The Invisible Hand: The New Wave

Prince Ami has Authored numerous publications fiction and non fiction, including his most recent release “LuvLock,” a collection of poems written over the course of many year’s. He writes not with his hands but with his heart etched into every word. You will no doubt feel as if you’re seeing the images through your own eye’s. As you read more the image’s will become clearer, and your love for Prince Ami, and his intricate web of twist, plots and characters will only increase.

Other Book Titles by Prince Ami Include:

And Then There Was You "A Collection of Poems, Quotes & Notes"

&

The Holy Trinity of Gemini “The Tragedies of Prince Ami”

LETTER FROM THE AUTHOR

I am a prisoner, and I am being held Unconstitutionally within the Mississippi Department of Corrections. Where I am currently serving a Life sentence for a crime in which I have never been convicted. Having never pled guilty to any offense, jurors returned a verdict after a three day trial of guilty. The court finalized the decision by finding someone else guilty of the crimes to which I am being held in custody. The court arrested, indicted and convicted me under the name and social security number of someone else and not that of my own. 

Section 1 U.S. Constitutional Amendment States: 

Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Although I have never been convicted of any crime, the State of Mississippi has denied my appeals in regards to the legitimacy of my conviction. I am held as a prisoner in what could very well be the worst prison in America, *Parchman Plantation!”  

I am currently appealing my conviction in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, were I have asked the court to allow me to move forward with a Successive Writ of Habeas Corpus. 

As of right now I’ve been incarcerated 11 years, 3 months & 21 days. I am currently 30 years of age, and I’ve been incarcerated since the age of 19. 

Now I’m sure the first thing that will come to most people minds, when they hear the words “Capitol Murder” is the worst of the worst. People in which we as a society, should no doubt lock up and throw away the key. Which is not true, especially in my case. 

The State of Mississippi has defined, the crime of Capital Murder, as the commission of a homicide, while in the process of another felony. In my case it is alleged to be armed robbery. 

Now let’s address what incentives would a person have to rob someone, other than the most evident fact that they are in need of something, that they don’t have? Now is there any difference between white collar criminals who commit cybercrimes and scams, that wipeout the life savings and bank accounts of innocent men and women leaving them in financial limbo, to those who wield a weapon and take from another being?

Besides the fact that if found guilty of the latter, that you could receive a much harsher prison sentence. There is one distinct key difference as to who would be more predisposed to commit one crime from the other. And that difference is Race!

Now let’s go take a look at the driving forces that lead to crime in the first place, which could no doubt be evaluated by taking a look at the following statistics for the State of Mississippi: 

1. “The 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery, was ratified after three-fourths of the states passed it in 1865 at the close of the war. While four others eventually passed the amendment, Mississippi did not symbolically and officially adopt it until 1995 – and didn’t officially notify Washington of the vote until 2013.”

2. “Blues music originating in the Mississippi Delta after the Civil War was rooted in African spiritual music and songs slaves sang as they worked in the fields. The state became a hub of American music traditions at the center of gospel, jazz, country and rock and roll.”

3. “Racial discrimination and segregation prevailed in Mississippi through the 20th century. Between 1915 and 1960, about 5 million southern African-Americans left the South, including hundreds of thousands from Mississippi.”

4. “The state was a battleground during the civil rights movement of the mid-20th century. In 1962, violent riots broke out on the “Ole Miss” campus when James Meredith, a black Air Force veteran, attempted to integrate the all-white state university. In 1963, he became the university’s first black graduate.”

5. “During the Freedom Summer of 1964, Northern college students flocked to Mississippi to encourage African-Americans to participate in the civil rights movement and help register them to vote. Their efforts raised awareness of discrimination in the Deep South and helped pass the Voting Rights Act of 1965.”

6. The State is in the bottom fifty in the following categories: 

50# Health Care

48# Economy

46# Education

45# Infrastructure

44# Opportunity 

44# Fiscal Stability

Now it’s no wonder Mississippi has the Second Highest Incarceration rate in the Nation of Black Men. As a Black Man living in the State of Mississippi you’re most likely to be locked up than complete high school, and to make matters much worst; most black kids living in the State of Mississippi will never travel outside of their own communities, unless it’s in a body bag or the back seat of a police cruiser.

The State of Mississippi invests more tax dollars into prisons and corrections, than K-12 grade education. In the county where I am from (Hinds County) which is home to the States Capitol of Jackson, Mississippi. It has a population which is over 80% Black. Yet from my birth year of 1989 – 2009 the city held the highest crime rates among the State in the following categories: Homicide, Robbery, Burglary, and Auto Theft. All of which happened to be crimes committed by men and women of color, against men and women of color. 

Now had these same individuals between this same timeframe of 1989-2009, been provided the necessary hands on education they’d need to survive in a modern world; I as well as the other 12,000+ men and women of color incarcerated within the State of Mississippi very well might not have been incarcerated, but thriving members of our society within the work force. 

Notes:  

1. “Bernie Madoff using Ponzi Schemes and Cyber-criminals who run illegal operations online, have inadvertently led to the lost of millions of lives across worldwide. Although they are not classified as murderers, they do indeed kill the spirit of their victims. Victims who have in many cases, after being victimized go on to take their time own lives and or the lives of family and friends.

2. “Had the same men and women who were arrested between the time frame of 1989-2009 received a proper education, this would have greatly reduced the crime rate. As these individuals would have the education needed to carry out the basic duties and requirements of most jobs. And because they were now apart of the American workforce, they would not be criminals at all. Since poverty and the lack of education, was the main driving forces to them becoming criminals in the first place. 

3. By: CNN Posted at 7:51 AM, May 23, 2019

“After serving 17 years of a 20-year sentence, Lindh, the first US-born detainee in the war on terror, on Thursday walked out of a federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, and will join the small, but growing, group of Americans convicted of terror-related charges attempting to re-enter into society.

Lindh will live in Virginia subject to the direction of his probation officer, his lawyer, Bill Cummings, tells CNN. But some are already calling for an investigation into his time in prison -- where he is said in two US government reports to have made pro-ISIS and other extremist statements -- that could send him back into detention.

Reports of Lindh's maintained radicalization, detailed in two 2017 official counterterrorism assessments, are also driving questions about the efforts of the US government to rehabilitate former sympathizers like him, who are expected to complete prison sentences in waves in the coming years...”

I find it very troubling that while at the Federal Level, the United States Government has release one of the first US-born detainees in the war on terror, and plans to release even more. While the State of Mississippi continues to lock up men and women who are rehabilitated. Men and women who come from impoverished communities with minimum to no education. Do I believe they should just let everyone walk out of prison? No! But I do think it’s time for the State of Mississippi to revisit it’s parole guidelines see “Senate Bill 2123”, should Governor Tate Reeves sign this bill during this legislative session, it will effectively become law on July 1st 2020. Paving the way for many who no longer pose a threat to society, to be released under new parole eligibility guidelines.  

Senate Bill 2123, or the Mississippi Correctional Safety and Rehabilitation Act of 2020, would tackle a number of issues, including clarifying conditions for parole eligibility and laying out more guidelines for inmate rehabilitation plans so they are prepared to reintegrate into society. Supporters say this could allows thousands more inmates to be eligible for parole and greatly reduce the state’s prison population.

A few days ago I spoke with a prison officers, who happens to be about the same age as myself. If the State of Mississippi were to leave me incarcerated the next 30 years and the officer was to remain apart of the workforce the next 30 years. As a tax payer, the officer would be paying the State of Mississippi their hard earned wages to incarcerate someone who poses no actual threat to society. 

The State of Mississippi pays $53.72 per day per every inmate in custody, (Not including medical expenses or any other extraordinary expenses.) Now if you were to multiply that same amount per day time 30 years, the State of Mississippi would be out of $588,234 per every inmate with at least 30 years or more on their sentences. The State of Mississippi would be holding someone in prison who could very well be apart of the workforce, making his or her own wages and paying taxes that could be used to increase teacher pay, build after school programs, community and job development centers so that little kids will have a healthy environment to grow up in, and not end up in prison in the first place.  

Many of the questions I’ve posed in this letter may be beyond the scope of many of my readers. But it is something in which I face on the daily basis. And if nothing is done to address Prison Reform, and how we as a society perceive and classify crime, it could very well lead to the destruction of an entire class of men and women in the State of Mississippi. But most importantly if nothing is done to fix K-12 grade education and Teacher Pay in the State of Mississippi, this is something that could very well happen to the next generation of Youth.

Prince Ami 

May 3rd 2020

FORWARD

 The characters inside this story although it is a book of fiction, are very much real to me, they are all a reflection of family, friends and love ones of mine; who I’ve casted and depicted in a different light than the ultimate outcome of their lives. I’d like to think if afforded a life in which we are provided with multiple options, and choices for one to advance or succeed, that things in my life and the lives of everyone within my community would ultimately be different. I understand that we as humans, are unable to change our past, while writing this story I’ve succeeded in literary fiction what I have yet to accomplish within the reality of the world in which we live. The original title for this book that you are now reading would have actually been “If I Could Change!”, if it had not been for the officers who’d destroyed my much beloved and prized possession. As a prisoner I have no such thing as a right to personal property, or to be free of the unwanted search and seizure of my being and personal belongings. I nearly came to tears as the officers ransacked my cell, destroying what I hope to be my life's work. I’d worked very hard under dire circumstances, sitting inside a cold cell during the winter months to form the words that would lead to the introduction of this book. There had been no light inside the cinderblock room, it been broken and torn from the lights fixture by the cell’s previous occupant, and the prison officials had no desire to fix it. In the day time I’d use the sun as a source of light to develop the characters inside my story, a bird or two would often fly pass the Plexiglas window as I set perched with my pen in hand, papers resting on my knees as I jotted down line after line. In the night hours I’d stand near the door of my cell with pen and paper in hand to complete my story, I’d been unfazed by the men barking like dogs, cursing, screaming and yelling at one another in boredom fits of rage because they had nothing else better to do with their time. The more that they would scream, yell and bang against their cell doors and walls, had only driven me to be more focused, I’d been determined that I would not stop until I complete my story. I had to free myself, I couldn’t let the silence of the walls drive me mad. I wanted to do better, there was no other option, I had to use my talent to save the next generation of youth, completing this story would be the only way for me to reach them. I’d often stand during the night hours to craft my story, the crumpled sheets of paper resting in the bars of the door had become a sight to see. After a while the noise would come to an end, they were no longer barking, they were no longer screaming. While others watched in awe perplexed as to what could be so important to me, that I’d stand in the door throughout the night hours, with my pen and paper in hand. A few of the men began to write their stories as well, and some of them even cheered me on, until the tower officer would switch off the overhead lights attached to the ceiling directly above every door on the unit. Lights out, but I couldn’t sleep the only thoughts running through my mind was the completion of my story. I’d worked extremely hard and concentrated many days and months, to give purpose and meaning to every character. I wanted to share all of their struggles, triumphs and pain with the world. But then it was gone, taken and discarded inside a receptacle as if I hadn’t poured my heart into every word. Honestly for me this had been a breaking point, and I’d come to a difficult time in life where I had foolishly considered given up. Alone, and sitting inside a cell, there was no one for me to talk to, the only thing I had inside that tiny cell was my mind, a few sheets of paper and a broken pen that I’d somehow managed to place back together. I began to rewrite my story a few days afterwards, with pen in hand I etched out the first chapter of what would become “Hitting Licks", the title that I initially published The Invisible Hand under during the summer of 2014. It had been a work in progress, taking me over three years to complete. At the time of publishing, “Hitting Licks" had seemed to be the perfect title for my book, but what I'd incorrectly concluded because of the use of the phrase Hitting Licks, (Which happens to be a common slang used by many of the teenager’s and adults inside my community to describe the act of getting money through illegal means.) is that it would be relatable to a larger audience of people, people who come from the same environments as me. My Fiancé at this time Rachel would ultimately be the one to convince me otherwise, I immediately had the title delisted and removed from all the book shelves. I’d made a horrible mistake, and I didn’t want anyone to think I would ever do such a thing as use my writings to advocate for crime, or the commission of any crime; because that is definitely not what this book is about, or the message that I want to send to my readers particularly the youth. Although this book does involve certain criminal elements, I wanted to take a different approach on crime than that of other authors, who often fail to consider the many variables that crime itself involves, such as socioeconomics, absentee parents, lack of education, healthcare, housing and daily meals. The Invisible Hand gives the reader an in-depth perspective into certain incentives that may be at stake for a person who commits crime, and many of the likely causes which may play a role in their decision to commit crime in the first place. By giving the reader a narrative in which they are able to evaluate for themselves the good, as well as the bad deeds of each and every character, what I have hoped to accomplish is give the reader a concise and fair depiction of some of the factors that might play a motivating role into why a person decides to do good; as well as give an accurate depiction into some of the evil forces that a person might encounter that pushes them to do the things that they shouldn’t! By giving the reader a preponderance of variables to consider, I have invited you all to be apart of this Grand Jury were you will be able to form your own opinions and conclusion based on the overall facts presented about each character inside this story: Is Isaiah a genius who wishes to use his talents to make the world a better place, or is he a self-centered computer whiz who'll do anything to protect what he has created? Is Frank a benevolent leader who wants to see every young child in the world with access to the internet, or a man who would do anything to get his way, including kill? Are Chauncey and Kahlil products of their environments, and if so could change ever be possible for them? This is the weight of the evidence and by the time you’ve reached the conclusion of this book you will have by no doubt made your own opinions. Each character inside this story is a reflection of some of the men and women who've had a prominent role in helping me become the man that I am today. The New Wave is intended to give hope to the kids living in single parent homes, juvenile delinquents, high school drops, and all the people out their that’s really having a hard time and just don’t know how they’re going to get through the day without falling apart. These are Gods people too, they are human just like me and you, and because they have faults it doesn’t mean that they don’t matter, and I know it’s easier to point the finger at them, or to turn your back and simply walk away than to sit down and take the time to understand what might be going on in their minds. But what if it was vice versa, things could always be different and that’s what I’ve hoped to do with The Invisible Hand, by creating a different reality from that of the grim one in which I have come to know. The naming of this book title came to mind for me after several days of thinking. I wanted a title that would not only reflect to the use of technology, but the existence of God and His plans for our lives. I chose The Invisible Hand as the title for this book because I wanted to illustrate how a young boy, living in a single parent home with his mother could use technology to create a change in his own environment, and ultimately go on to use that same technology to make the world a better place for others the world over. 

In the night we fall asleep with our sins attached, with no thought as to the havoc we’ve wrought throughout the day. In the morning we awake with the same enthusiasm ready to begin a new day. We do not count this act a blessing; as if we control our own destiny, we only think in terms of how we might make life better for ourselves. Within the tears of iniquity the fact of the matter is routinely illustrated for all to see: “That while we awoke, someone else didn’t!”

“The Deeds of Mankind”

James Lee Mack Jr.