting on my feet
In a new town
With new people
Starting almost all over
And I will never forget
9-11
And all the people who changed that day too
Many of you
And all I have now is what?
>
respect
9-11
The day everything changed
Including
"We the people"
...
I have my own memories about that day
And the many days after that day
And how my life changed
Because of not just the event
But the actions of many of you simple people
And I do mean many of you people
Do YOU remember how YOU acted towards other people?
Let me re-paint that picture for you
Two days before 9-11
I was on a mini tour with Gladys Knight
I was the "Back line tech" for her band
She was one of my principle groups I teched for often for about 5 years
The others included The Isley Brothers, Tina Marie, and a few others
I set up their band gear for them and did some lite production
As well as other clients I worked for as a A/V tech and Sound tech and a Stage Hand
I had been doing that kind of work for over 15 years
As well as being a party promoter and percussionist and a DJ
Based in the Atlanta area
I was spoiled
I lived Downtown
I was a freelance tech and a artist
I made good money and was respected by many
And my name is
HAFEZ
A muslim name
But I digress so you can see how my name played into this
"Shituation"
I was in Dover Downs for two nights with Gladys Knights band
Two great shows
And then we had to be in Canada the next day
So we packed up the gear and loaded the truck by ourselves
And headed through New York to get to Canada
We saw the towers and the traffic a day and a half before 9-11
We barely made the show due to the long drive over the boarder
And got there just in time to set up the show while the opening acts were preforming
Local 103 London Ontario rocks!
And that was the last show on that weekly tour
And we had busted ass to get everywhere they were due to play that week
And just like the other gigs with other acts
We got paid
And now we were off with money in our pockets
And time on our hands
I remember us trying to get into the only club/bar that was still open after the show
And they would not let us in
At first I thought is was a Black thing because they would not let "my kind" into their club/bar
But my truck driver "Dallas" who was white was told the same thing
As we asked why we could not get in they told us
"Because you are American"
And we was pissed!
So we took our money back to the hotel and talked mad shit about them racist ass bitches
And packed and got ready to go home
America
As we got to the boarder we went shopping at the duty free store and then crossed the boarder on the way back down south from Canada
We went through Pa, Ohio, and headed down I think 75 to Ga
The ride was interesting
We talked about how fucked up it was to be discriminated on in Canada by the cops at the door at that club/bar
And how there was plenty of people who looked like us who were let in even after we left
And we compared Canada to America
And as we argued down the road we noticed that the sun had not come up as usual and how time seemed to drag as we got through Pa and Ohio with ease
And then came this freaky ass fog
It was thick and moved over the road like something out of the Twilight Zone
It also turned blue, then red, then green too
And that freaked us out
So we rolled up the windows and drove through it as fast as we could until we got to the moutains
As we went up the mountains the fog cleared to see that the sun had been up for some time but you could not see any sun due to the fog
As we drove up the mountain we noticed the road crews had stopped working and was all standing at the edge of the mountain looking out as if something was wrong
We didn't pay it much attention until we came back down the mountain to notice the fog was back and the sun was barely out in the mid day
We gassed up at the station and that is when "Dallas" my driver saw the TV fr the first time
They were showing the first building falling over and over
He called for me to come see as he went to the pay phone to call home as we gassed up
I was shocked to see the tower falling but even more shocked to see the faces and the moods of many of the people who were running around seemingly with their heads in a cloud
And all we wanted to do is get out of Tenn and get to Ga to drop me off so he could head down to Fla where he knew some Radical white groups who had compounds in Fla that he could hide at just in case this was the end of the world
*blank stare*
And we hauled ass back to Ga
I lived down town
And as we drove into down town it looked like a ghost town
There was not even a homeless person on the street
Most of the people in my building was gone too
It seemed as if everyone was thinking that Atlanta was gonna be next
And I stayed next to the Eleventh court of Appeals and the old Treasury Department building
So most folks thought it would be next
So I unpacked my gear, got my money, and went inside to watch the news like everybody else
And I knew there was no real place to run at that time and felt that if it was my time to go? I was gonna go in my crib
And all day it was cloudy and lonely
And then the hate came
What hate you ask?
The hate that was advertised by the media about who possibly did this act
Muslims
And the country shut down
And when something tragic happens and people stay home?
The entertainment business gets hit hard
Because nobody wants to go out and spend money
And so I sat and waited to find out how bad it was because I was booked solid for mounths
But all my artist was not feeling like taking a plane or bus or running the risk of being killed in another terrorist attack
So I was stuck
And then I watched as the hate spread
Anyone with a muslim name or a look was shun
By everyday people
And as work started to pick up I noticed how many of my clients were not calling me or speaking to me
I wondered why at first
And then I remembered my own name
And wondered if that was the case
I got one call from the Union for a private gig that I was told that I had to go work
I wondered why me, but it was work so I went to the GWCC for the gig
When I got there I saw few people in the building but then noticed Secret Service around and as I asked they told me it was the Presidents first speech after 9-11
"We the people"
And I was one of the only stagehands that was allowed to secure the stage that the President was to speak behind his bullet proof podium to the country for the first time after 9-11
And at that point I thought my fares were over
The government trusted me to secure the platform that the president spoke on top of
So maybe the rest of these other Americans would trust me too
Not the case
As I sat along with everyone else in America and watched his speech on the platform I built
And listened to his words in hopes that my struggle was over and I would be treated like I was
As a Vet (USMC) as a American Black Man
And as a skilled laborer with a skill set of over 15 years
And after that speech I sat hopeful
And the phone did not ring
The same feeling I got before the speech came back
I called people and they acted like I was Usama's son or something
I got one call from my client to set up a show for Gladys Knight in Memphis at the Fairgrounds
And as the truck came to pick me up we hit the road again
And I was happy to be back working and making money
Prior to that gig I took all my money out the banks
I didn't want to risk loosing it
So I stashed it in damn near all the places I could find around my crib
But I digress again
So as we got to Memphis to set up the show
I met a little black man who was security at the back of the stage
He spoke to me
He said
"How you like Memphis? ... You know WE killed King here!"
With a smile as if he was proud to brag on something
I was floored
But I shook it off and set up the band for the show
I have watched many of these artist preform for years so I could tell what mood they were in
And Gladys was scared shitless!
She could barely sing for fear that something was about to happen
She cut her show short and sang
"GOD Bless America"
And left the stage
And that was the last time she played until she took the offer to do her show in Vegas
And the last time I set up a show for the rest of that year and it was on the beginning of October
I didn't work for 68 more days!
Nobody wanted to touch me
My friends were also the same way
I was not happy
Because if I was trusted by the government to keep the president safe
Surely I should be ok for everybody else
But work was slow
People were still out of work
And what little work that was being had I wasn't getting
And then I called a old friend of mines who had a circus that he needed help with getting started
And asked me to help
But could not offer me much money
And I was so desperate for work I took it
It was 27 weeks on the road working the second tent for
Universoul Circus
With a bunch of Canadian Verilight techs
My nic name was
"Pimpy the clown"
Because every city we went to I found people in the area that would service the crew
lol
Anywho
As the tour got going I was unable to go back home to go to court about my late rent
I was sending money back to the land lord so that he would not have to use that "rit for posession" that I got for not showing up due to work
But I have lived there for over 4 years and never had any issues and the and lord was getting payments from me
So all was good
And then while working I got a call from my cousin say'n that I had made the news
I ask how and he told me that all my shit had been evicted on the street of down town and there was a feeding frienzy that stopped traffic for 3 hours in down town rush hour
I found out that the land lord had gone on funeral leave and had left the desk to a ex con dyke chick who along with some of the cleaning crew had found alot of shit in my apartment to steal
And they covered it up by evicting my belongings
And the land lord had my money that I had to get back
But I had loss much more than my stuff
I lost my money that was hidden in my stuff too
And I was on the road working 3 shows a day for 5 days and two shows on the weekend and then we broke the tent down after the last show on Sunday and was off to the next city
So I had no time to do nothing but work
As I talked to the owner about the improvement of the second tent on tour, he told me that he was not making enough money to keep the show out on the road and that he had to curb cost somehow
So he hired a crew from South Africa where we had been the year before
And I helped train them with the agreement that I would not be let go too
Because I had nowhere to go
In theory
And as we broke the tent and packed up in Loisville Ky I was given a letter that stated:
"Thank you for assisting the Universoul Circus, we will no longer be needing your assistance"
With a check for bus fare back to Atlanta in a check
And there I stood in the lobby of a air port hotel with two g=bags of work clothes and a lap top
And I had to find a friend off of Black Planet who I had met while there and ask her to stay there until I found a place to go and what my next move was gonna be
It was Derby week and no hotels were available
And stay'n with people you don't really know can get scary
And it did
lol
So I talked to my little brother and moved to the DC area
Why DC
Because DC has a Union that is the 3rd highest paying union in the country and the only one that staffs black techs with the backing of the union in masses
No other place in my craft respects tech of color but Dc
Because DC had a black and a white separate union
At one time
So that was the only place I could get work with the skills I had without being treated like a nigger
No offense but that is real
Anywho
i="" here="" and="" got="" set="" up="" with="" the="" union="">
And found a hole in the wall spot in Dc to live and got to work
And then the Snipper came
And shut down the city
And I was stuck again
And it took a long time to rebuild to where I am not
I had lost alot
I lost over 200k in finances and personal property
I lost my home
I lost friends
I lost respect
And I will never forget the mindset of so many people who had issues with people of Muslim names and ethnic backgrounds
During 9-11
I will never forget the vision of them Towers as we drove by
I will never forget how proud I was to see the President of my country standing comfortably on my stage as he spoke to the nation
And I will never forget the respect I got from so many and so few
And Usama is still alive
Sadam is dead
A war is still killing my people and theirs
And everybody is still walking around with their heads in their butt
And I am still just getting on my feet
In a new town
With new people
Starting almost all over
And I will never forget
9-11
And all the people who changed that day too
Many of you
And all I have now is what?
>
respect
No comments:
Post a Comment