Looking Out: Generations of victims
"Hi Dad, today you have another Great grandson weighing in at seven pounds and nine ounces. Born on this 29th day of June, at 12:41 p.m. His name is Daemonta Munson, son of Robert Gene Munson, son of Tanisha Marie Jones. I've been up with Tanisha for 24 hours; her labor was about 14 hours. Tanisha is resting and I'm going to take a nap.
"Love Always, Veronica Lynn Jones."
Billy Bob: Did you go down to the prison last week?
Roosevelt: Yeah. Brandon told me about his new great-grandson.
BB: I wonder what it feels like to find out you have a new great-grandson come into the world while you're on death row?
R: I asked him that.
BB: What did he say?
R: He was obviously deeply moved. He said, "I remember when Daemonta's grandmother was born. I held her a few hours after her entry into this world. She was one ounce lighter than he was. When I left the hospital, she and her mother were both asleep. I was emotionally exhausted. When I got home I fell asleep, too — in the car in the driveway. It's strange how each generation can put the other asleep, upon arrival."
BB: When was the last time he saw his granddaughter?
R: I asked him that too, but I was sorry I did. A real sad look took over his face. He was holding back tears. With his head bowed, he said, "I have never seen Tanisha Marie, aside from photographs. Saint Paul, Minnesota, is a long way from Atlanta; visits are real expensive. We used to correspond a lot when she was a little girl. We wrote poetry for each other. In fact, when she was seven, her very first poem was published, along with one of mine, in the Georgia State Poetry Society's newsletter."
BB: You know what I'm learning?
R: Naw, tell me.
BB: The marriage of poverty and the death penalty breeds generations of victims.
BY BRANDON ASTOR JONES
[The writer is a prisoner on death row in the United States. He welcomes letters commenting on his columns (include your name and full return address on the envelope, or prison authorities may refuse to deliver it). He can be written to at: Brandon Astor Jones, EF-122216, G3-77, Georgia Diagnostic & Classification Prison, PO Box 3877, Jackson, GA 30233, USA, or email <BrandonAstorJones@hotmail.com>. You can visit the author's web site at .]