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Bios

Prince Akbar AKA Jus Rhymz was a Chicago poet and essayist. A graduate of Columbia College, he won a student contest there to perform as a Def Jam poet at the Metro in 2004. A popular slam poet, he performed frequently at The Green Mill, home of the slam. Prince was killed by Calumet City, IL police in January 2010.

Lajuana Lampkins is an artist, poet, and activist working In Chicago. She spent 30 years in the Dwight Correctional Center for a crime she did not commit. A practitioner of Arte Agora, she sells her art in the Wicker Park neighborhood. She is devoted to finding justice for her son.

Images

Front cover: “Jus Rhymz: Master of the Spoken Word”, illustration by Lajuana Lampkins

Illustration of the poet Prince Akbar aka Jus Rhymz as an angel at a microphone with a crown labeled "Jus Rhymz" and sash with the words "Master of the Spoken Word" — Download front cover as PDF

Back cover: “RIP/ Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade”, illustration by Lajuana Lampkins

Illustration of people killed by police, with their names, and the phrase "RIP" — Download back cover as PDF

Dedication illustration: “Journey of the Seas”, by Lajuana Lampkins.

Illustration of a slave ship in tumultuous ocean waters — Download image

Excerpts

Slam poetry

Prince Akbar was a popular and well-known Slam Poet who performed often at The Green Mill in Chicago’s Uptown neighbohood. Here’s an excerpt from his poem, “Attack of the E’sha’s”

Did you know that every second in America,
In a place that I need not be specific.
Someone will be delivered into birth
With an Esha on their birth certificate.
Aisha marquisha Latisha
That’s only 3.
But the ishas have surrounded me,
from the southside of Chicago to the east coast of philly.
Marisha shaquisha Alicia,
They are everywhere I’ve called home.
“Attack of the E’sha’s”, pages 11-12

Essays

Akbar was an accomplished essayist. The book begins with “A promise never kept!”, a paper he wrote in the 7th grade advocating for reparations.

African American slaves were told during the Civil War that each slave would receive forty acres and a mule for the hardships they went through. Through history many oppressors have tried to give back something to victims of their crimes. The promised reparations to slaves are not being taken serious. That promise was never kept and most Americans are just assume forgotten it.
“A promise never kept!” pages 4-6

Reportage

“Warzone” is an the first 8 sections of an extended set of essays publsihed as blog posts during a tumultuous period in July 2008 in Akbar’s neighborhood.

Saturday, July 19, 2008
Last night about 25 armed black young men took over my neighborhood. After hearing one too many firecrackers, I finally admitted I actually heard gunshots. Arrogantly I assumed this was a drive by shooting, and kept my lights on walking confidently to peek out the window to see if anything was really worth calling the police over.
I saw a black man with a 12 gauge shot gun running directly to my house and taking a shooting position on the side of it. I looked across the street and 5 black men pointed guns
“Last Night Warzone Iraq WAS MY FUCKING BLOCK”, page 34

Letters

Akbar often communicated with Chicago-based reporters and maintained an extended correspondence with his mother while she was in prison.

Mom I don’t know what is happening to me but these stories are coming out of me and I am doing little editing and rewriting and work to produce them. I wish you read them to inmates. I hate how worthless I feel when I know in my heart this story is the best Chicago.
“Dear mother”, pages 110-112