For Ahkeem

Mum...

It's time.

Don't be afraid.

I'm always scared and afraid.

You is?

Yeah.

I just don't know what they gonna say.

Come on, Boonie.

Do y'all hear that bus?

Yep, it's right there.

I'm so nervous man, I swear to God.

Are you nervous?

I just don't want them to put me out of school.

The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures

He leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul.

He leadeth me in the path of righteousness

for his name's sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death

I will fear no evil for thou art with me.

Surely goodness and mercy

shall follow me all the days of my life

and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

-Amen. -Amen.

- -All rise.

You may be seated.

Daje Shelton, come up here please.

You standing in my courtroom, in an adult courtroom

and I'm getting ready to make a decision about your life.

And if I decide to lock you up

your mama can't even make a bond for you.

But you want to fight.

Because somebody said something about you.

How silly is that?

How old are you now?

Seventeen.

-What grade are you in? -11th.

Alright. This is serious.

You won't be able to go to another public school in the state of Missouri.

What?

That's where we are.

So her grades and attendance don't count for anything?

Her grades and attendance

mean a whole lot to me.

And you're not even a bad kid.

That's what I'm saying, so why...

I know you're not a bad kid.

And that's the reason I opened the school.

I'ma recommend that you go to ICA

a high school for people that have these chronic problems of getting in fights.

ICA is the only option that the school board really has

in terms of me dealing with these types of offenses.

I ain't--I don't need that.

I'm alright.

That's the only option to get your high school diploma.

-Can I please say something? -Yes, ma'am.

I will make sure that she do what she supposed to do

if you would please have mercy on her.

No more options.

No more options.

There are zero options left.

Either you make it with me

or you don't make it at all.

I ain't never been this mad in my life, straight up.

I'm hella mad.

What college finna accept me from an alternative school?

You can go to college off a GED.

You smart enough to get that much just like that.

I don't--a GED is different from a high school diploma.

What job I'ma get with that?

What college I'ma go to with that?

I care about school.

I don't care about this little stupid stuff.

I don't have time to instigate.

I'm a junior. I'm a junior!

I'm finna be a senior next year

Y'all think I got time to be doing all that? No.

-You supposed to go on about your business. -I mean, Mama, come on, Mama.

That ain't enough to keep me in no school like that.

Ain't no other school for you to go to.

I know you don't want to grow up around here.

Don't go in there with no attitude.

Go in there like you got some sense

'cause they not playing.

They already got everything they need.

He a judge.

He a principal.

And they can shoot you down real quick.

Tell you you gotta go to juvenile.

-And what am I gonna do? -Uh-uh, I ain't going to juvenile.

They can do whatever they want to do.

So you go in there mouthing off, and he get mad enough to where

"Oh, you too smart. Well, here you go, juvenile."

You know what I'm saying? You don't need none of that.

We don't need none of that in our life right now.

October 10, 2013.

They had a whole courtroom in there.

My mama was crying.

I just felt like I was letting her down

'cause I got to go to an alternative school.

She did everything she could for me.

I just want to make her proud.

Good morning.

Don't ever do that again, you hear me?

You hear me?

Okay.

Alright, let's go.

Let's go, sweetheart. You ain't got time.

You got less than three minutes now.

And you want to wait and talk.

My class, lets go, in this room.

Alright, here we go!

Pay attention!

Everybody sit up and act like you got some sense.

Everybody sit up straight.

This is not a game.

I just finished an 18-year-old

that I'ma send him to the penitentiary

for the rest of his life.

He's gonna die in prison.

I'm tired of it.

Let me ask you guys a question.

Do you all think

that you all are the worst kids

in the entire United States of America?

-No. -No.

You know what bothers me?

Black kids in Missouri

get suspended and expelled from school

more than any kid

in the whole United States of America.

That's in all 50 states.

This is real.

And let me go further.

At the elementary school level

nine-year-old kids, ten-year-old kids eleven-year-old kids

31% were suspended.

They were black kids, man.

I'm frustrated.

I'm frustrated.

I'm trying to keep you out of the system.

The reason we have this school

is to keep you out of the system

not put you in the system.

It's not a game.

Think I messed up, a lot.

As far as that goes

I'm not even mad about that.

I want you to keep on going to school no matter what.

I want you to go with a positive thinking.

I can't. I can't do that.

-Okay, well... -I'm telling you now.

-I can't do it. -You still got to go.

You still have to continue your education.

Because I don't want you to get comfortable

around here in this house and thinking that

this neighborhood and the things that are around here

is the way of life, and it's not.

It's so much bigger and better things out here

you wouldn't even believe it.

You would not believe

you step off this block and might see something different.

Mama, what you want to do in the future?

-What I like to do? -What'd you like to do?

-What do I like to do? -Cook?

-So you know what I want to do. -You want to be a cook?

-No. -You want to open a restaurant?

Yeah. Own my own restaurant.

Ooh, soul food?

-Everything, all foods. -Everything?

You sure can cook.

I don't see that happening.

Come on.

Be quiet though, TJ.

Come on, let's go to the store, get some candy.

Be quiet.

Look at your face when you crying.

You better stop that.

There's some ugly on there.

You better wipe it off.

See, like, his mama locked up.

His daddy locked up.

-That's crazy. -Mm-hmm.

And I don't want him to get in some trouble.

That's part of the reason why I'm where I'm at now.

I was in my senior year and I got put out, expelled.

Still looking for a job.

So.

You're not a old lady.

You ain't got no kids.

You ain't got no responsibilities none of that.

You got so many options out here.

So many options.

-Everybody know Boonie. -

Everybody know Boonie.

What about knowing Boonie

when you turn on the TV channel and see Boonie

doing something positive.

You smart, you could be a journalist or anything.