Homeboy Sandman - Punks Jump Up To Get Stopped and Frisked: What I Learned from Jimmy Nuñez lyrics

I fought Jimmy Nuñez when I was in the
Sixth grade he was in the eighth
I was already tall i may have even
Had half an inch on him
But, I was clumsy he was a
Much better fighter than I was

It's been almost 20 years since I thought
Of that fight then, last month
My sister posted a video about NYPD Stop and
Frisks on my Facebook
Wall it included statistics stating
That over 1, 900 stop
And frisks take place in New
York City every day
And that over 90 percent
Of those violated are
Classified as Black or Latino
90 percent of those
Incidents result in nothing more
But oppressive harassment


Yielding no hidden weapons or arrests
It was pretty infuriating stuff
It reminded me of the
Occupation in Israel and
Apartheid South Africa it reminded me
Of slavery and the
Holocaust it also reminded me of Jimmy Nuñez
I fought Jimmy because I stood up
To Eddie i'm not sure what
Grade Eddie was in, but he was a bully a big
Fat bully the kid was gross
And he would waddle around
The hallways bullying
People he would bully teachers just a
Mean-spirited kid i can't remember how it
Started or what it was about
But one day we were in the
Hallway between classes and next
Thing I knew Eddie and I were yelling at each
Other and a group of kids
Had gathered around us and
I was ready to throw down
Right then and there
I wasn't scared of Eddie maybe
I questioned whether my
Blows would carry enough impact
To hurt him despite
His layers of protective fat
But, I wasn't scared i knew he couldn't
Hurt me either just as I was
Really puffing my chest out
About to make Eddie look
Like a punk without laying a finger on him
Jimmy Nuñez showed up from out of
Nowhere and pointed at me

"You and me
" he said "We're fighting after school"

The decree had been laid so
Many people had heard
It that to decline was simply out of the
Question i would be branded a punk forever if
I didn't show eddie was a fat nuisance, but
Jimmy was serious i didn't know him
But I knew of him he was a no nonsense kid a
Tough kid all the girls liked him he knew
How to fight i wasn't scared of Eddie
But I was scared of Jimmy

This wasn't my first fight as far back
As I can remember my father has
Ingrained in me his version of the
Golden rule: "If someone hit's you
Hit them back don't ever let
Anyone put their hands on
You" Those might have
Been the first words he said to me
When I was born back then, m father was
A boxer, and when he wasn't boxing
He was a bouncer not taking any shit
Was a big part of his identity
It never meant quite as much
To me i'll admit it
I'd get scared i remember
Tyrik Gale teasing me
Unmercifully for weeks at Lost
Battalion Day Camp
In Rego Park it was the worst feeling
I'd ever felt he was so much
Bigger than me i swear, even at age 10
This kid was built like a 30-year-old
Middleweight i never said anything
Back to Tyrik Gale i was afraid if I did he'd
Sock me he never put his hands on me
But the shame of not sticking up for
Myself stayed with me for years

For weeks I was weakened
By the same intolerable
Shame when Rodrigo snatched my brand new
Lakers cap right off my head he held
It away from me for five minutes

"What are you gonna do?" I wasn't going to
Do anything but ask for it back
He said it again: "What are you gonna
Do?" After a while he got
Bored and just gave the hat back rodrigo
Broke the physical plane by snatching my
Hat, but he hadn't hit me, and he
Hadn't put his hands on me
So technically I wasn't called upon to
Obey my pop's self-defense order

I'd only fight if someone hit me
And even then I'd only continue to
Fight if my opponent wanted to keep
Going my concern, more than anything
Was to satisfy my obligation to
Pop it earned me a unique reputation and kept
Me in an odd limbo somewhere between the
Punks and the tough kids "Say whatever you
Want to Angel, " kids would say
"but if you put your hands on him
Be prepared to put him down"

I never took a good beating
Though not until the day I fought Jimmy Nuñez

In the two or three periods between the
Hallway incident and the end of school, word
Of our coming fight spread like wildfire by
The time the final school bell rang
Jimmy and I were the main event no
Fewer that 100 kids paraded down
Grand Avenue to a distance deemed far
Enough from the school that
We wouldn't get in trouble for fighting
I was surrounded by my boys
Jimmy was surrounded by his we were
All surrounded by the gallery

The butterflies in my stomach were more like
Eagles i think Chris Caputo was
Doing his best Teddy Atlas impersonation
Trying to give me some strategic advice
But, I could barely even hear him the
Whole thing felt kind of surreal

In the two or three periods between the
Hallway incident and the end of school, word
Of our coming fight spread like wildfire by
The time the final school bell rang
Jimmy and I were the main event
"This is far enough!" Jimmy didn't
Feel like walking anymore we
Were just beyond the funeral home
My boys stepped behind
Me into the gallery surrounding Jimmy and I
Leaving us in
The middle just me and him at that moment
A thought occurred to me: "Maybe
I can take this kid"

I didn't let the moment of confidence go
To waste i sprung at Jimmy wild
Without any semblance of technique i
Noticed right away he
Was a lot more composed than I was his
Moves were calculated he dodged
My first charge, then my second my flailing
Arms did little more
Than graze him we were right back were
We started embarrassed and out of sorts
My intent turned from landing good
Punches to landing any punches
At all the fight was as good as lost

With time, i calmed down and started doing
A better job my
Prior fighting experience, though clearly not
As expansive as Jimmy's
Began to serve me my father had given
Me some training on how to
Move, so I had decent instincts
But once Jimmy took
Advantage of my early impatience
He never relinquished
The upper hand he got low he was better
With his elbows i remember, at one point
Delivering blows to the side of his head
From such an awkward angle that
He actually smiled at the crowd to
Convey how little they were
Hurting him i was halfway into a
Headlock at that point then, suddenly
The headlock was firmly in place and my head
Was being rammed, repeatedly
Into the side of a car the
Crowd let out loud "ohhhhs" and
"ooooohs" with every hit
But truthfully it looked a lot
Worse than it felt i hit the
Deck first but had the presence
Of mind to bring Jimmy with
Me to keep from getting
Stomped out we each struggled to
Be the first one up, but
Made it to our feet at
About the same time then, we stopped

Neither of us advanced we took a
Moment to gather ourselves i'd certainly
Had enough, and I hoped Jimmy
Had, too the crowd, bloodthirsty
Began chanting "Round two! Round
Two!" I looked over
At Jimmy he looked over at me
Our hands were down one of the dudes in his
Crew walked right up to me "Wassup, man
You down
For round two?" I didn't want to say yes i
Couldn't say no i just
Shrugged as clear winner
The decision was really up to Jimmy was he in
The mood to kick my ass some more? He
Began heading towards the shirt
And backpack he'd taken
Off before the fight started it was over

It wasn't until I got home that I got
A clear idea of the damage both of
My eyes were darkened
And would turn completely
Black overnight i had a fat lip
Multiple knots on my head and
My entire face was
Swollen jimmy had a split lip
And a puffy right side
Of the face he may have even lost some blood
Through his nose
Or maybe I'm just imagining that to
Make this story sound a
Bit better either way, the victor was clear

I'd lost i didn't feel as bad as when I
Was bullied by Tarik or Rodrigo

I didn't feel bad at all i felt great

The adrenaline from the fight stayed with
Me for the rest of
The day judging from the treatment
I got from my boys
You'd think I knocked Jimmy clean into
Next week to top it all
Off, the next day Gissenia
Actually came up and
Started talking to me in the lunchroom
Back eyes
And all i'd never even said a word to
Gissenia because she was just so, so fine
And that day she came up to me

I wasn't an early enough bloomer to
Capitalize on Gissenia's newfound interest
But, I learned that day that it's better to
Lose a fight than to be a coward

I started coming into my own after that
And it wasn't only about getting more daps
In the hallway or having more girls' lipstick
On my cheek from that point on
Standing up for myself actually kept me from
Having to deal with bullies it earned
Me respect in college, I fought my biggest
Opponent ever as a scrawny freshman
I stood up to a Philly dude in his mid-30s
Who relished coming onto Penn's
Campus and punking all
Of pampered Ivy Leaguers he was about my
Height, but this dude's muscles
Had muscles i knew
How to to defend myself by then, but he
Was so much stronger that he wrestled me to
The ground and choked me within an inch
Of consciousness before letting go
He could have killed
Me he didn't because he respected me
And knew I wouldn't allow
Myself to be bullied
No matter what price I had to pay

Later on, we became friends the same
Guy who had beaten me
Admired me for the same reason
People love movies like 300
About entire societies that would rather
Perish than be pushed around
For the same reason Native Americans
Are revered for opting
To be wiped out rather than
Be enslaved for the
Same reason that Martin Luther
King, Malcolm X, and John F kennedy
Are regarded as heroes and not
Fools for being willing to
Die rather than stand for
Injustice people, even bullies, love courage

What people despise is fear and insecurity
And more often than not it's
Because it reminds them of
Their own weaknesses bullies don't
Bully people because they
Don't like them they bully people
Because they don't like
Themselves you can't talk a bully out of not
Bullying you can't ask politely you
Can't try to appeal to
Their sense of morality and
Convince them that you're
Deserving of better treatment protests and
Petitions aren't going to
Do anything to improve their sense of worth
That goes for bullies so
Insecure they'll attack a
Complete stranger to gain acceptance
Into a gang
To the bullies so insecure that a
Promotion in rank means more to
Them than human beings' civil rights whether
You're a sixth grader at
IS 73, or a man or a woman going about
Your business on the streets
Of New York City, there's only
One way to stop a bully: by refusing to let
Them put their hands on
You without your permission
And demanding your respect

When I walk around New
York City getting stares
From police officers who think they can put
Their hands on me whenever they want, I feel
Ashamed i've never been stopped and frisked
And I never will be i'm loyal to my father's
Lesson that fighting is to be avoided
Unless someone seeks to physically
Impose themselves on me i'm cool
Stopping i'm cool showing
ID i'm even cool emptying my pockets
No matter what's in
Them but should the day come that an officer
Or a civilian, or a soldier, or any
Human being on this planet
Attempt to put their hands on
Me without my permission
I will resist to the furthest
Extent my living body will
Allow i will not live in
Fear and submission such
A life seems to me to be not worth living at
All a law-abiding citizen who does
Not have the right
To determine who may or may
Not touch them cannot be
Called "free" And freedom, my
Nation has taught me
Is one of our most sacred ideals

I'm less disappointed in self-loathing
Police officers who terrorize
Communities to meet illegal quotas than I am
With people who continue to
Do nothing but complain
These people continue to pretend that there
Is promise in asking for
Respect rather than showing
Through their actions that they will stand
For nothing less these are people who submit
Because they're afraid of taking a beating

No beating that I can ever take, whether
It is physical, legal or financial
Can compare to the shame of being a coward

I learned that a long time
Ago from Jimmy Nuñez thanks, jimmy