When I was 18 I was locked up for 90 days. They found out I was pretty smart. I ended up answering questions all day long. They eventually had me tutor for the GED test. People in general appreciated it.
Academically, all languages from the hardest to the easiest facet fall into this ranking: Speaking the language. (the hardest). Understanding what is being said to you. (second hardest thing). Writing the language. (third hardest thing). Reading the language. (the easiest part of any language). The so called "illiterate" dude (that same guy that you can verbally communicate with), more than likely already has an extensive store of words (vocabulary) that he understands and uses regularly. To say: "I was at the legal library today and Rudy was telling me..." is actually harder to verbalize than to read the same sentence on paper. Most of those guys have already been "mind _ucked". They've been told from an early age that they are dumbasses, ironically enough by parent figures that are also sorely lacking in literacy. Those adults probably ALSO got the "you're a dumbass" treatment when they were small kids. Generational curses are very real. 👹💀
I was counted as "smart" even though my highest education was actually the GED I got there, but like..... I was not really surprised, but I was still bothered about how many dudes in there never learned to read. That became my thing. I mean I read books, not law books mostly, I read a lot of revolutionary authors. I worked out. I wrote. But I also put at least 3/4 of my OOC time into teaching people to read. I was actually given books in trade for it sometimes, like if I wanted a particular book that I wasn't allowed to have, a dude would have his family print out the book and send in a few chapters at a time disguised as letters and I would give him reading lessons. That's actually how I read MOST of the political philosophy I have read in my life. Other people would pay me real money for it, but I only took money if someone volunteered it, because there were guys in there who had nothing and I didn't want that to get in the way of someone learning to read. Looking back on it, it kinda pisses me off that they didn't HAVE any basic educational programs for someone who couldn't read or write. They had GED programs and even college level correspondence courses, but if you didn't know how to read, there was NOTHING for you. You HAD TO learn from another convict.
@@traceyroby8334 I appreciate that, it didn't even occur to me that I was doing anything out of the ordinary until the reactions I got from people I talked to about it when I got home. The part I don't want to gloss over is the **NEED** for basic education, literacy training especially, for anyone who either can't read or can't read well. This should be a thing the state (or federal DOC) should pay for. The other convicts can help as well, but the institution SHOULD teach you to read if you don't know how. Thanks for the reply.
I was locked up for armed robbery when I was 16. My dad sent me two boxes full of books. I became the library. We didn't have a library where I was at. I created a check in check out system. The best part was being able to help other guys learn to read. The guards even gave me some special privileges.
@@shadus7218 That's great, I wish they let people send us books from the outside, but the closest we had was an order form with a finite list that specifically excluded certain books. I had someone getting books printed several chapters at a time and sent in disguised as typed letters. It was helpful for the larger print and also because some of these guys wanted to read revolutionary literature. I kinda had contraband the whole time, in the form of books, that they never found because it would've required that the COs do some reading when they shook us down. I found that funny. All that said, thank you for teaching others to read. It should be a thing that the state does, but most places don't. I am glad there are convicts who are willing to do it.
Never mess with the smart ones. They're the ones that'll crash out *hard* if you push them too far. Yeah, maybe they won't be as strong as you, but those muscles don't mean much when a dude spends six months planning how he's going to dismantle you.
My old football coach told me some game (guy was ex green beret) the quiet dudes are the most dangerous cause you never know what he’s thinking or planning.
@@mmnootzenpoof in US if all you have is a hammer, ever problem is a nail. Fussa city, Yokota Air Base 2000- 2003. Roppongi was a good time. Much love for Nippon. Oteari wa doko ni.
The ppl trying to bring others down are called Crabs. If you watch crabs trying to climb a try it fits. They'll knock you down just to keep you from rising up.
Like crabs in a bucket, the one that climbs out gets pulled back in by the rest and they all stay stuck. It's not just prision, it's the street, the projects and life.
i used to get treated so bad, for years, just because i was naturally intelligent.. it hurt so much as i always treated others with love..i ended up stopping myself from shining in life because of it all, and still do :(
Same here!! I LITERALLY had to dumb myself down to try n keep from not only upsetting others but mostly save my sanity from being surrounded by so many dumb people that would go after me verbally and physically because they didn't believe me and thought I was trying to fool em!!
I was playing Scrabble Chess and Texas Hold'em for commissary in not prison, but George Bailey. The brothers tried to clown me at first and say I "talked white", but I calmly informed them that they were only insulting their *own* intelligence with that mindset, not mine. One actually respected me for checking him on that and we had a couple drinks on the outs.
Thomas sowell has talked about where black street talk comes from and my jaw almost dropped. It's more classiest than based on race he started using improper European English a d redneck English and suddenly it all sounded the same. It all comes from the same place on lower less educated classes. Once that gets going it seems to me education and learning gets spat on. Too much heard mentality and suddenly intellect starts to stand out and with tribalism people take notice and not positively
Crime and incarceration is not as big of a problem in Poland as it is in the states, I've never pursued any sort of illegal activity myself, however I'm a big fan of this channel - growing up without a role model (and being a father of a teenage son) I much appreciate the attitude and spirit of your conversations and sharing life wisdom with people of all walks of life. Certain truths are universal and not only limited to prison situations. You're humble, willing to learn, thoughtful - wish you all the best. Stay well sir!
@vitalityfox in this life you have obe simple choice, bro: try to be positive and keep grinding hoping you will elevate yourself and others, despite the shit life throws at you OR become sad and bitter, until you're consumed by hate and resentment. There's no option no.3 unfortunately
You ever feel like your gonna go back at no fault of your own but rather our messed up system may send you say for something like self defense or something ? I feel like i may get sent back for no reason , its not a good feeling , its like PTSD or something
I feel this way, like you’re just circling down the drain eventually you’ll end up back at the bottom. It’s like we are destined for the destruction. It calls our names.
I grew up with a very abusive violent thug as a father and a weak compliant mother. I almost ended up in prison when I was 18 and have plenty of friends who did (a few for murder). But I was lucky, I realized in my mid 20s I was highly intelligent and had a lot to offer. I only went to high school for 2 years and hated school but read books contently. When they take your baseline IQ in the 1st grade my score was in the top 98 percentile and I was supposed to go to the gifted programs but ended up in "special class" because I was disruptive and caused problems. I started off the biotech industry in my mid 20s and now own my own consulting firm doing project management and engineering in the biotech industry. Finally finished college and have made a 6 figure income for nearly 2 decades. Hanging out with losers and thinking you are a victim are the surest ways to NEVER live a fulfilling life.
Just an FYI: The gifted program and the “special” program for students with learning disabilities are all part of the same program. All are exceptional learners. Fun fact. Look it up.
I didn't want to go to prison when i was 20 and now at 61 I still don't. Can't help feeling that I'm still headed there and have just been lucky so far.
I got a lot of that BS and I've never been locked up or lived the street life I'm a shade or two lighter than Big Herc, constantly accused of "acting/talking white" all my life. I've always been well-travelled, i was not even born in the U.S. I was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. My father and paternal grandfather were also born in Scotland, Glasgow in their case. My grandfather definitely sounded like it, my father and I also sound like it especially if pissed off, upset, outraged or in extreme pain or stress. Both my father and paternal grandfather were/are USAF veterans. My maternal grandfather was also a USAF veteran. As an Air Force brat, from when i was 6-7 years old, i could speak seven languages: Latin, French, German, Spanish, a little Japanese, a little Mandarin and ASL(American Sign Language). When Covid kicked off, was teaching myself Greek and Russian. I, too, always had books in my hands growing up. My phone has a lot of ebooks saved on it these days. Most rap music was a one way ticket to going outside to get a switch for a whoopin. Improper speaking ie: stereotypical "black" vernacular also was a whoopin' offense. Grades C+ Average was bare minimum. Got paid $25 for Bs, $35 for B+s $40 for As, $50 for A+. Between my sister and I, report card time we were cleaning our poor dad out. My worst subjects were math and PE up until 8th grade and High School. The way they were teaching math to me in school was not working. Grandfather intervened who, despite he himself getting a GED after Korea, he had a gift for math. One summer with him , went from struggling with long division to doing Algebra 2, in Freshman year, Calculus by Sophomore year, Trigonometry, by Junior year, and Celestial Navigation with my older cousin who was in the Navy by senior year. I got all manners of BS. Told that i shouldn't or not supposed to have that much of an education. Act, speak "black "⁷
Just wanna chip in and say this is one of the genuine discriminatory ways I saw people talk about black people and pidgeon hole them when I was growing up. I would say much of my class was racist, though I don't know how much of it was true bigotry. But this attitude....this attitude was something I saw as straight up regressive and distasteful. Maybe part of that was because I understand what it was like to be criticized for talking a certain way. This was probably the thing that bothered me the most, or was the most surface level wrong to me. No one should be capitulated to speak a certain way cause of a way they look. or really any other way. come as you are
My friend she had a brother who did 18 months in prison. Black dude. He’s Belizean and Panamanian. She told me they were intimidated by him because of his size. He was very smart and he was tested but stood his ground
@@marioarguello6989 lol. Nope. And like black folks from Latin America and the Caribbean he’s very homophobic but he did have a crew. 7 other black guys who were from Jamaica, Belize and Cuba so they had their own click. Funny enough they all got out the same month but different days.
Yes, that was one of the most bizarre things I observed in different school districts moving through the South/East Coast (dad was an Army officer) The first black people I ever met were also Army Officer families, so they appreciated education In Georgia & Maryland, it was like a generational fear of living above your station from back in the early 1800s Even some of the teachers reinforced it to the black students IMO it’s one part of the complex problem of why things don’t change that we really never discuss, but ppl have made it clear to me that I should stay out of it It’s extra weird bc most of my family didn’t come to America until like 1906, well after the Civil War/13th Amendment - so literally I have nothing to do with this whole thing But I’ve come to understand that it’s an emotional/belief issue that each individual person works through in their own way - or doesn’t
I've never been in jail, but if I ever was, I would definitely be SMART by keeping to myself & polite to others... Not sure if that would help, but it's how I would be.
💯 Bro and it's hard asf to explain what it is to use the perception of being black and therefore ignorant to your advantage. I did 20 years so smooth it's like I wasn't even there.
I was in jail for a few months with this one black dude. Best person I've ever seen at chess and scrabble in person. Had a very analytical mind and any topic he was familiar with he could dissect, but he wasn't well read. He's way smarter than I am, but I'm white and I've read a lot of books, so I sound intelligent. Everyone treated me like I was the smart guy in the room and I think me and that guy were probably the only ones that knew they were wrong.
this just hit me while you were talking about being smart in prison… you have the wisdom of having survived and thrived through a variety of tests and experiences where others have failed. Now you are out and giving this talk poolside surrounded by a rather high cinder block wall that cuts off the outside world… I see a parallel, and yes, I know this privacy arrangement is common in southern California. thank you for sharing, Big Herc… Bill in Vermont
I remember when I first got to WSP - Walla Walla. They put me in a GED program until the verified my HS Diploma. Once they did that, the teacher offered me a job as her TA. Man, all the OGs were like, “how’d you get that job…” LOL I was always out of my cell on the school floor doing the most! 😂
I experienced this when going back to a blue collar job i worked at before after finishing college. They bullied me so much. I was a hard worker and helping out so much but they didn't like that. I'll never understand it.
You probably are a young one and don't know these movies, they are all great movies which address the work environment, two of them the beautiful world of Union Goons: I'm Allright Jack On The Waterfront Office Space (Ok, you probably know this one).
Much respect....I did many short stays in county when I was young....drinkin, druggin, driven, fightin....I saw/experienced enough to know I didnt want to end up there long term. Lucky to not get tagged with a felony. Ive always questioned whether I had the mental toughness to survive the mind games inside long term. And not a physically imposing figure ..... so you might say I was scared straight. I read alot when I was in there. Im sure I would have gravitated to the smart guys if Id stayed longer. Ignorance is hard to be around. Thank you for sharing your wisdom......Chris in the Philippines
It's true outside too. I've heard of kids in primarily black schools who become Valedictorian getting death threats from folks accusing them of thinking they're better than everyone else. Kids just wanna learn and their neighborhood is holding them back.
Just got your video on my feed. Excellent video. Very great point not often discussed and also occurs in corporate America. Whereas it often not the message but rather the messenger that determine if and to what extent an intellectual contribution is valued.
Yeah I had a lot of issues cuz I was black, articulate and smart. I heard "you think you know it all" hella times for correcting people about shit. These dudes used to be convinced you needed yeast to make hooch, and that putting some bread in a sock was providing that yeast. 🤣🤣🤣 Then when I showed em all you needed was some fruit that had started the fermentation process naturally they was like aww maybe this dude know some 💩💩💩 They used to have me explain legal stuff to them then get mad when I told em things they didn't want to hear or that they misunderstood. And they really would get mad when they would try to run game and you didn't take the bait cuz you saw it coming a mile away. Like 3 friends and a stranger at the card table.
@@comanchedasewhatever your feelings about it, it's a good thing that big herc is putting that messaging out there because many black people call each other names or say you're acting too white if you're studious and trying to do well academically. Some negative aspects of culture that need to be reversed ASAP.
@@comanchedase when we say it, its racist. So im happy as well. Nothing wrong with being smart. Its odd that a whole culture puts it down. Explains a lot
yo herc over 5 years ago you referenced the blacks law dictionary and i knew you knew the real game. since then ive read a lot of books you have talked about. thanks man!
6:37 - The word you’re looking for is “provincial” - a person limited in scope and sophistication. Limited to his own “province” of influence and expertise. Yeah I’m smart !!
I think the prison higher-ups want everyone to be racist. That way they are fighting amongst each other and not look at the bigger picture. Imagine what would happen if prisoners work together, and started going against the guards for living in harsh conditions. Then they would have to fix the problem.
Lol.. Thanks for sharing this!! Sadly this happens in real life very much, the hate from other blackmen for being a smart blackman!! I delt with this in college and at work, and from family..
Fascinating. Thanks for sharing this with us. Really a microcosm of life in general, on many levels: race, intelligence, self-confidence, conditioning, society. Just all really interesting.
Maaaan... I'd love to tell you about the things in the family library I'm building. I'm always studying some powerful stuff and the power structures around us.
yeah I never got that. how someone could consider someone else a sell-out just because they got smart and educated themself. especially someone who is black, its like they picked up a slave owner's manual saying that you should never - ever - educate your slaves because it gave them power - and decided to take that idea to heart and live it as a life motto.. just insane.
Big Homie, try working in corparate America! It almost cost me a visit to see a psychiatrist before I understood I wasn't imagining things. The whole point is, the struggle is real, it's not blatant, it's very suttle, but still it's there! Thanks for sharing that with the young ones, because they'll encounter it and need to recognize and understand it when they do.
Facts. I was a college educated kid in LA in my 20’s …. Trafficking blow for the Russians, and doing card scams with my Hollywood friends. I have just enough street smarts, book smarts, and heart to survive a year in LA County and 4 years in prison. It’s all about playing chess, not checkers
You're lucky to be alive - the Russians don't play nice. Hmm, going off the movie comment below, maybe you should write a book about it (under a pseudonym probably)
14:00 this example is the sum total of our people globally. Malcolm X's autobiography should be mandatory reading for every Black male in prison and I'm not a Muslim.
This guys brilliance is simply, off the charts. He is an amazing brother, and it's a shame, but a fact that prisons are filled with these guys. This system tracks and traps black guys like this, through methods that would take a library to explain. The fact that brilliant brothers, that is black men, are targets, even in prison is no surprise. It's a vestige of slavery that brothers who were smart, were killed, usually by other brothers, the bucks, who were fed trinkets to pull the plug on their fellow man. This guy could run General Motors, or even a country, without even breaking a sweat. Best of grace and luck to him.
These fucking cicadas ain't playing
Nature's white noise, same with a river flowing, waves crashing, or wind blowing in the trees 🙂
I was at work listening. Thought a bearing was going out!!!
we will be heard lol
i don't even hear them anymore. just the way the south sounds in the summer.
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
When I was 18 I was locked up for 90 days. They found out I was pretty smart. I ended up answering questions all day long. They eventually had me tutor for the GED test. People in general appreciated it.
Nothing’s more demeaning than telling a dude that can’t read that he can’t read. Must be death on the ego
I'd feel so bad honestly 😔
Academically, all languages from the hardest to the easiest facet fall into this ranking:
Speaking the language. (the hardest).
Understanding what is being said to you. (second hardest thing).
Writing the language. (third hardest thing).
Reading the language. (the easiest part of any language).
The so called "illiterate" dude (that same guy that you can verbally communicate with), more than likely already has an extensive store of words (vocabulary) that he understands and uses regularly. To say: "I was at the legal library today and Rudy was telling me..." is actually harder to verbalize than to read the same sentence on paper.
Most of those guys have already been "mind _ucked". They've been told from an early age that they are dumbasses, ironically enough by parent figures that are also sorely lacking in literacy. Those adults probably ALSO got the "you're a dumbass" treatment when they were small kids. Generational curses are very real. 👹💀
@@Harry-q2q6y That's called "functional illiteracy".
@@Harry-q2q6y Not a curse, there's nothing supernatural about it. Usually, it's just a really bad family environment and sometimes bad genes.
@@Harry-q2q6ytotally agree. I've been learning a foreign language for about 500 days. That's exactly what the difficulty order is
I was counted as "smart" even though my highest education was actually the GED I got there, but like..... I was not really surprised, but I was still bothered about how many dudes in there never learned to read. That became my thing. I mean I read books, not law books mostly, I read a lot of revolutionary authors. I worked out. I wrote. But I also put at least 3/4 of my OOC time into teaching people to read. I was actually given books in trade for it sometimes, like if I wanted a particular book that I wasn't allowed to have, a dude would have his family print out the book and send in a few chapters at a time disguised as letters and I would give him reading lessons. That's actually how I read MOST of the political philosophy I have read in my life.
Other people would pay me real money for it, but I only took money if someone volunteered it, because there were guys in there who had nothing and I didn't want that to get in the way of someone learning to read. Looking back on it, it kinda pisses me off that they didn't HAVE any basic educational programs for someone who couldn't read or write. They had GED programs and even college level correspondence courses, but if you didn't know how to read, there was NOTHING for you. You HAD TO learn from another convict.
And they found a world of new possibilities just from learning to read. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with others.♥️
@@traceyroby8334 I appreciate that, it didn't even occur to me that I was doing anything out of the ordinary until the reactions I got from people I talked to about it when I got home. The part I don't want to gloss over is the **NEED** for basic education, literacy training especially, for anyone who either can't read or can't read well. This should be a thing the state (or federal DOC) should pay for. The other convicts can help as well, but the institution SHOULD teach you to read if you don't know how. Thanks for the reply.
I was locked up for armed robbery when I was 16. My dad sent me two boxes full of books. I became the library. We didn't have a library where I was at. I created a check in check out system. The best part was being able to help other guys learn to read. The guards even gave me some special privileges.
@@shadus7218 That's great, I wish they let people send us books from the outside, but the closest we had was an order form with a finite list that specifically excluded certain books.
I had someone getting books printed several chapters at a time and sent in disguised as typed letters. It was helpful for the larger print and also because some of these guys wanted to read revolutionary literature.
I kinda had contraband the whole time, in the form of books, that they never found because it would've required that the COs do some reading when they shook us down. I found that funny.
All that said, thank you for teaching others to read. It should be a thing that the state does, but most places don't. I am glad there are convicts who are willing to do it.
@AdamRainStopper, In prison a GED is a Ph.D in "astro-phonics".
Never mess with the smart ones. They're the ones that'll crash out *hard* if you push them too far. Yeah, maybe they won't be as strong as you, but those muscles don't mean much when a dude spends six months planning how he's going to dismantle you.
My old football coach told me some game (guy was ex green beret) the quiet dudes are the most dangerous cause you never know what he’s thinking or planning.
@@brodiemcdonald3132that's something weak and insecure people say to make themselves seem less soft.
@@joewatts2940 so you think that quiet peope are WEAK???
@@İSTANBULSEFİRİSÜLEYMANÇAKIRa lot are Let’s not act like every quiet person is with the activities
@@Mr5anyika the ones like you who talk loud are the softest. Your a insecure bully
Australians call that "tall poppy syndrome" when one poppy flower grows taller than the rest, people try to cut it down to size.
also known as ye old crabs in a bucket
fuckers pull anyone who tries to get out back in
Similar saying in the US, “the tallest blade of grass is the first to get cut by the lawn mower.”
japanese say "the nail that sticks up, gets hammered down"
@@mmnootzenpoof in US if all you have is a hammer, ever problem is a nail. Fussa city, Yokota Air Base 2000- 2003. Roppongi was a good time. Much love for Nippon. Oteari wa doko ni.
The ppl trying to bring others down are called Crabs. If you watch crabs trying to climb a try it fits. They'll knock you down just to keep you from rising up.
"Barbaric low-vibration knuckleheads" is a top-level burn, got-damn.
No one would touch me - I’ve been a criminal defense attorney for 17 years. I would be the most protected guy in the whole damned complex.
Lol fr tho 😂
Would be bad for business though :)
Saul Goodman
Weird flex but definitely a perk I guess!
Defending criminals...
Much respect for turning your life around and focusing on yours goals for when you got out.
Like crabs in a bucket, the one that climbs out gets pulled back in by the rest and they all stay stuck. It's not just prision, it's the street, the projects and life.
crab mentality
i used to get treated so bad, for years, just because i was naturally intelligent.. it hurt so much as i always treated others with love..i ended up stopping myself from shining in life because of it all, and still do :(
I believe you!...
Same here!! I LITERALLY had to dumb myself down to try n keep from not only upsetting others but mostly save my sanity from being surrounded by so many dumb people that would go after me verbally and physically because they didn't believe me and thought I was trying to fool em!!
Bro spelled “you’re” right, he knows what he’s talking about
It took me years to come to the conclusion that it’s not so much skin color, but culture, that holds people back from succeeding.
I was playing Scrabble Chess and Texas Hold'em for commissary in not prison, but George Bailey. The brothers tried to clown me at first and say I "talked white", but I calmly informed them that they were only insulting their *own* intelligence with that mindset, not mine. One actually respected me for checking him on that and we had a couple drinks on the outs.
Thomas sowell has talked about where black street talk comes from and my jaw almost dropped. It's more classiest than based on race he started using improper European English a d redneck English and suddenly it all sounded the same. It all comes from the same place on lower less educated classes. Once that gets going it seems to me education and learning gets spat on. Too much heard mentality and suddenly intellect starts to stand out and with tribalism people take notice and not positively
Crime and incarceration is not as big of a problem in Poland as it is in the states, I've never pursued any sort of illegal activity myself, however I'm a big fan of this channel - growing up without a role model (and being a father of a teenage son) I much appreciate the attitude and spirit of your conversations and sharing life wisdom with people of all walks of life. Certain truths are universal and not only limited to prison situations. You're humble, willing to learn, thoughtful - wish you all the best. Stay well sir!
Well said sir!!
Poland doesn’t have all the “diversity” the USA has.
I’m not tryna hear none of this bull shit. Fuck all that positivity
Population 36.82 million Poland
Population 333.3 million USA
😂 STFU 🤣
@vitalityfox in this life you have obe simple choice, bro: try to be positive and keep grinding hoping you will elevate yourself and others, despite the shit life throws at you OR become sad and bitter, until you're consumed by hate and resentment. There's no option no.3 unfortunately
You ever feel like your gonna go back at no fault of your own but rather our messed up system may send you say for something like self defense or something ? I feel like i may get sent back for no reason , its not a good feeling , its like PTSD or something
I feel this way, like you’re just circling down the drain eventually you’ll end up back at the bottom. It’s like we are destined for the destruction. It calls our names.
I grew up with a very abusive violent thug as a father and a weak compliant mother. I almost ended up in prison when I was 18 and have plenty of friends who did (a few for murder). But I was lucky, I realized in my mid 20s I was highly intelligent and had a lot to offer. I only went to high school for 2 years and hated school but read books contently. When they take your baseline IQ in the 1st grade my score was in the top 98 percentile and I was supposed to go to the gifted programs but ended up in "special class" because I was disruptive and caused problems. I started off the biotech industry in my mid 20s and now own my own consulting firm doing project management and engineering in the biotech industry. Finally finished college and have made a 6 figure income for nearly 2 decades. Hanging out with losers and thinking you are a victim are the surest ways to NEVER live a fulfilling life.
Just an FYI: The gifted program and the “special” program for students with learning disabilities are all part of the same program. All are exceptional learners. Fun fact. Look it up.
Big Herc's speech and calm demeanor are good indications of his superior intelligence.
I didn't want to go to prison when i was 20 and now at 61 I still don't.
Can't help feeling that I'm still headed there and have just been lucky so far.
Don't even put that energy out there....
I got a lot of that BS and I've never been locked up or lived the street life I'm a shade or two lighter than Big Herc, constantly accused of "acting/talking white" all my life. I've always been well-travelled, i was not even born in the U.S. I was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. My father and paternal grandfather were also born in Scotland, Glasgow in their case. My grandfather definitely sounded like it, my father and I also sound like it especially if pissed off, upset, outraged or in extreme pain or stress.
Both my father and paternal grandfather were/are USAF veterans. My maternal grandfather was also a USAF veteran.
As an Air Force brat, from when i was 6-7 years old, i could speak seven languages: Latin, French, German, Spanish, a little Japanese, a little Mandarin and ASL(American Sign Language). When Covid kicked off, was teaching myself Greek and Russian. I, too, always had books in my hands growing up. My phone has a lot of ebooks saved on it these days.
Most rap music was a one way ticket to going outside to get a switch for a whoopin. Improper speaking ie: stereotypical "black" vernacular also was a whoopin' offense. Grades C+ Average was bare minimum. Got paid $25 for Bs, $35 for B+s $40 for As, $50 for A+. Between my sister and I, report card time we were cleaning our poor dad out. My worst subjects were math and PE up until 8th grade and High School. The way they were teaching math to me in school was not working. Grandfather intervened who, despite he himself getting a GED after Korea, he had a gift for math. One summer with him , went from struggling with long division to doing Algebra 2, in Freshman year, Calculus by Sophomore year, Trigonometry, by Junior year, and Celestial Navigation with my older cousin who was in the Navy by senior year.
I got all manners of BS. Told that i shouldn't or not supposed to have that much of an education. Act, speak "black "⁷
A shade or two? So, you are black? Dude is blue purple.
@marioarguello6989 last I checked
Discouraging others to be stupid is a terrible thing to do. Good for you for not letting them get you down!
Just wanna chip in and say this is one of the genuine discriminatory ways I saw people talk about black people and pidgeon hole them when I was growing up. I would say much of my class was racist, though I don't know how much of it was true bigotry. But this attitude....this attitude was something I saw as straight up regressive and distasteful. Maybe part of that was because I understand what it was like to be criticized for talking a certain way. This was probably the thing that bothered me the most, or was the most surface level wrong to me. No one should be capitulated to speak a certain way cause of a way they look. or really any other way.
come as you are
👍 👍
My friend she had a brother who did 18 months in prison. Black dude. He’s Belizean and Panamanian. She told me they were intimidated by him because of his size. He was very smart and he was tested but stood his ground
He didn't spread his cheeks? Good for him.
@@marioarguello6989 lol. Nope. And like black folks from Latin America and the Caribbean he’s very homophobic but he did have a crew. 7 other black guys who were from Jamaica, Belize and Cuba so they had their own click. Funny enough they all got out the same month but different days.
What type of story is this?
Sounds like a story someone who got their cheeks clapped and wig split would say.
@@nv6686 I suspect so, I bet he is "misremembering".
When you're smart in prison they try to punk you
When you're in school they try to punk you
fr
Yup - although in most schools, most of the time, the stakes are not quite as high
WOW WHAT A COINCIDENCE
(Rockefeller funded US adaptation of industrial era Prussian behavior modification techniques)
Unless you are built like Neil de Grasse Tyson and then you are free to be as big of a nerd that you want to be.
@@myke5696 Bullism will continue in many schools until strict conditions are not enforced that means that one fight means suspension to explosion.
"They would have come after me if I was 80 pounds lighter." Lol that's quite a buffer bro
My father in law went to federal prison for white collar stuff. He told me he was the lawyer/scribe/business consultant.
/cheek slayer
Thanks for sharing your experience bro. I've got a lot of book smarts but I'm short on wisdom, so hearing this stuff helps. Peace on you.
Happens a lot in black schools. The smart ones get treated badly.
Yes, that was one of the most bizarre things I observed in different school districts moving through the South/East Coast (dad was an Army officer)
The first black people I ever met were also Army Officer families, so they appreciated education
In Georgia & Maryland, it was like a generational fear of living above your station from back in the early 1800s
Even some of the teachers reinforced it to the black students
IMO it’s one part of the complex problem of why things don’t change that we really never discuss, but ppl have made it clear to me that I should stay out of it
It’s extra weird bc most of my family didn’t come to America until like 1906, well after the Civil War/13th Amendment - so literally I have nothing to do with this whole thing
But I’ve come to understand that it’s an emotional/belief issue that each individual person works through in their own way - or doesn’t
Chris Rock had a "They are PROUD of their ignorance...." routine.
See it all the time. Prideful, willful ignorance. Unfucking real man. But It is....
I've never been in jail, but if I ever was, I would definitely be SMART by keeping to myself & polite to others... Not sure if that would help, but it's how I would be.
💯 Bro and it's hard asf to explain what it is to use the perception of being black and therefore ignorant to your advantage. I did 20 years so smooth it's like I wasn't even there.
UA-cam is finally starting to recommend these videos again. Keep working big herc
I was in jail for a few months with this one black dude. Best person I've ever seen at chess and scrabble in person. Had a very analytical mind and any topic he was familiar with he could dissect, but he wasn't well read. He's way smarter than I am, but I'm white and I've read a lot of books, so I sound intelligent. Everyone treated me like I was the smart guy in the room and I think me and that guy were probably the only ones that knew they were wrong.
The White Guy gets the benefit of a doubt when it comes to all around intelligence unfortunately.
Herc. I bet you are one hell of a poker player. Your ability to read people is incredible. Thanks for being you.
One of the “biggest crimes” is the fact how this great channel is muted. Regards from UK.
Thanks for supporting
Walk with the Lord
this just hit me while you were talking about being smart in prison… you have the wisdom of having survived and thrived through a variety of tests and experiences where others have failed. Now you are out and giving this talk poolside surrounded by a rather high cinder block wall that cuts off the outside world… I see a parallel, and yes, I know this privacy arrangement is common in southern California.
thank you for sharing, Big Herc… Bill in Vermont
I remember when I first got to WSP - Walla Walla. They put me in a GED program until the verified my HS Diploma. Once they did that, the teacher offered me a job as her TA. Man, all the OGs were like, “how’d you get that job…” LOL I was always out of my cell on the school floor doing the most! 😂
Swindling convict friends' $, while being physically stuck with them in prison does not sound smart to me. 😅
Fist time listening, I'm subscribing. good life lessons. Thanks for being a wise soul.
Now you have the house and the car. Because you put the work in.
Some people that put in the work don't get those things
@@user-wb7nv9ht1g true. Life isn’t always fair. But you can only control your own actions. Putting the work in is the first step.
@@afwallerJust steal like the white man. legally
I experienced this when going back to a blue collar job i worked at before after finishing college. They bullied me so much. I was a hard worker and helping out so much but they didn't like that. I'll never understand it.
Intelligence scares the SHIT out of dumbasses; add envy to that and it ain't pretty.
feel you bro
@@SomethingsoniQ Brains scares the dumbasses, and envy comes into play.
By working hard you "made them look like slackers", that's why they hated you.
You probably are a young one and don't know these movies, they are all great movies which address the work environment, two of them the beautiful world of Union Goons:
I'm Allright Jack
On The Waterfront
Office Space (Ok, you probably know this one).
Much respect....I did many short stays in county when I was young....drinkin, druggin, driven, fightin....I saw/experienced enough to know I didnt want to end up there long term. Lucky to not get tagged with a felony. Ive always questioned whether I had the mental toughness to survive the mind games inside long term. And not a physically imposing figure ..... so you might say I was scared straight. I read alot when I was in there. Im sure I would have gravitated to the smart guys if Id stayed longer. Ignorance is hard to be around. Thank you for sharing your wisdom......Chris in the Philippines
It's true outside too. I've heard of kids in primarily black schools who become Valedictorian getting death threats from folks accusing them of thinking they're better than everyone else. Kids just wanna learn and their neighborhood is holding them back.
Some people are better than others.
Wow, Haven't seen a new video on freshout about prisontalk in a while, keep it up big herc!
Just got your video on my feed. Excellent video. Very great point not often discussed and also occurs in corporate America.
Whereas it often not the message but rather the messenger that determine if and to what extent an intellectual contribution is valued.
The common misconception is that the big strong guy has the keys to the yard, but it’s actually usually the smart one.
Been here since ur first drop, Herc. Love yuh!
Knuckle-heads are gonna feel that way about smart guys. Really smart guys know this.
WE LOVE YOU HERC!!!
THANK YOU FOR THE CONTENT!!
Respect to you big herc. Watched your videos on and off for a couple years.
RIGHT ON BROTHER!
Yeah I had a lot of issues cuz I was black, articulate and smart. I heard "you think you know it all" hella times for correcting people about shit. These dudes used to be convinced you needed yeast to make hooch, and that putting some bread in a sock was providing that yeast. 🤣🤣🤣 Then when I showed em all you needed was some fruit that had started the fermentation process naturally they was like aww maybe this dude know some 💩💩💩 They used to have me explain legal stuff to them then get mad when I told em things they didn't want to hear or that they misunderstood. And they really would get mad when they would try to run game and you didn't take the bait cuz you saw it coming a mile away. Like 3 friends and a stranger at the card table.
I know exactly where you’re coming from.
As a white man i love seeing a black man put it out there its ok from black men to educate them selves
That is very condescending
@Trumpulator I see.
@@comanchedasewhatever your feelings about it, it's a good thing that big herc is putting that messaging out there because many black people call each other names or say you're acting too white if you're studious and trying to do well academically. Some negative aspects of culture that need to be reversed ASAP.
@@tongpoo8985 true. Agree with you 100%.
@@comanchedase when we say it, its racist. So im happy as well. Nothing wrong with being smart. Its odd that a whole culture puts it down. Explains a lot
yo herc over 5 years ago you referenced the blacks law dictionary and i knew you knew the real game. since then ive read a lot of books you have talked about. thanks man!
Respect and Godspeed
6:37 - The word you’re looking for is “provincial” - a person limited in scope and sophistication. Limited to his own “province” of influence and expertise.
Yeah I’m smart !!
You can use those skills to help people get GEDs and gain respect in prison.
Big Herc a real one 💯
Ya but what about that 80's handplant?! Sk8er for life! Best, *A.
You should have 1M+ by now... this content is great.
Crabs in a bucket. It's such an issue. Some folks wanna see you at they level and not rise up.
Just saying Hi Big Herc. Thank you for another insightful video
Everyone in prison should work together regardless of background. Just as it should be.
I think the prison higher-ups want everyone to be racist. That way they are fighting amongst each other and not look at the bigger picture. Imagine what would happen if prisoners work together, and started going against the guards for living in harsh conditions. Then they would have to fix the problem.
Yeah, like in real society. 😂
big herc why are you and OG SILVERBACK FIGHTING
I don't know what's worse. Running hustle in the fed where u can get yourself hurt. Or being outside and running game and hurting other people
Man you are a hero.
Incredibly interesting, thanks!
Big Herc Salute 🫡
big Herc rules man. love listening to him, every video is just straight to the heart of the matter.
Lol.. Thanks for sharing this!! Sadly this happens in real life very much, the hate from other blackmen for being a smart blackman!! I delt with this in college and at work, and from family..
Very incitefull, some terms I didn't understand but I still enjoyed the video
Insightful. Just tryin' to help. 👍
Not much for spelling, thank you
Appreciate the knowledge big dog,you did any times with any islanders
much love from a white brother from another mother. you are one of my people! THANKS!
"And there lil peepee would get tickled"is fucking hilarious my boyboy
That part, where he won dumb angry dudes over by sending them porn books, that was clever as hell. Damn.
Keep grinding BH. ❤
Ey herc thank you always
This guy is seriously smart. Great to hear him.
Love your content and real talk big herc. You the man. Appreciate what you share!!
Fascinating. Thanks for sharing this with us. Really a microcosm of life in general, on many levels: race, intelligence, self-confidence, conditioning, society. Just all really interesting.
I like watching content like this in case shit ever goes down in these streets.
Smart people can come up with very creative ways to screw you over, or get revenge.
When you're smart, you're not in prison. It's like magic.
Intro is sums up everyones feelings about themselves only the prison is in our mental confinement
Maaaan... I'd love to tell you about the things in the family library I'm building. I'm always studying some powerful stuff and the power structures around us.
I was the nerdy black in my southern high school and the other black students were always picking on me. Never got my wig split for it though
Did you fight back?
yeah I never got that. how someone could consider someone else a sell-out just because they got smart and educated themself. especially someone who is black, its like they picked up a slave owner's manual saying that you should never - ever - educate your slaves because it gave them power - and decided to take that idea to heart and live it as a life motto..
just insane.
Big Homie, try working in corparate America! It almost cost me a visit to see a psychiatrist before I understood I wasn't imagining things. The whole point is, the struggle is real, it's not blatant, it's very suttle, but still it's there! Thanks for sharing that with the young ones, because they'll encounter it and need to recognize and understand it when they do.
Bunch of grown children. Sounds like hell on Earth.
Some azns be crazy smart too. Especially when it be about that paper 💰💵
The Armenians know a lot of things from higher education to street knowledge too.
Herc, that sound in the background is crazy.
Facts. I was a college educated kid in LA in my 20’s …. Trafficking blow for the Russians, and doing card scams with my Hollywood friends.
I have just enough street smarts, book smarts, and heart to survive a year in LA County and 4 years in prison.
It’s all about playing chess, not checkers
I Agree 100%
Its not just about plannimg your next move but also predict your opponents next move.
And some people only got one move they know.
Glad you made it out alive.❤
I'm happy you made it out alive and in one piece. God bless!
That's an awesome movie😂
You're lucky to be alive - the Russians don't play nice. Hmm, going off the movie comment below, maybe you should write a book about it (under a pseudonym probably)
14:00 this example is the sum total of our people globally. Malcolm X's autobiography should be mandatory reading for every Black male in prison and I'm not a Muslim.
Been there, the smart guy is frowned upon, others just go with brute force.
crabs in a bucket mentality, i’ve run into this problem so much that i just learned to keep to myself.
Love the vids
You get caught you not smart simple
People are mad at the ones that send them back to their own insecurities.
10 out of 10 beat in the intro. is that you Herc?
You decide how youre going to do your time the moment you’re arrested.
This guys brilliance is simply, off the charts. He is an amazing brother, and it's a shame, but a fact that prisons are filled with these guys. This system tracks and traps black guys like this, through methods that would take a library to explain. The fact that brilliant brothers, that is black men, are targets, even in prison is no surprise. It's a vestige of slavery that brothers who were smart, were killed, usually by other brothers, the bucks, who were fed trinkets to pull the plug on their fellow man. This guy could run General Motors, or even a country, without even breaking a sweat. Best of grace and luck to him.
You don’t end up in prison if you are smart.