Original subtitles

Let me go! Let me go!

Please! Please!

We're standing here live in front of this building

where a five-year-old boy was pushed to his death

from a 14th floor window

by two other boys, age ten and 11...

Just when you thought you'd seen it all

when it comes to juveniles and crime here in Chicago,

a five-year-old boy, Eric Morse...

...police are continuing their investigation.

I see that the coroner has just about finished his.

We'll have a word with him...

On Thursday, October 13, 1994,

Eric Morse was dropped out of a 14th story window

by two other boys

'cause he wouldn't steal candy for them.

It happened in my backyard.

I can see the building from my house.

People all over pointed to Eric's death

as a symbol of everything that's gone wrong

with a neighborhood like ours.

But for kids growing up in this neighborhood,

it was nothing new,

and we wasn't surprised

that the TV news never told the story right.

How could they?

They don't know our hood like we do.

That's why we became reporters ourselves.

But don't think it was easy.

Hey, Duane...

you seen Lloyd?

He's supposed to meet me a half hour ago.

Get out!

Get the hell out of here!

What's wrong with you?! Get out!

I was only making breakfast.

You damn near burned down the house!

Found him cooking up grease,

and he set the kitchen on fire.

What's wrong with you, huh?

I was just making my breakfast in my own house!

This ain't your goddamn house no more!

Sophie, Sophie, it's okay, all right?

No, it ain't okay, Lloyd.

This is exactly why we kicked out

his drunken ass in the first place.

Come on. Let's go, Stick.

Leave me alone, Boo.

That's right. Get him the hell out of here,

and make sure that he never comes back!

God! Get.

Come on, Boo, man.

It's time to go.

We're late.

Coming at you through the lies and the hype.

Coming at you with the truth.

You're listening to Graham Ellis,

the voice of the real Chicago.

We have a very special program for you today, folks.

We're going to discuss an issue

that affects every man, woman and child in the real Chicago.

When will black people stop letting outsiders come in

and open businesses...

So, you sure you don't want my phone number?

Right.

I'm going to be a big radio star.

Uh-huh.

Hey, I don't think she bought your rap.

Ah, forget her. She'll live to regret it

when I'm the next Graham Ellis.

Well, this is it.

It's on the fourth floor.

We go in there, they just throw us out.

Man, it's all white people.

It's white people looking for two black kids to hire.

Now, come on.

How we even going to get to these radio people?

Fight our way in?

No, man.

We're going to talk our way in.

We're here for the radio auditions.

Yeah, that would be on four.

National Public Radio office.

Over there.

Okay.

See how easy that was?

We ain't in yet.

: You never give up, do you, man?

Hi.

Hello. Is this the place for the radio tryouts?

It was. They're over.

Oh, but we came to try out.

I'm sorry, you guys. You're too late.

See what you done, man?

Look, man, this is not my fault.

Oh, who's always late?

Excuse me.

Is there a problem?

Uh, yeah.

These boys came to audition,

and I explained it was too late.

Are you in charge of the radio tryouts?

No, no, no.

He's the... he's the producer.

I'm LeAlan Jones, sir, and this is Lloyd Newman.

We're the ones you ought to be seeing.

They're not anywhere on this list, Dave.

You're looking

for two young, intelligent,

African Americans to be on the radio, correct?

Yes, we are.

Then you're lucky we got here on time.

You see, nobody can give you a more insightful commentary

on life in the inner city

than me and my partner right here.

You just got to give us a chance. Please.

Your show.

Yeah, you know, that's right.

Me and Lloyd been working together

since the first grade.

Wow. Huh. Yeah, we sang out in front of Comiskey Park

before the games.

You know, earn some change, do some rap.

You know, whatever.

So you guys are performers?

Uh, whatever it takes, sir.

Is that what you want to do?

Well, Lloyd wants to rap,

but I want to have one of those talk shows

where you discuss the big issues of the day.

Uh, except the guests won't get to say much

'cause LeAlan will do all the discussing.

You guys both live in the Ida B. Wells?

Lloyd does.

I live with my grandparents a block away

in a house they've lived in since 1937.

That long?

Yeah.

So, uh...

could you tell us about this radio show

that you're making?

It's a documentary for National Public Radio.

We're going to train two teenagers

to use recording equipment

and have them spend a week taping their lives--

walking around, talking to each other,

interviewing friends and family,

describing what they see and how they feel.

Like a diary?

Exactly.

I like to think of it

as a sound portrait of the ghetto.

Ghetto Life 101.

Right. Only from kids who are living it--

not from some adult from outside.

Like you.

Like me.

And we get paid?

$500 each.

: $500 each?

I think you found your reporters, sir.

Yeah.

Mind if I put you guys

through a little audition first?

Just to be fair to the other kids.

Whatever it takes.

Testing, one, two.

Okay, good.

Roll it, roll it, roll it.

Testing, testing.

Go.

I'm going to be Graham Ellis.

More like Graham Cracker.

Just be yourselves, guys.

This is LeAlan Jones, ace news reporter.

And Lloyd Newman, man about town.

What man?

Let me describe Lloyd.

He's short... he's a lightweight.

So I give him about 75 pounds.

He's got a head

like a Martian.

It looks-looks... it looks like an overinflated balloon.

In fact, his head takes up about-about 65%

of his entire natural body weight.

LeAlan is real funny-looking.

We call him Bucky Rogers

because of his beaver teeth.

I mean, these things hang

all the way down to his chin. Hey.

If something ever happens to Woody Woodpecker,

they know LeAlan's address.

...back live with continuing coverage of...

LeAlan!

Pick one show.

All right, what's going on in here?

He won't settle on one show.

He just keeps clicking all over.

Well,

your brother's nervous.

Mm-hmm. He don't need to be.

He ain't gettin' no radio job.

What do you know about it? All right now.

Janell, you go give Moogie his bath.

I ain't nervous.

You know, Ruth Andrews said

her boy Darryl tried out.

You ever thought about working with him?

I'm working with Lloyd.

LeAlan, Lloyd's a good child,

but living like that, with no adult supervision.

His mama died.

I know, and I feel sorry for all those children.

But you're a special person, LeAlan.

I don't want Lloyd dragging you down.

He's not dragging me down.

We're dragging each other up.

I got it.

Hello?

This is Dave Isay.

Is this LeAlan?

I got it?

We love what you guys did this afternoon.

Did Lloyd get it, too?

You said you're partners, right?

That's right.

Hold on a second. We got it!

We got it.

Janell, guess what.

We got it. Ha!

Hello? Yeah.

So when do we start?

They're on their way up.

I hope I picked the right kids.

Relax, David.

The tape sounds great.

Oh, who knows if they can even do this?

Am I crazy?

You know it's going to work.

How long you been pitching this?

Since I got here.

Two years.

Yeah. You made it happen.

Because you're ready to make it work.

It better.

I'll be back at the network for the rest of my life.

Your top-notch reporters are here, sir.

Hey, Dave. Hey, Gary.

This is my grandmother, June Jones.

She wanted to meet you two.

I'm David Isay. Very nice to meet you.

This is my executive producer, Gary Covino.

Pleasure.

I don't know why you think

people care what happens at the Ida B. Wells.

I think they'll care

once they get to know LeAlan and Lloyd.

Please, don't let them make fools of themselves.

Thanks, Grandma.

And if LeAlan gets out of line,

feel free to knock some sense into him.

I'm sure I won't have to.

I'm sure you will.

: It was very nice to meet you.

I got it.

You do whatever these gentlemen tell you to.

Yes, ma'am.

Bye, Grandma.

She's not as scary as she seems.

Oh, yes, she is.

Hey, who's all this for?

Whoever wants it.

Hey, you know what?

I think I'm going to like the radio business.

After you guys grab some grub,

why don't you come over here,

and I can start showing you

how some of this stuff works.

All right, first things first.

One for you, one for you.

And we get beepers?

I got one, too.

My number's on the back.

You call me if anything breaks down, anytime, all right?

Hey, beepers, man.

How cool is that?

Hey, this looks like a bicycle handle.

Yeah, it helps muffle the noise.

It's also got a good grip, too, all right?

You know lots of tricks, huh?

A few, right, Gar?

So, you got a name for the show?

Good morning.

This is day one, walking to school.

I'm leaving out the door.

This is my walk every day.

I live here, and this is my home.

I'm taking y'all

on a little journey through my life.

Yes, my life.

This used to be a ball field,

but the city stopped taking care of it.

Now it's a battleground between gangs.

There's shooting here all the time,

and we got to cross it every day to get to school.

Every morning I pick up Lloyd on my way to school.

Man, this stuff is heavy, right?

I know, right.

Dave's trying to kill us.

Walking in Ida B. Wells housing development--

half the houses are abandoned and boarded up.

The whole Ida B's look like this.

Like a concentration camp.

All you have is steel, dirt and iron,

concrete and mortar.

Drunks on the corner--

summertime, wintertime, spring, fall--

drink in their hand.

Probably some white port...

Willy P., Jack Daniels.

There goes Lester.

Man, I thought he's dead.

I guess he ain't dead.

Yo, Lester!

You boys rappin'?

Yeah, that's right.

We're rappin'.

Yo, Lester, I thought you was dead.

I got shot, but I ain't dead.

I been locked up.

Yeah, so what you going to do now you're out?

Back to bangin'?

Don't know about that.

Stay up, Lester.

A lot of kids our age already joined gangs.

Can't always blame 'em.

Poverty, drugs, tragedy.

It gets to people.

And violence is the worst thing

'cause once you're dead,

that's it.

Let me go! Let me go!

Please!

Leave him be!

Eric!

There's lots of ways for kids to get in trouble here,

and you know it all at a real young age.

When I was ten, I knew where drugs came from.

I knew about sex.

I knew about every different type of gun.

I was a kid in age,

but my mind had the reality of a grownup

'cause I had seen these things every day.

Living around here is like being in Vietnam.

In Vietnam, them people came back crazy.

We live in Vietnam,

so-so what you think we're going to be

if we live in it, and they just went and visited?

Living around here is depressing.

Man, it's depressing.

Get anything?

Yeah.

Here you go.

Thank you.

You guys should get going.

You coming to school with us?

I don't think so.

Your principal said you could tape in school

as long as it's not a disruption.

I don't think it'll help if I'm there.

Like we're the only ones in school causing a ruckus.

Our first stop of the day is at school.

Sometimes we learn.

Most of the time, it's too rowdy to learn.

Hey, hey, y'all doing that radio show?

We're taping today. That's right.

Hey, you want to tape me singing?

You know I got the best voice in the school.

It's not a music show, Anita.

It's a documentary.

What's up, James, man?

What's up, James?

Hey, let me get at that.

Hello, I'm David Duke, host of this show,

Lifestyles of the Nice and White.

We're just gonna talk about

how much I hate niggers.

You want a good way to kill a nigger?

You tie him to a tree,

and you pour hot tar all over him.

Or...

you get a knife

and you cut all the way up his throat.

Or you can just lynch that guy real tight around the neck

until his head

just pops open.

That's my friend J. Edgar Hoover's

favorite way to kill a nigger.

Remember, you can never trust niggers

'cause niggers aren't trustworthy.

I'm your host, David Duke, and I'm signing off.

Give me my mic back man.

You're crazy.

Danita Charles?

Yeah. Present.

Jamal Cox?

Not here!

Absent.

Janet Daly?

Yep, yep! Present.

LeShawn Hunt?

Absent.

Raymond Smith?

That's my name. Present.

Robert Washington?

Yo, why you bringing that piece up in here?

Don't mess with my business.

I'll pop your ass first.

Hey, tell us why you feel you got to be packing.

Damn thing out of my face.

And you.

Now, Mr. Isay, when I agreed

to let these young men tape here in school,

you promised me

that it would not be a disruption.

We weren't disrupting, Miss Williams.

It is hard enough for our teachers to get any work done...

Miss Williams,

we're supposed to be telling

the story of our lives, right?

Well, school is a really big part of it,

and we wanted to show that.

I know NPR's reputation.

and I respect it, but frankly,

I have no idea

what you intend to do with these tapes.

We're making a documentary for the radio.

Well, we certainly don't need

any more stories that smear our community.

I don't want to smear anyone, Miss Williams.

I just want to help Lloyd and LeAlan

tell people what their lives are like.

Including the positive things?

Look, we're going to tell

the truth, Miss Williams.

The bad

and the good.

I hope so.

Yo, we should go back to my crib

and study history.

No, I got to find Stick.

He ain't been around since that fight.

Man, you can't be flunking another history test, dude.

Look, we'll study later, all right?

Whatever.

You tape him yet?

No, he ain't in it.

But he's your father.

Look, I know he is.

He ain't in it.

Hey, been looking all over for you.

Hey, Boo, this is A.C.

He's in town from Gary.

This here's my boy, Boo.

How you doing?

: Are you trying to hustle this guy?

I can take him, Boo.

Look at all the money on the table.

I can take him.

Don't worry about it. I got him.

Watch this.

You moved that damn ball.

I didn't move no ball!

Hey, look, it was an accident, all right?

It wasn't no goddamn accident!

Motherfucker!

I saw you move that ball!

Hey, look, just keep the money, all right?

Damn right, I'm keeping the money!

You cheating motherfucker.

All that for nothing.

Are you okay?

Want to go to the hospital?

Don't need no hospital.

Why'd you tell him to keep the money?

So he'd stop beating on you.

Lindell says you gonna be on the radio.

Yeah, me and LeAlan got hired to be reporters.

They paying you?

Why?

If not, you wasting your time!

I'm not.

Think he gonna make you a movie star?

Some foolish kid from the projects?

You should be getting a real job.

Look, I got school.

You should be making some money, help your family out

instead of getting played for a chump.

That's all right, Boo.

You know, we could have took him.

I'll take him high...

And I'll take him low.

You take him low.

See, there you go.

We make a good team, me and you.

This is LeAlan Jones,

talking to you from our living room

which is also my bedroom.

My mother's name is June Marie Jones,

but everyone calls her Tootchie.

She lives here, but she can't

take care of me and my sisters on account of her mental illness

which is why my grandmother has custody of us.

How was it when you were sick?

I would hear voices all the time and see things.

One time I started seeing shadows on the porch at night,

and it looked like Ronald Reagan.

And he was talking with my grandmother,

and they was telling me to get butt-naked, so I did.

But I'm on medication now, and it's helping me a lot.

Who was my father?

Your father

was a fella named Toby Slipper.

He knows you exist.

He seen you when you was about two.

I-I ain't seen him since.

What would you do if you saw him?

Nothing. He's just another man to me.

I got my grandparents, you and my sisters.

That's all I really hold dear to my heart.

That's... that's real sweet.

So if he was supposedly

my daddy, why didn't you try to keep him around?

I did.

I used to write him love letters.

Do you feel bad about it?

I just feel it was God's will.

You know, it was already written when I was born

what my life was going to be like.

What do you think happened to him?

He probably dead.

♪ I grew a ghetto life, full of remorse ♪

♪ These hard streets own a young man took his course ♪

♪ I've grown enough to see 22 of these years ♪

♪ More than others, less than a few ♪

♪ From these ill circumstances, what can you do? ♪

♪ The cops shoot you, guys on the street shoot you... ♪

This is Lloyd's house.

We're coming through the back door

'cause we been friends for a long time

so I got special privileges.

Yo, Duane, where's Boo?

He didn't meet us for our breakfast meeting.

He ain't come out yet.

Yo, this is Dave from the radio.

Hi.

You make sure you get him shot at, man.

Let him see the real deal.

Whatever, Duane.

Let's go.

♪ ...can't give up ♪

♪ Our America, life in the hood ♪

♪ Project living ain't always good ♪

♪ Death and dying ♪

♪ Mothers is crying, and shorties is dying ♪

♪ But we got to keep tryin'... ♪

What's up, Sophie?

How you doing, LeAlan?

Doing good.

Everybody, this is Dave.

Dave, this is Sophie, Precious, Linda, Erica.

Hey, don't worry about Duane.

He just got out.

He spent five years for armed robbery,

but basically, he's a cool person.

Don't live in no barn here!

Duane's around Sophie all the time.

He got hope, but Sophie, she ain't letting him over.

Know your problem, LeAlan?

Your mouth, man.

Nobody got

a bigger problem than your mouth.

Hey, you know I'm right, man.

Sophie too tough

for a nice guy like you. Mm-hmm.

Take it from a professional reporter.

Oh, you professional now?

Go try waking your partner, man.

Report how that go.

Duane put word out

to the gangs to leave me and Lloyd alone.

They listen 'cause they know him from the streets.

He makes Sophie happy,

and it keeps me and Lloyd out of a lot of trouble.

Now, this bathroom,

it's been broken for, like, a month, you know, so...

toilet's all stopped up, the water keeps on running,

and Housing won't do nothing about it.

Wake up, man.

What you doing, man?

Wake up.

You ain't show up

for the breakfast.

Wassup?

Guess I overslept.

Come on, man. We got taping to do.

I'll wait for you guys outside, okay?

That's cool.

Whatever.

It just needs to be handled.

Yes.

I don't care. I said it's dead.

Hey, what's wrong with you, man?

You not showing up to meet Dave.

You know what...?

Hey, what happened to you?

Man, I had to help Stick get away

from a mark he was hustling.

Help him how?

You beat him on the face with your face?

Looks like you should have helped yourself.

Come on. Let's go.

Wassup, Dave, ready?

Let's go.

Hey, Dave.

Hey, what happened to your face, man?

Oh, that? That's nothing.

It's a rash. You know, he gets it sometimes. Let's go.

Lloyd, look, if this project is a problem for you,

or you need somebody...

Ooh, you know, it's no problem, Dave.

And you said yourself this is a good job,

so why ruin it now, you know?

And plus, Lloyd has some great ideas:

you know, go downtown Chicago;

talk to the mayor, you know;

talk to Graham Ellis, the guy on the radio...

Yeah, Dave, you see, that's why LeAlan needs me.

You know, to keep him in check,

or else he'll never stop talking.

Do you think we should try to talk to Graham Ellis?

Man, what's Graham Ellis want with us?

He's from the hood, right?

So don't you think he'd want to talk to some kids

from his old neighborhood who'd want to be just like him?

Nah, see, you want to be like him.

I want to be Snoop Dogg.

You got more chance of being Deputy Dawg, man.

Hey, wassup, D.?

Wassup, man?

Heard you guys was into rappin'.

No, we ain't rappin'.

We're doing a radio documentary.

You know, the one we auditioned for.

Oh, shit!

Lloyd.

Lloyd!

Lloyd!

Lloyd!

Lloyd!

Lloyd!

Lloyd!

Hey, old man, I'm over here.

Hey, man, you all right?

Yeah, I'm cool. How'd you get in there?

I just hopped in, man.

Well, hop your little ass out.

Yo, L, man, yo.

We coulda got popped back there, yo.

Just standing there, minding our own business.

We coulda got popped!

Nah, man, that ain't nothing.

Man, that time on the field was worse.

Yeah. Remember at the packaging store?

Oh, right, man, yeah,

when that lady tried shooting her husband?

Yo, man, I thought we was dead that time, yo.

Hey, yo, man,

we should tape a game of knockout.

What for?

Look, Dave wants a whole picture of our lives, right?

Don't that include what we do for fun?

Yeah.

We could do play-by-play

like the NBA Finals.

This is Lloyd Newman, live from the Knockout Championships

of the south side of Chicago.

First up is Mr. LeAlan Jones.

Hi, Mom.

He stepped up to the railing,

rock in hand.

He looks for his target,

waiting to call his shot.

White Blazer!

White Blazer!

He takes aim...

...and he misses.

Too bad.

Next stepping up, Mr. Lloyd Newman--

two-time loser of the Lake Shore Drive Invitational.

He sees one.

Red minivan.

Yeah, red minivan.

I got him.

Oh, damn, man.

It just bounced off.

Oh, shit!

Yo, man, he's stopping.

Yo, what he gonna do?

Get out and chase us into the projects?

Oh, it's the patrol car, man!

Hey, hold it!

Stopped on Lake Shore. Get back...

I'm talking with my sister, Sophie Newman.

Hi.

You been taking care of us all since our mama died.

Tell us how she died.

Drinking.

Um...

one day our little sister, Erica, came up and said

"Mama's on the floor."

We called the ambulance,

but there was a shooting right outside our door here,

and... and the ambulance drove off without her.

When we finally got to the hospital,

it was too late.

I was selling newspapers that day.

The man I worked for called me in to the truck

and told me my mama was dead.

Then he asked for the money I made

and told me to go home.

Sometimes y'all give us a tough time, but...

I'm very proud of us

'cause I didn't think we could make it without her.

Sometimes at night I cry, thinking about my mother.

I stay under the covers so my brothers won't know,

but I know I have to get over it

because she's gone, she's gone, she's gone.

And I can't do nothing about it.

Last night, I saw the biggest roach in my life.

It was, like, this big.

It was walking up the wall.

I was going upstairs...

Yo, wassup?

Hey, Rashan, man, wassup?

Kicking it. Heard y'all rappin' now.

Nah, we ain't rapping.

We doing a documentary for the radio.

Nah, look, he's playing you, man.

Of course we're rappin'.

Documentary?

I'm serious!

Come on, back to the roach.

Anyway...

And I'm lucky I didn't eat it,

because when I looked in my cereal,

the roach had fallen

in the milk... Ah, man!

Told you, don't be runnin' no more drugs!

Fuck you, man!

Get back here!

Hey, Rashan, who the shorty?

My goddamn little brother.

You sure that's enough food for three people?

Oh, you eatin', too?

Stuff you guys gave me yesterday

was great.

I feel a "but" coming on.

The knockout.

Ah, yeah.

Could be used as evidence

if they want to charge you.

For what crime? Nothing got broke.

I know, but... Dave, you said

to tell the truth about our lives--

the kids that got

no playgrounds.

We got no parks.

We got to make our own fun.

And besides, who cares about them people?

They go home to the suburbs.

They don't care about what goes on over here,

so why should we care about them?

I just don't want you guys

getting into trouble, that's all.

That's part of our lives, too, Dave.

When my older sister Janell was 13,

she was an honors student.

Then she bugged out.

Had a child, stopped going to school.

Now she's 17.

She won't admit it, but she drinks too much.

Last week she almost died.

She had to be rushed to the hospital.

Janell, how many friends of yours got killed

through the years?

I can't count all of them.

It's been a lot, though.

Would you say 25?

Probably more than that.

Could you name a few?

Meatball, Cheesy and Vell.

There's been a lot, you know?

Yo, Elvin.

Where you been?

Ain't seen you in school.

Man, school ain't shit.

You ain't shit out here.

Dressed like a bum selling dummy bags.

I'm bet I'm going to see your ass ten years from now

begging for a quarter to get a drink.

I ain't going to be alive in ten years.

Ain't nobody going to be alive in ten years.

I'm going to be alive. I know I am.

Whatever.

You believe that fool Elvin?

Got to go to school, man.

I'm going.

But you missed too many days.

Plus you don't study enough for tests.

Man, I get too tired sometimes.

Yeah, staying up all night playing cards.

You don't mind when I spend my take

on buying you dinner.

Look, I know I got to keep going.

Sometimes I get in my own way.

Guess it's father like son.

Now, look, tomorrow's the last day.

I still got my grandma to tape.

I done everyone.

You did? So what happened with Stick?

Man, I told you, he ain't in it.

He's your father. He's part of your life.

We been telling the truth this long,

so why you going to stop now?

Young man, your father's right over here.

Uh, he's right here.

Hey, Boo.

What happened?

Somebody bust you around again?

Had a seizure.

Fell down on the floor and banged my head.

You fixing to tape me?

Up to you.

It's your life story, right?

Guess your father is a part of it.

I'm talking with my father, Edward Simpson.

Everyone calls him "Stick."

'Cause of how good I shoot pool.

What are you best memories of Mama?

Having fun

sitting by the lake.

Me and her, we'd put our feet in the water together.

Wasn't drinking, no drugs or nothing.

Your mama-- she loved me so very good.

She was the most beautiful woman

I've ever met.

We were sober then.

But once we started getting high,

the memories was gone.

They was gone.

Tell us why you're drinking.

I don't understand why I'm drinking.

So many situations I see make me nervous,

but it ain't doing nothing but destroying my body

and destroying my family.

Do you think you're going to stop?

Yes, I am-- I'm going back to rehab,

take care of myself so I can be with my children

'cause I still love them.

You think you been a good father?

Yes, I have!

To the best of my capability.

Leave it alone, Boo.

I have no further questions.

My granddad Gus Jones had a few strokes

and doesn't say much.

They raised eight kids in this home.

Now my grandmother's raising me, my two sisters and my cousin.

You've lived in this neighborhood over 40 years.

How's it changed?

For the worse.

When we first moved in, there were no projects.

Just all homes.

We even had nice hotels where different movie stars

would come and stay.

So when did you start seeing a major change

in the neighborhood?

It happened gradually, day by day, year by year.

The biggest thing was when they built those high-rise homes

and stacked those people one on top of the other.

My grandma says she gets most of her wisdom

from the Bible.

She loves gospel music.

The one she loves the most is called

"One Day at a Time."

Will you sing it for us?

I don't have my voice.

Come on. You can still blow it. Come on.

♪ Do you remember ♪

♪ When you walked among men? ♪

♪ Well, Jesus, You know if you're looking below ♪

♪ It's worse now than then ♪

♪ They're pushing and shoving ♪

♪ They're crowding my mind ♪

♪ So for my sake, please help me to take ♪

♪ One day at a time ♪

♪ Yesterday's gone, sweet Jesus ♪

♪ And tomorrow may never be mine ♪

♪ So for my sake, please help me to take ♪

♪ One day at a time. ♪

All right, they're, uh, they're holding that spot

the week before Thanksgiving, so...

Is it done?

Well, let's hear it.

Good morning, this is day one.

Walking to school. Leaving out the door.

This is my walk every day.

I live here, and this is my home.

I'm taking y'all on a little journey through my life.

Yes, my life.

In Vietnam, some people came back crazy.

We live in Vietnam.

So-so what you think we're going to be

if we live in it, and they just went and visited?

Living around here is depressing.

Man, it's depressing.

I was selling newspapers that day.

The man I worked for called me into the truck

and told me my mama was dead.

Then he asked for the money I made

and told me to go home.

When I was ten, I knew where drugs came from.

I knew about sex.

I knew about every different type of gun.

I ain't going to be alive in ten years.

Yeah! You heard that?

You know who that was?

That was me!

Who cares about them people? They go home to the suburbs.

They don't care about what goes on over here,

so-so why should we care about them?

Peace out. I'm outta here.

Peace out.

Hey, June! June!

Oh, hey, Helen.

How you doing?

You hear what they're saying about LeAlan on the radio?

I'm so proud of him.

Proud?

That he was exploited by that white man?

Girl, what you talking about?

What they talking

about on the radio.

You believe these young men were used

by these white producers.

I know these children, Mr. Ellis.

They never would have come up

with some of the things they said

or asked questions the way they did.

Someone wanted to make sure that they portrayed

the most negative stereotypes of African American life.

Miss Williams?

Was there anything truthful in that program?

Lloyd Newman's father is an alcoholic,

and LeAlan Jones does have a mother who is mentally ill,

which is my point.

Can children from these kinds of homes be expected

to resist pressure from a white adult

to say what he wants them to say,

even when they know it isn't true?

Why is she saying these things?

Let's take some calls.

Guess you heard the show.

They mocked my family.

They don't know what they're talking about.

It's Miss Williams. She does know.

June, I promise you,

I will not let LeAlan get hurt.

I'm afraid you're too late.

It's the chumps.

Man, who you calling chumps?

Who let some white motherfuckers play them for fools.

We ain't fools.

Radio say you is.

Yo, Elvin, fuck off, man.

Man, these...

You hear me, man?

Whatever.

Motherfucker's just talking, yo.

Yeah, he ain't the only one.

Who, them radio people?

They got their ass out the projects.

Don't want nobody to know how it is here

'cause it make 'em look bad.

They all just talking, man.

Yeah, you doing something, all right?

Be proud of it.

Look, we got some great responses

from all across the country.

Tons of letters.

People love the show.

In fact, NPR's going to nominate you guys for some prizes.

They come with cash?

Some do.

Let's win those.

Look,

these attacks aren't about what you did.

It's about what other people want you to do.

You had the right to tell your story, not theirs.

Not anyone's is what it sounds like.

Don't believe that shit for a minute.

You guys touched

a lot of people.

Then where are they now?

How come nobody's sticking up for us?

They will. Don't worry.

I can't believe you're hanging those kids out to dry.

We're not hanging anyone out to dry, Gary.

Of course, you are, Pax.

Two weeks ago you put out a memo

saying that every reporter at NPR could learn

from "Ghetto Life 101."

Now a few people squawk,

and-and you want to pretend you've never heard of it.

Dave, I wish you had warned us

that the head of the school district council was going

to go public with these objections.

I didn't have any idea

she was any more than a principal.

You spoke with her.

How were we supposed to know she was going

to get all the way to Graham Ellis?

And besides, we can't back off because

a few people want to circle the wagons

and pretend there's not a problem in the inner city.

Well, they speak for their community.

They don't speak for me.

I grew up on the South Side.

I know what it's like,

and there's nothing in this documentary that isn't true.

That doesn't solve our problem, Carla.

We don't have a problem.

The response was overwhelmingly positive

except for one radio show.

Graham Ellis is hardly a storefront disc jockey.

Look, we have to respond

to show his listeners we respect them.

And give these attacks credibility

they don't deserve.

No. No way.

Pax, I'm not doing it.

You don't have to.

This is my show.

It's my responsibility.

I'll deal with it.

It's the worst kind of irresponsible journalism.

It exploits people while putting them at serious risk.

We never put anyone at risk.

Mr. Isay, you broadcast those young men

engaging in criminal activity, breaking car windshields.

They were just being honest about their lives.

And LeAlan's sister talking about all those murders?

You put her in danger of being killed herself.

Look, as you both know, everyone in that neighborhood

knows people who have been murdered.

Yeah, but I don't believe they'd talk about it openly in public.

Unless they're pressured by self-serving outsiders

looking for the most sensational story.

Th-That's ridiculous.

It never happened, all right?

LeAlan and Lloyd are smart

and courageous kids, and frankly it insults them

to say they can't speak for themselves.

Are you telling us you never coached them?

I was helping them tell the stories they wanted to tell.

No. The stories

you wanted to tell.

There are good things

that go on in that neighborhood, Mr. Isay.

Kids who actually do well in school.

Single parents working two jobs.

Teachers and social workers making a difference everyday.

But not one positive story got into your program.

Well, what about June, LeAlan's grandmother?

Isn't she a positive influence on his life?

And Lloyd's sister Sophie holding that family together?

What about

the amazing friendship between LeAlan and Lloyd?

Yes, but is that enough?

No, it's not enough, but that's all they have.

Yeah, but whose fault is that?

Because every time someone does one of these

"tourist in the ghetto" reports, it makes it easier

for people to turn their backs,

because "those people" can never be helped.

Well, "those people" are dying, Mr. Isay, every day.

And shows like that make it less likely

that any of us will survive.

So, do you think they're right?

We said our words...

not Dave's.

And we said the truth.

Well, maybe, what we thought we said

is not what people's hearing.

Man, that's bullshit.

Come on, man, that's Graham Ellis.

He knows what he's talking about

better than what we do.

But he don't know what went on with us

and with Dave.

Well, maybe they fooled with the tapes

when we weren't around.

So what are you saying?

You think Dave used us?

You think Elvin is right?

We were chumps?

I don't know.

Looking for your "tourist in the ghetto"?

That was a cheap shot.

What the kids did is remarkable, Dave.

Yeah, but they're just kids.

Maybe they're right.

Maybe I pushed them into telling stories I wanted to tell.

No, you didn't.

Well, you know that

but I don't think NPR's ever going to give me another chance.

Of course they will.

You're too good at this.

And what you gave those kids...

Graham Ellis is on the air

yelling about how someone's got to help these people.

Well, no one helped LeAlan and Lloyd

more than you, Dave.

No one.

I hope they think so.

Hey, what's up, Dave?

What's up?

Hey, what's the ball for?

You told me you lost your good one, right?

Yo, this is a really good ball.

So this mean you ready to hoop with us, huh?

Nah, I don't think so.

Come on, man.

If you want to chill with us,

you got to learn how to hoop.

No, I don't, actually.

Hey, something up, man?

You know how you're always asking me

if any of these

prizes that we win come with, uh, cash?

Yeah. Mm-hmm.

How does a thousand bucks each sound?

$1,000? What? $1,000? Yes.

Man, $1,000.

Your Chicagoans of the Year comes with an award.

A thousand bucks?

You heard me; a thousand bucks.

Man, do you know what this means, man?

I can now get that stereo rack

I've been wanting, man.

Don't you think you should save it?

Oh, come on, man, all of it?

Most of it?

Some of it, all right? That's all. Some of it.

Hey, try not to look too excited, Le.

I just don't want to go back to all that, that's all.

Oh, man, this shows

all those people who trashed us.

It don't show them nothing.

If you're worried we're going to get jumped on again,

that's not gonna happen,

okay?

He thinks so.

What do you mean?

Dave, he thinks you used us.

I never said that.

Man, you told me this when it happened.

He thinks you took what we said

and made it come out negative.

You know, man,

you got a really big mouth.

You know that, right?

You the one always talking

about telling the truth.

Except when it's on you,

you afraid to tell it?

I ain't afraid of telling nothing.

So, is that what you think I did, Le?

Use you?

There's Graham Ellis, Miss Williams... they think so.

They know the hood as good as we do.

So, don't I at least have to think

about what they said first?

Miss Williams.

I didn't know you'd be here.

I came to see you accept your award, LeAlan.

And I want to see you tell the truth

about what you did and what was done to you.

I'm counting on it.

And you, too, Lloyd.

Hey, old man, what she say now?

Nothing.

Hey, look, she's wrong about Dave.

So is Graham Ellis.

I know he's a big hero for you, man, but he's wrong.

Ladies and gentlemen,

our final Chicagoans of the Year are two

remarkable young men from the South Side of Chicago--

LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman.

First, I would like

to say thank you to my sister, Sophie Newman,

who's been raising me since my mother passed.

Some people come from the greatest homes in America

with mothers and fathers who still

can't do what my sister is doing.

So I'd like you to give her a round of applause.

I'd also like to thank

my right-hand man, LeAlan Jones.

And David Isay.

He believed in us... and gave us this chance.

And thank you all for appreciating what we did.

I also want to thank you all for this honor

and for giving my family this great meal.

I want to pay tribute to my grandmother and my mother.

I didn't have a father in my home, and they raised me

to be a strong black man by themselves.

Now... some people claim

that the words we said in our piece weren't true,

that Dave told us to say them

because we weren't smart enough to understand our lives

or to talk about it.

In grammar school, they tell you to speak your mind,

and I spoke my mind.

Whatever some people think, the truth is...

we told our story the way we wanted it to be told.

And that was because of Dave Isay.

Not many people come to our part of Chicago

to help the kids that live there.

Dave came there, and he cared about what was going on,

and he wasn't scared of anything.

We owe him a lot.

Thanks, Dave.

Thank you all again for this honor.

Let me go! Let me go!

Please! Let me go!

Leave him be!

Let me go!

Let me go!

Eric!

Just when you thought you'd seen it all

when it comes to juveniles and crime here in Chicago,

a five-year-old boy, Eric Morse, was thrown from

a 14th floor window last night.

A five-year-old boy

was thrown from a 14th floor window tonight

by two boys, aged ten and 11.

Police are continuing...

...where a five-year-old boy was pushed

from a 14th floor window tonight

by two other boys, aged ten and 11.

A short life, a tragic death for five-year-old Eric Morse.

You crazy, man?

Them reporters rode in, they made their speeches,

and they rode out again.

They don't even know what happened.

You expect them to find out?

No. 'Cause they don't care, but we do.

This is a national story.

It happened in our neighborhood.

Who's going to tell it better than us?

Did you forget what happened the last time?

Miss Williams, Graham Ellis.

I-I don't even care about them.

You did then.

You still did six months ago.

I was wrong. You said so yourself.

So now you want to prove we really did the first one?

No, man.

That-that's not it.

I'm tired of them trying to make us out to be some...

some useless murdering motherfuckers.

Man, ain't gonna change that.

We got to try.

Why else did we do all this?

Why else did we learn to be reporters

if we ain't gonna report?

Dave won't do it, either.

We'll talk to him,

and if he's in, then you're in, too.

Capice?

Are you crazy?!

Man, what'd I tell you?

This is not just

you guys talking into a mic.

You'd have to bang down doors,

finds sources, get people to talk.

We can do that.

What about school?

Huh?

You sure you need the extra work?

This is something that we both need, Dave.

Why?

To prove you did the first one?

No.

It's not about that.

It's about that little baby.

It's about why things like this always happen around here.

What's wrong with proving we did the first one?

Are you crazy?

What did Beckett say about failing?

"Try again.

"Fail again.

Fail better."

You didn't fail.

We all hate the way it ended, Gar.

This gives us a chance to do it right.

If we can get these guys to give us another shot.

I want to know why you want to do this.

I owe it to LeAlan and Lloyd.

Oh, come on!

You've stayed closer to those kids

than any journalist ever did to a subject.

What's it going to do to you if they don't make it?

They'll make it.

LeAlan probably will,

but Lloyd...

man, he is always in trouble.

What if he doesn't?

I'm not gonna let that happen.

How are you gonna stop it? For one thing,

I'm gonna get your ass to help us make another documentary.

Yeah. All right, fine.

I'll talk to Pax later.

You're the man.

Yes, I am.

This is Lloyd Newman...

And LeAlan Jones, back on the scene

at the Ida B. Wells Housing Development.

Everybody in the neighborhood

heard the story of how Eric Morse was killed.

Two older boys, Johnny and Tyrone,

tried to get Eric to steal candy for them.

Eric told Tyrone's mother, and he got in trouble.

He and Johnny decided to seek revenge

on Eric and his brother.

We decided to check out the scene of the crime.

Guess we walk.

: Mm...

The elevator don't work.

Now the stairs are dark.

Reeks of urine and vomit

and dog shit...

if it is dog.

Oh, man.

It's dark up there.

Hell, yeah.

Come on, Boo. Let's go.

Finally, some light.

Abandoned...

Abandoned... abandoned.

This is where it happened.

It's supposed to be locked.

They must have gotten in the same way.

Not much here.

Damn!

Shorty fell from all the way up here?

How could you just drop someone from this high?

The apartments that aren't empty

got their windows and doors boarded up

'cause they get broke anyway.

Housing takes people's rent

but doesn't fix anything.

People living in darkness, no matter what time of day.

Who is it?

I'm LeAlan Jones.

I'm with Lloyd Newman.

We're reporters.

We'd like to ask you

a few questions about Eric Morse.

Oh, you kids get out of here.

Yo, man. People sure are suspicious.

Hell, yeah.

Hi. We'd like to talk to you

about the boy they threw

from the 14th floor, Eric Morse.

I know nothing about that poor little child.

Damn. Uh-oh. I'm out.

Yes.

Mm, can't catch

a break tonight, man.

You're just a loser, man. Fuck you, Duane.

I call.

What you got?

Straight-- to the nine.

Damn.

How come you always win?

'Cause I'm good.

Ah...

Straight to the nine.

I only got one dollar left.

What you just do?

Man, I'm dealing the cards.

What's it look like?

You took off the bottom.

Man, you lose, so I got to be cheating.

I saw you take the card off the bottom!

Elvin, you crazy man?

Put that away.

This motherfucker cheating me!

Elvin, the kids are watching.

It's just cards, man.

Put that away.

Put it away.

Had enough goddamn cards.

You crazy, man!

Elvin, man-- do you believe him?

Yo, were you cheating him?

Come on, man.

He never caught me.

Was you or not?

You fool, you almost got us killed.

You know he ain't shooting nobody.

Oh?

How much you win off him?

$56.

$56?

You almost got us killed for $56?!

Relax, Sophie.

The kids. $56!

You're a fool

just like father, and you'll end up just like him, too.

Relax. Relax.

$56!

Man, what you looking at?

I'm sorry, it looks like my partner got delayed.

Could we catch you another time?

We really want to hear

what you know about the killing.

Mm, okay. Mm-hmm.

Thanks a lot.

He's getting worse, Dave.

He stays up all night playing cards,

and then he doesn't want to go to work.

I'll talk to him.

You always talk to him.

He doesn't listen.

He's got no adult supervision.

You sound like your grandmother, Le.

Yeah.

Well, maybe she's right, you know.

He blew the whole thousand he won for the award.

I figured that.

And now he's being held back in school.

I didn't know that.

He's got too many problems.

Maybe I should be doing this by myself, you know.

What are you talking about?

You guys have been working together since the first grade.

Isn't that what you told me?

Yeah. But things change.

Let me handle it.

Come on.

This is great, Lindell.

Top grade in class.

You still brushing your teeth like I showed you?

Two times a day.

Let me see.

All right.

What did I say? Five?

Ah...

Thank you.

Go get some goodies.

Why don't you share some with the other kids, all right?

All right.

Hey, what's up, man?

Thirsty?

No, thanks.

Hey, where's LeAlan?

He said he'd meet us.

But he sent you here to lecture me first.

He said you're being held back in school.

Man, he talks too much.

Look, it's been a tough year.

He said you never go.

It's just... it's hard waking up in the morning sometimes.

You want me to wake you?

You going to come by every morning

with coffee and donuts?

I'll call you in the morning

when it's time for you to get up.

You call me when you're out of bed, all right?

Look, Dave,

I don't need you to call me every morning.

I can get up on my own.

But you don't. Maybe I ain't

what you want me to be.

What do I want you to be, Lloyd?

Huh? Tell me.

No, better yet,

why don't you tell me what you want to be.

What do you want to be?

Look...

just level with me, Boo,

all right?

You want to stay in school or not?

Of course I do.

Okay, then.

From now on, I'm going to wake your ass up every morning.

All right?

1407.

This is right under where it happened.

Who's that?

It's LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman.

We're from National Public Radio.

We're here to do a story

about the little boy that was killed.

You the kids did that show?

Yes, that's us.

We're here to do a story

about the little boy who was dropped

from the 14-story window.

I-I don't want to talk about that.

Please, ma'am. Please.

Look, we're trying to tell the real story

of how that poor boy died.

It would help us a lot if you know anything.

I was right here the night it happened.

I used to hear noises upstairs all the time,

even though nobody lives there.

Them two boys they said did the killing,

they was upstairs all the time.

It's supposed to be locked up...

but kids can get into any of these empty places.

Sometimes they'd even sleep there.

Ten-year-old boys out all night by themselves.

I'd report it to Housing, but they wouldn't do nothing.

Tell us about that night.

Me and my kids were sitting here watching TV.

Help!

Let me go! Let me go!

Help!

It's strange.

I almost feel like I was responsible.

If I'd have just went upstairs

when I heard the chair go back,

maybe I could have stopped it from happening.

But I didn't.

Hey, Boo!

: Glad to catch you.

Yeah, what's up?

Heard you were working again on the radio.

Getting paid, too!

Some.

You know that money should go through me.

I'm your father.

I gotta look after you!

I can look out for myself.

Disrespectful,

paying a man's family without telling him.

I'll tell him directly.

No, you won't.

You know that money should go through me!

I could sue them!

I got rights!

You got no rights to nothing, you hear me.

No rights to nothing!

What's going on, Boo-Boo?

Nothing. Let's go.

Everything cool?

Yeah.

Boo!

Boo!

You need to eat more red meats.

And fried foods.

You don't eat enough fried foods.

So tell me how the interviews are coming.

Man, it's kind of tough.

You know, no one wants to talk,

especially with the trial coming up.

Yeah.

We need to go to that trial.

Are you tripping?

How many kids we know

went into juvie court and never came out?

We're not on trial, man.

Plus, Dave here going to make sure nothing happens.

Man, he don't have to, 'cause I ain't going.

You know, man,

I'm just tired of you.

You don't want to do nothing, do you?

Why don't you just-just give it all up

and become a hustler?

That's probably what you want to do, too.

I'm tired.

Hey, Dave, man, that's not true.

Look, I swear, it's not true.

All the way down to your left.

How you doing?

We're with NPR.

Leave that here.

All right, arms up, please.

Thank you.

Raise your arms for me, please.

All right.

Raise your arms for me, please.

Turn to your right.

Follow the deputy down to Court 12.

We will show that the death of Eric Morse was no accident.

Despite the age of these two defendants,

this was a cold-blooded murder.

This was a tragedy, Your Honor...

for the victim, of course...

for his brother, who had to watch him fall to his death...

but also for my clients.

These two children

have grown up in unspeakable conditions,

surrounded by horrifying violence.

To say this was premeditated murder

is to completely misunderstand the circumstances.

I once said that young kids in the ghetto

have a state of mind very similar to a Vietnam veteran.

That's very true.

Even though soldiers are trained to kill and fight,

what they saw affected them psychologically.

We're seeing the same effects in young inner-city kids,

and it's ridiculous to think

that the answer is to put them in prison.

We never used to lock up kids younger than 13,

but this new law means

we're treating these ten-year-olds

like they're already too old to be saved,

and that means they won't be.

Do you think that society had anything to do

with affecting the actions of the young men who did this?

I believe they should

take responsibility for their actions.

They were only ten and 11.

Old enough to know that when you throw someone

out a 14th floor window, he's going to die.

Don't you feel that these children

were bred to a life of violence?

There are plenty of kids in that community

who don't choose to be killers.

Look what you two are doing.

But these defendants have been picked up in the past

for possession of drugs, once for possession of guns.

You tell me

what a normal ten-year-old kid needs with a gun.

So you believe that it will help these young men

if they're thrown in, um, juvie prison until they're 21.

I believe if they'd been locked up

after the drug incident or after the gun incident,

Eric Morse would still be alive.

All they can think of to do with a black kid in trouble is lock him up.

Man, these are two cold-hearted kids.

I'm not saying they're not, man.

I'm just saying

what chance did they ever have to be anything else?

We spoke with the father of Tyrone,

one of the two boys accused of the murder of Eric Morse.

He's serving an eight-year sentence

for the aggravated battery of Tyrone's mother.

Do you feel

your absence from seeing your son

led to the alleged incident?

Yes.

Oh, yes, I do.

When a father and his child are separated...

the child has a tendency to take the wrong route in life.

Do think that your son deserves

any blame for what happened?

Sure, he does.

That baby is dead.

And Ty and Johnny were both up there when it happened.

I just don't want him to come out of this

with that ruthless type of attitude.

I spoke to him two weeks ago...

and I said...

"Ty... no matter what happens here...

"I love you...

and I'll always be there for you."

A father has an obligation to his child.

Dr. Doris Clay was Johnny's teacher

when the crime was committed.

She's now the principal

at a new alternative high school.

How did your class react to the crime?

It was tough on everyone,

and we didn't receive a crisis team

until the end of the second week.

They stayed for 45 minutes.

The problem is our children are smart.

They just don't think they're smart...

so they're defeated before they ever have a chance.

So, how are you two doing in school?

Well, LeAlan's going to be valedictorian when he graduates.

: Oh...

And what about you?

I'm doing okay.

Why you lying, man?

What's the problem?

Just...

sometimes I have trouble getting my mind focused.

Well, that's why we established this school--

to give kids smaller classes

and individual attention.

Sounds like what you need.

If you can transfer out of your school,

we'll find a place for you here.

Mr. Stanley?

Yes.

Hi, I'm David Isay.

I was told that the guidance office has to approve

the transfer of a student to an alternative school.

That's right, but there are no white students here.

He's not white. His name's Lloyd Newman. He's a junior.

Lloyd Newman...

What is your relationship to him?

I'm his friend.

You're that radio producer.

I'm trying to help Lloyd get transferred,

if you don't mind.

Lloyd Newman.

Here he is.

I'm sorry.

He doesn't have the grades to attend an alternative school.

Right, I-I'm aware of that,

but I spoke to the principal at Commons,

and she said she'd accept him.

It-It's not up to her.

Look, I know Miss Williams

had a problem with Lloyd's documentary, but I...

This has nothing to do with it.

Whatever his extracurricular activities might be,

he hasn't worked hard enough in school.

He wants to turn it around.

He thinks he can if he transfers.

It's not up to him, either.

Look, they want to help him.

He's already going to graduate a year behind his class,

if he stays in school at all.

Are you gonna sit around here

and play office politics with his life?!

Huh?

Lloyd hasn't earned the right

to attend an alternative school,

and no intervention from some stranger

is going to make a difference,

even if he is white.

He's an exceptional kid...

...and you're losing him.

Why do you care about him so much?

Why do you care about him so little?

Miss Williams, please.

The Board of Ed needs his paperwork.

They're not going to hold his spot forever, okay?

Mr. Stanley needs to sign the form before we can process them.

I know that. You know that, okay?

But I just saw

Mr. Stanley, and he's not gonna sign the form,

so what I was hoping was that...

I don't understand.

All right, you don't understand.

L-L-Let me make this clear.

I need you to tell me who else

can sign these forms so that Lloyd can get transferred.

The principal.

: Principal.

Mr. Isay...

I heard you were in the building.

Yeah, a lot of good that's done me.

Why don't you let me take care of this matter.

Take care of it how?

I'll get the transfer approved.

I know you don't believe it,

but I do care about these children.

I know we don't have the resources here that Lloyd needs,

and I'd like to see him go someplace where they do.

Thanks.

No... thank you.

I didn't expect you to stay so involved

with Lloyd and LeAlan.

I think I misjudged you.

Yeah, well... I guess that makes two of us.

Good day.

You, too.

Difficult issues

are involved in this sentencing.

You have both been found guilty of first-degree murder.

I believe that young children like you

have only a rudimentary understanding

of what you've done,

but the new law is clear and leaves me no choice

but to sentence you both to Illinois juvenile prisons

until you've reached the age...

No!

...of 21.

: 21.

Johnny...

Johnny!

Johnny! Johnny!

Well, this is where the little dude landed.

It feels like we're walking over a graveyard.

Well, shorty's soul could be looking down at us.

Hey, Lloyd, hey, LeAlan.

Hey, what's up, Kyra?

That your baby?

This is Deandre.

He's a month old.

Hey, little man, wassup?

I hear you guys are doing a piece

on that little boy that got thrown out the window.

Yeah, that's right.

Maybe you want to interview me.

I knew one of the boys that did it.

Johnny was always my baby.

I used to take care of him for his mama.

I could always talk to him,

even when he started doing bad things--

running away all the time, staying out nights.

What do you think happened the night Eric Morse was killed?

I believe it was an awful mistake.

I have a little brother and sister,

and sometimes when I want to make sure

that they really hear what I'm saying,

I start shouting, "I'm gonna throw your butt out the window."

But you never actually did it,

actually held them out.

Sometimes, kids need a real scare...

keep them from worse things on the street.

And you believe that's what Johnny and Tyrone

were doing to Eric Morse.

I believe they were trying to scare the baby,

so the next time, he'd steal candy for them...

only they were too little to hold on.

So you don't think they meant to?

Throw a baby out the window?

Who's that cruel?

An adult would do something like that,

not no children.

They need help, they need therapy,

and they ain't gonna get that in prison.

Let me go! Let me go!

Please! Let me go!

Please!

Little bitch!

Run, Derrick!

Let go of me!

Got him.

Tyrone, let me go!

Eric!

Let me go! Let me go!

Why'd you tell my mother?

You got to learn your lesson.

Little bastard tricked on us.

Stop kicking!

No! No! No! No!

Oh, no!

I wonder how he felt falling from the 14th story?

What would go through your mind?

I'd be thinking about how it is in heaven.

But I wouldn't have that much time to think.

Maybe four or five seconds.

I'd probably have time to say a prayer or something.

Like "God forgive me for my sins. Amen."

That's all you could have said.

Do you think they got a playground

in heaven for these kids?

Man, they don't got a playground in heaven

for nobody.

Maybe he's come back as a little bird or something.

Maybe he's just dead.

So you guys think it was an accident, huh?

I think they meant to scare the child.

I don't think they meant to kill him.

Yeah, but see, it was the way

they decided to scare him that was wrong.

And whose fault was that?

You can't put all the blame

on them shorties, you know.

Kyra's right.

No one starts out like that.

You don't just wake up

and want to throw a baby out a 14-story window.

I say it's only about 25% blame for the kids

and 25 for the parents, 25 for the building,

and 25 for the environment.

Yeah, and that's a 100% failure.

This whole thing's wrong.

University of Chicago is walking distance from here.

It has some of the-the greatest Nobel Prize winners

in the last century, but the kids around here,

they don't even know it exists.

Most have never been downtown.

They don't know that you don't have to follow the footsteps.

Man, you think we're different?

Well, you both know there's more to the world

than the Ida B. Wells.

But, Dave,

we're still here.

I mean, look, what happened to Eric

could happen to either one of us.

We could end up in the same place

as Johnny and Tyrone.

So tell me, why are we going to get out

when none of them did?

Because of what we done, Boo.

Dave here gave us a chance.

The question is, what we going to do with it?

I know... I know I'm going to do something with it.

I'm not going to be, uh, dealing drugs, playing cards,

end up shot,

or s-some bum alcoholic on the street.

Hey, fuck you, man.

Stop talking about my father like that.

I ain't even talking about Stick, man.

I'm talking about you.

This is Lloyd Newman...

...and LeAlan Jones, back on the scene

at the Ida B. Wells Housing Development.

On Thursday, October 13, 1994,

Eric Morse was dropped out of a 14th story window

by two other boys

'cause he wouldn't steal candy for them.

It happened in my backyard.

I can see the building from our house.

Not one negative phone call.

It gets better.

Guess who wants LeAlan and Lloyd

to appear as guests on his show?

You're kidding.

You did it again, man.

And nothing's going to ruin it this time.

Ah, we did it. We did it.

Yeah, I got some change, so... All right.

You know, if you want to go...

What's wrong, Sophie? What's wrong, man?

Is it Stick?

It's Duane. He got shot.

Shit.

What... Duane?

Wait, he got shot. How?

: It was a... it was a drive-by.

They just shot him.

He was just walking down the road, and they shot him.

Okay, how is he?

Oh, God, why?

: He's dead.

Oh, he's...

: Oh...

You all done something.

Be proud of it.

Janelle Horner.

Sebastian Hutchinson.

Amena James.

Whoo!

Robert Jennings.

Mark Johnson.

Whoo!

LeAlan Jones.

Whoo! Whoo!

Lester Morgan.

Denitra Morton.

Adam Coulter.

Reggie Stevens.

Abel Tuckham.

You should have graduated with us, man.

Yeah, I know.

I don't like to think about it.

But I'm going to make it through school,

no matter how long it takes me.

You got to.

Man, it's hard to believe

you'll be in college in the fall.

Yeah.

I guess this means no more radio.

We're moving on with our lives.

Yeah.

Can't expect Dave

to be waking me up every morning

the rest of my life.

Just wish it wasn't the end, though.

Ha! I got two. Watch this one.

I'm the king.

I got more fears than hopes right now.

I stay awake thinking about all the things

that could happen to me.

But I got dreams.

Go to college.

Move my family away from here.

Be rich and famous.

Be a journalist.

And maybe own a hardware store.

You got to put your dreams before your fears.

I live in the ghetto.

I'm supposed to be a loser.

I'm supposed to be snatching a purse

and shooting your head off.

I'm the person that doesn't vote.

I'm the motherfucker that's supposed to fill your jails.

I'm not supposed to be intelligent.

I'm not supposed to know what I know...

but I do.

I got an uncle and a cousin who are career criminals.

No father, a mother who was pronounced mentally ill,

and a grandmother who raised damn near 20 kids,

but I'm still making it.

I know you don't want to hear about the pain and suffering

in "that part of the city,"

but that part of the city is part of your city, too.

I believe in my heart

that we must find a way to help one another--

not me by myself, or you by yourself.

I'm talking about all of us, living together

in our city, in our America.

♪ Like Vietnam sometimes ♪

♪ I grew a ghetto life, full of remorse ♪

♪ These hard streets on a young man took its course ♪

♪ I've grown enough to see 22 of these years ♪

♪ More than others, less than a few ♪

♪ From these real circumstances, what can you do? ♪

♪ The cops shoot you, guys in the street shoot you ♪

♪ Now tell me ♪

♪ How are we supposed to survive these odds? ♪

♪ Bad educations plus a lack of jobs ♪

♪ This is the state of nature ♪

♪ Where everyday living is hard to eat ♪

♪ Kids rob, dead dudes whose mothers sob ♪

♪ Daddies ain't here, they're either dead or behind bars ♪

♪ Shorts got to have some so they steal cars ♪

♪ Who wants to be recognized as dope or hoop stars ♪

♪ These are the choices that make us who we are ♪

♪ Where we don't live long, so we don't reach far ♪

♪ Like Vietnam sometimes ♪

♪ Our America life in the hood ♪

♪ Project living ain't always good ♪

♪ Death and dying, mothers is crying, shorties is dying ♪

♪ But we got to keep trying ♪

♪ Our America, life in the hood ♪

♪ Project living ain't always good ♪

♪ Death and dying, mothers is crying, shorties is dying ♪

♪ But we got to keep trying ♪

♪ Now our buildings is falling, our streets is dirty ♪

♪ I got cabbies for $30, they jails is filled ♪

♪ With my brothers, cousins and sons ♪

♪ Clubs, lack of funds ♪

♪ Our America's filled with crack, smack, and guns ♪

♪ Our kids can't read, brothers is leaving HC ♪

♪ Our women got needs that we ain't met ♪

♪ First-of-the-month checks, I was raised that way ♪

♪ It ain't got to be this way ♪

♪ In our America, we living day to day ♪

♪ To God I pray the kids can play ♪

♪ Without a bullet coming they way ♪

♪ Is it too much to ask? ♪

♪ How we going to last if things don't change? ♪

♪ Mothers and they kids is begging for change ♪

♪ Teenagers in shady chains, streets is bloodstains ♪

♪ Fire from incinerators feed the pain ♪

♪ Like Vietnam sometimes ♪

♪ Our America, life in the hood ♪

♪ Project living ain't always good ♪

♪ Death and dying, mothers is crying, shorties is dying ♪

♪ But we got to keep trying ♪

♪ Our America, life in the hood ♪

♪ Project living ain't always good ♪

♪ Death and dying, mothers is crying, shorties is dying ♪

♪ But we got to keep trying ♪

♪ So what's the course of action? ♪

♪ We gonna plus or subtract? ♪

♪ They still will react or we just gonna die? ♪

♪ When we gonna start living and stop asking why? ♪

♪ Got to stop being bold 'cause poverty ain't shy ♪

♪ Living in this style ♪

♪ Situations'll produce tears in your eyes ♪

♪ I love you, I can't deny ♪

♪ But we gotta stop letting life just pass us by ♪

♪ There's more to it than drinking and high ♪

♪ Hopefully gives a slice of the car ♪

♪ Ambition can't be cut ♪

♪ But you can't expect nothing but problems ♪

♪ When you sit on your butt ♪

♪ When you're stuck here your link'll get cut ♪

♪ It's hard, but we can't give up ♪

♪ Our America, life in the hood... ♪