Category Archives: crime

Black Fruit, Strange Fruit

Posted on February 6, 2024 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

My first book, the award-winning epic poem, Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass: Remembrance of Things Past and Present, deals with the theme(s) of “the captivity, exploitation and suffering of Black people in America.” But not all of … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, crime, ezwwaters, Lest We Forget, Murder | Tagged Equal Justice Initiative, Strange Fruit, Whit Mob Lynches Thomas Brown on Courthouse Lawn in Nicholasville KY | 1 Comment

Remembering My Father as I Remember Maceo Snipes, Black Veteran, Shot to Death After Voting in Georgia Primary — July 18, 1946

Posted on July 19, 2023 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

As a teenager my father, a Native Southern Son (NC and VA), was drafted to serve in the segregated U.S. Army during World War II. Shortly after he was honorably discharged from the Army in 1946, he moved to Brooklyn, … Continue reading →

Posted in Black patriotism, Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, crime, ezwwaters, Family, Fatherhood, Fathers, Growing Up, Lest We Forget, Murder, Politics, race, raising black boys, Relationships | Tagged Maceo Snipes, Segregation, The Black Vote, World War II | Leave a comment

James Baldwin’s Journey Through Politics

Posted on May 6, 2023 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Thirty years ago I wrote an essay, “The Election Time Blues.” It spoke about how political discourse in America was depressing; at least, it depressed me, and it continues to do so. When crime is on the platform, it becomes … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, crime, ezwwaters, James Baldwin, John F. Kennedy, Lest We Forget, Patriotism, Politics, race, Slavery | Tagged "Journey to Atlanta", Abraham Lincoln, Bill Clinton, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, Donald Trump, FDR, George Bush, Harriet Turman, Isabel Wilkerson, James Baldwin, JFK, Joe Biden, Nelson Rockefeller, richard nixon, Ronald Reagan, The Best and the Brightest, Willie Horton | 1 Comment

The Pledge of Allegiance, Little White Lies, and All that Jazz!

Posted on March 7, 2023 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

It has been more than 50 years since I was in elementary school in the New York City public school system, yet I remember, word for word, the “Pledge of Allegiance.” At this time, I thought nothing of it, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, crime, Growing Up, John F. Kennedy, Justice Chronicles, Lest We Forget, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Patriotism, Politics, raising black boys, Revolution, Slavery, Streets of Rage, urban decay, Urban Impact | Tagged Atomic Bomb, Black Codes, Black Power, Camelot, Confederate States of America, Critical Race Theory, Culture Wars, Great Society, Hiroshima, internment of Japanese Americans, James Brown, JFK, LBJ, Little White Lies, MLK, Nagasaki, Pledge of Allegiance, RFK, richard nixon, Segregation, Slave Codes, Slavery, Thirteenth Amendment, war on crime, World War II | Leave a comment

A Constantly Evolving Lifespan: A Review of “This Life” by Quntos KunQuest

Posted on February 8, 2023 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

A life sentence in prison is life, that is, there is living to do in prison, even under a life sentence. Quntos KunQuest, in his novel, This Life, demonstrates that life goes on inside of prison. Since 1996, KunQuest has … Continue reading →

Posted in crime, Education, Growing Up, Justice Chronicles, Life Sentences, race, raising black boys | Tagged Alexandre Dumas, American Studies Association, Angola State Penitentiary, Bell Gale Chevigny, Doing Time: 25 Years of Prison Writing, Edmond Dantes, In the Belly of the Beast, Jack Henry Abbott, Jailhouse Journalism: The Fourth Estate Behind Bars, Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Normal Mailer, PEN America, PEN International, Prison Writing Program (PWP), Quntos KunQuest, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Executioner's Song, This Life | 4 Comments

Treatment Not Jail – “Fostering Benevolence”

Posted on January 19, 2023 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

In October of last year, I had the honor of appearing on a Podcast, Treatment Not Jail, to talk about this issue as well as others connected to the criminal legal system. Please check it out!

Posted in crime, ezwwaters, Justice Chronicles, raising black boys, Urban Impact | Tagged Mark Graham, The Redemption Center, Treatment Not Jail | Leave a comment

Conundrums of Law: Insights from Jailhouse Lawyer Stories

Posted on October 10, 2022 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

In light of the December release of my collection of short stories, Conundrums: Stories of Law & Justice, I retooled my review of one of James Patterson books. Continue reading →

Posted in crime, ezwwaters, Justice Chronicles | Tagged Conundrums: Stories of Law & Justice, Easy Waters, Erva Alabama, ezwwaters.com, James Patterson, Nancy Green, One Day in the Life of a Jailhouse Lawyer, The Jailhouse Lawyer by James Patterson, William Eric Waters | 5 Comments

National Poetry Month

Posted on April 3, 2022 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

April is National Poetry Month. Purchase and read one of my three books of poetry. My first, award-winning book, Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass: Co-winner of the Edwin Mellen Poetry Prize . . . this poem is … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, crime, ezwwaters, Justice Chronicles, Mother's Messages, Murder, NYPD, Poetry, police involved shooting, police-involved killing, Politics, race, raising black boys, Sometimes Blue Knights Wear Black Hats | Tagged Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, National Poetry Month, Sometimes Blue Knights Wear Black Hats, The Black Feminine Mystique | Leave a comment

“Life Sentence”

Posted on March 26, 2022 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

In my post, “The Anatomy of Advocacy – In High Heels,” I mentioned how the successful advocacy of the Ad Hoc Committee on Lifetime Parole was a much longer, untold story. This is another part of the story. In addition … Continue reading →

Posted in being a teenager, crime, ezwwaters, Justice Chronicles, juveniles, Lest We Forget, Life Sentences, Murder, Parole, parole board, Politics, race, raising black boys, Reentry, remorse, Streets of Rage, urban decay, Urban Impact | Tagged Ad Hoc Committee on Lifetime Parole, CUNY Graduate Center, Executive Law 259-j, Jenna's Law, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, New York State Board of Parole, Pataki Rule, The Anatomy of Advocacy -- In High Heels | Leave a comment

The Anatomy of Advocacy – In High Heels

Posted on March 25, 2022 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

In 1998, the New York State Legislature passed Jenna’s law, named after Jenna Grieshaber, a 22-year-old white female nursing student killed by Nicholas Eugene Pryor, a Black male who had previously been on parole. Governor Pataki exploited Jenna’s tragic death … Continue reading →

Posted in crime, Justice Chronicles, Lest We Forget, Life Sentences, Parole, parole board, race, Reentry | Tagged Ad Hoc Committee on Lifetime Parole, Bob Dennison, Diana Ortiz, Executive Law 259-j, Gov. Mario Cuomo, Gov. Pataki, Jenna's Law, lifetime parole, Parole, President Bill Clinton, UDC, Urban Development Corporation | 1 Comment

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