The Paperback Has Arrived!

#1 Best Seller:  Gangster Turned Guru Presents, A Day In The Life With Coffee And Paradise.

 

“I am currently an inmate in a Federal Prison serving my 13th year of a 45-year sentence! If I can find peace and happiness in this type of environment… How is it that people in the ‘free’ world can’t? What is it that I know or what woke me up? I’ve been asked these questions thousands of times and now, following a conversation I had with an inmate, who’s asked these and more, I’m ready to share my thoughts on what I’ve learned with YOU!”

This is a quick 60-minute read that is meant to be passed on to someone else.

Only $9.99.  CLICK HERE

The Best Birthday Gift Ever!

My cell is considered a executive suite for two reasons. The first is that I have a direct TV shot of two out of the four 50 inch flat screens, so should I choose to I could stay up all night watching television that we listen to through our walkmans. 

My celli’s love the fact that I don’t watch much TV, so when we lock in at 9:30 pm for the night, they can stack our two blue plastic chairs on top of one another, place the pillow over the back rest for a cushion and sit comfortably watching their shows. 

When word spread that I don’t watch TV, offers to buy my cell started coming in. Yes, you read that right, offers to buy a prison cell. It’s one of those things you don’t hear about or see on prison shows like “Lock up,” but cells are sold all through out the federal system. 

I got this current cell the old school way. Once I saw it was empty, first thing in the morning I moved in and made the change with the counselor and that was it. There was a little fuss when those that had their eye’s on the cell woke up later to find me already comfortably moved in, but you snooze you loose, the early bird gets the worm and all that. 

I wasn’t trying to hear anything about it and they defiantly didn’t want to argue with me because I was here for only a few weeks at the time and mentally I was still in a penitentiary mode that no one wanted to test. 

Currently the market value for my cell is at a one time price between $200-$250. The Presidential suites, where you can see all four televisions go for up to $500. But the second more important reason my cell is considered an executive suite is that my 7th floor view where I spend hours gazing out at the New York city skyline has another million dollar view when I look down across the street of the Metropolitan Detention Center and see a huge one story warehouse that runs the length of the block whose side red brick wall faces our building. 
Single parking spaces the line the street, where I see correction officers coming to work, attorney’s on their way to meet with clients, mothers, wives, girlfriends, kids and friends on their way entering the building to bring an hour of freedom for a visit. 

On the corner of 29th and 1st street, directly in front of my cell towards the back of the red brick wall there is a dark burgundy aluminum structure sticking out on the side that was probably used for extra storage or deliveries. 

It’s been out of commission for years since there’s no roof and a tree about eighteen feet talk growing within the middle of it, but this aluminum burgundy structure gets plenty of use. 

It’s a platform of expression for us that look at it everyday seeing signs from loved one that have turned this aluminum burgundy structure into a memorial of inspirational support. 

Fathers day and birthday wishes, signs reading how much we’re missed and loved, balloons, flags, blown up photos and pictures drawn by children are all testimonials that help everyone of us in this building during these challenging times. 

It doesn’t have to be a sign specifically for us, placed by our family members, we all appreciate the effort that’s made and know that it’s our loved ones who are doing the real hard time. 

Everyday family members stand across the street looking up at our darken windows waving and blowing kisses, hoping that their incarcerated loved one is looking back. I always take my nail clipper and repeatedly tap on the window acknowledging their presence, letting them know they’ve been seen and efforts are appreciated. 

During the last two week lock down when there were no visits, I saw the same mother come once each week to put up a sign and blow kisses for a full hour towards our building, letting her son know the level of love and devotion she has for him. It reminded me of my mother who’s giving me that same type of support, not only these last 13 years in prison, but for each moment of my life. 

I had a visit on Tuesday October 24th, which was considered my birthday visit since I’m turning 45 on Friday the 27th. During the afternoon lock in prior to the visiting session, I looked out on the wall seeing all the same expressions of love from the day before. An hour later, when they unlocked the doors, I rose up from my bed to prepare to get ready to hear my name called to the visiting room, extra excited to see my mother and daughter Nia. 

I glanced out the window again and noticed five blue helium balloons tied up on the corner of the wall and instinctively knew it was my mother and Nia that hung them. They were both beaming with smiles when I walked in the visiting room and said, “I saw the five balloons!” as soon as I hugged them hello. 

This morning, I woke up and stared at my balloons. I went and worked out, took my shower, got dressed, fixed my 2nd cup of coffee and enjoyed it sitting on my plastic chair looking down out my window seeing the three dark and two light blue birthday balloons blowing in the wind. 

I’ve often written how these years in prison make me grateful for the small things in life. A hand written letter, a thinking of you card, pictures and taking the time to visit. I’ve been blessed through out these years to have people in my life that do all these things showing nothing but loving support. 

I know in a week or so those five blue birthday balloons will be deflated, hanging by the string, fluttering in the wind against the wall, but the symbol of love that those balloons represent is everlasting and the best birthday gift I’ve ever received!

Gangster Turned Guru Presents: The Ultimate Writers Retreat.

We’ve all heard the saying “Everyone has a book in them,” yet the most difficult obstacle would be authors have is actually finding the time to sit down and write the murder mystery, romantic drama, science-fiction fantasy, spy novel or non fiction memoir without having to worry about the gas and electric bills, providing three meals and the numerous everyday necessary responsibilities causing distractions from that creative zone to freely express thoughts and ideas to be shared with the world. 
I don’t have that problem, waking up at 5:30 am after seven hours rest, enjoying my first strong hot black coffee while checking e-mail messages at the computer followed by a two hour work out session. After a nice sweat, I take a steaming hot shower, get dressed in some comfortable gray sweat pants and matching tee shirt, then I mix a banana with a scoop of peanut butter and small carton of milk, like they gave us in elementary school to go with my brand flakes, nuts, and granola cereal. By 9:15 am, it’s time for my second cup of coffee that cools on the table behind me while I lay my note book out on the bed that I use as my writers desk. 

If there’s no pen marks on the light tan cotton blanket it’s a sign of writer’s block, but that doesn’t happen much because I’m surrounded by an over abundance of true life stories with main characters anxious to reveal details of everything from murderous gangland plots, wall street money schemes, credit card scams, embezzlers, gun traffickers and even Isis terrorist. I don’t have to solicit their stories or pry for details, actually I just sit back and listen, finding myself saying “I don’t want to know about that!” far too often. 

If there’s one person that knows the power our government yields with the broad scope of a conspiracy it is I, having been fighting my draconian sentence for such a charge since 2004. It’s taken me over 12 years, but I’m finally back in New York at M.D.C. Brooklyn on a 2255 motion for ineffective assistance of counsel. Most of the guys in my unit are here on pre-trial or transferring to another prison. This facility is a lot different from where I’ve spent my previous 8 years at USP Canaan, where there were stabbings every week and we could count on a murder or two a year. 

I was shell shocked for the first few months I came here. There’s a big difference from being in a jail and a penitentiary. Jail is like the rides at a local carnival, the penitentiary is like the rides at a Six flags Great Adventure amusement park. 

Some of these guys look like juveniles and coming here I realized the gang epidemic is spreading through New York like in the West Coast L.A. back in the 80’s. A young Puerto Rican Crip calling himself French is just 18 years old, he was six when I got locked up!! He only weighs about 130 pounds with black low hair cut like a member of the Beetles and an angry baby face who has no idea what’s waiting for him once he reaches the real compound of the Penitentiary.

I see him on the visiting floor every week with his mother, who’s about my age but looking older by the week due to the stress brought on from the light of her life. 

It breaks my heart to see, considering I’m being visited by my mother, who’s been giving unyielding support to me on my numerous prison trips since I was his age. I know what lies ahead for this young kids mom since when I tried to talk to French about changing the way he lives he wasn’t trying to hear me. 

“I’m a Crip for life! That’s what’s cracking O.G.” he said, calling me a title of respect since I’ve been down so many years due to my previous gangster way of life. 

At first I took offense when all the younger guys called me O.G. (which stands for Original Gangster), not upset with them but with myself. I came in on this sentence when I was 32 and I’m about to turn 45 now asking myself “Were all those years wasted?” 

Most would probably think “Yes” but I can attest to the fact that after a year into this sentence, I had the desire to change the way I live and that choice to change saved my life. Spiritually, I built a relationship with my higher power, God and I had some issues to work on but we’ve been good for some time. Physically, I was about 50 pounds over weight so I changed my diet, stuck to a work out routine, lost all the excess weight, started practicing Yoga and I’m as fit as ever. Mentally, I had to learn how to think, not from a gangster mentality but from a spiritual point of view by understanding the power of my thoughts, words and actions. 

I had to think about a new career so I began to write and discovered that when I pick up my blue Bic ball point pen, open my wireless notebook with the steaming aroma of my black coffee setting the ambiance to unlock the mental doors of my creative imagination, I am once again free. Not only am I free but I’m at peace, I’m happy and I’m blessed. 

I’m not delusional, I realize that being in prison isn’t the ideal situation, but honestly it can be a writers paradise. 

I have an unlimited amount of resources to tap into, real characters that crime writing authors would love to sit with for an hour or two for a question and answer session. I live an F.B.I. profilers dream, to interview these individuals that come seeking guidance from the Gangster Turned Guru. 

Most of them want me to write their books, after having read my first published book “Voice For the Silent Fathers”, but I advise them to start to write for themselves because if anything, writing is therapeutic and if they stick to it (which most don’t) hopefully they will discover the gift of freedom that writing offers. 

I intend to share some of these stories in the future because I just can’t let this material go to waste. Even in this moment of writing, my new celli who’s been here for a little over two weeks, is laying on the top bunk, staring out the window, shaking his head wondering how he ended up here. He’s one of the MS-13 gang leaders which are responsible for over 20 killings in the last two years on the east end of Long Island. The reality hasn’t set in on him yet, he’s only 23 and was about to be deported when the Feds charged him in a new indictment. His other three fellow gang members on the unit are charged with taking part in murdering two teenage girls and four young teenage boys in Brentwood as an initiation rite to join the gang, and he’s still wondering why he’s here! I’ve seen this movie before and know where it’s going. But his story will have to wait until it plays itself out. 

Earlier this afternoon, I spent about an hour in a theological discussion with a young man who’s charged with promoting terrorism as an Isis recruiter. El Chapo’s right hand man and best friend was asking me for physical training advice this morning when I finished my work out. These three interactions are just from today and I’ve been here for 18 months hearing and witnessing episodes that can keep a writer like myself running out of ink. 

I use my interaction as an opportunity to shed light on the conditions we all find ourselves in and most that listen are receptive to my guidance because I’ve walked a similar path and speak in a non-judgmental tone. But I still give the raw and uncut truth about the situation we’re in and why. 

When many of these guys, most young gang members, come to ask me for legal advice I don’t like being the bearer of bad news when I have to tell them “Tell your lawyer to get you a plea deal for 20 years!” They look at me like I’m crazy. I’ve had the toughest of street thugs unable to hold back tears, that if he had learned to cry years earlier probably would have helped him avoid this situation, but that’s neither here nor there. I take the time to explain that being in your early twenties, you can come home from a twenty year bid and live a productive life, which is something you currently can’t do with a life sentence that Federal Judges have no problem giving out, especially if you dare to exercise your constitutional right to a trial. 

In pointing out that we’re all currently in this prison situation as a logical result of things that we’ve either thought, said or done, I emphasize that the exact same method of creation is what will change our condition. Although physically it may not change over night, I advise learning to use this time for the more important transformation from within, will bring a greater change with life in general. 

I attempt to keep a spiritual content with my writings, whether it’s my political thoughts, a fictional novel or autobiography. I just want to let my readers know that I’m currently in the ultimate writers retreat, so have no fear for there will be no lack of The Gangster Turned Guru’s reading material.

#gangsterturnedguru

#voiceforthesilentfathers

#eddiekwright

#mwrightgroup

#iwrite

Gangster Turned Guru Presents: Current Events: Las Vegas

The recent shooting in Las Vegas Nevada has many people wondering how any person could commit such an act and why God would allow it to happen. When tragic events occur that appear to make no sense with logic and reason, our faith, trust and belief in an all-loving God can be put into question, shaking the core confidence in our higher power.
Naturally, our country is grieving for the injured and those that lost loved ones. A huge population is angry because these mass shootings continue to happen with no solution to a growing problem. I’m not claiming to personally have the answer, but my faith and trust that God is in control at all times remain.

When situations happen on such a large scale as in Las Vegas, a firm conviction of an almighty God can be difficult to maintain. We pray for clarity and ask why? Many simply chalk it up to the devil’s doing or an evil force that’s in opposition with the goodness of God, a God who just lost the battle that day but not the war. Others will use this event as evidence in their case against the belief that any type of God can possibly exist with mass shootings at the Newtown elementary school, Pulse nightclub and now, here, at a country music concert that helped in mounting a strong prosecution for their claim.

So how could I continue to sustain my conviction that we live in a spiritual system that’s governed by God’s Universal laws? I’ve been confronted with this question often in the confines of one of the most violent Penitentiaries in America. But it’s not the penitentiary that’s violent, it’s the individuals that choose to make it so.

After having made a conscious choice in changing the way I live my life, that violence hasn’t physically affected me, but the possibility is always there and should it come, I would take the personal responsibility of accepting my role in its creation because everything happens for a reason and purpose, even when it makes no sense to my finite understanding.

I know that we are blessed with the choice to choose who we are in this relative world and in order to have that choice, the opposite to choose from must exist. This realm of relativity allows us to express who we choose to be in our relationships with ourselves, others and with our higher power. This is the essence of God’s unconditional love, the freedom of the choice to choose. But remember that in order for us to experience God’s absolute love, everything that love is not must exist. There’s no light without dark, left without right, good without bad or love without hate.

Our belief in God can be tested when we lack a clear understanding that God has this life thing under control. There’s a spiritual system in the way life operates, a system that we’re able to use in creating our individual experience and our collective experience.

When things are working according to our plans, it’s easy to recognize God’s role in bringing it all together, but when events like the Las Vegas shooting happen, our belief can be discombobulated as if God was asleep on the job. That’s a result of our limited foresight and in the raw moment of certain events, we’re unable to see the final outcome which is often revealed in time. But God knows the ultimate result. God perceives an acorn taking root in the soil, growing into a great oak tree that’s cut down a hundred years later and used for firewood to heat the house and cook the meal all in one moment. I can’t do that and I’ve learned to find comfort in not having too and just put my trust in God.
Don’t allow your fear, anger, and confusion dictate the way you think about the goodness of life because the immutable laws of attraction will draw experiences according to your inner thoughts and beliefs. God is good all the time, even in what appears to be a negative situation. The Universal laws of cause and effect emerge as the creative principle, but don’t misconstrue the principal for the essence of God’s personality which is the infinite love that’s always working for us.

I choose to consciously use my freedom of the laws to resist the evil with an abundance of good, the negative with an abundance of positive and the darkness with an abundance of light. Please believe me, it’s not always easy for the Gangster Turned Guru to stay positive and optimistic, but I’ve experienced that it brings better results than being negative and pessimistic. There’s plenty of times when I have to just “let go and let God,” but that’s because I trust God with an unwavering faith and expectant heart. So again, don’t allow negative situations or conditions in your life, divert your faith and belief in your higher power. Look at them as opportunities to depend on your relationship with God all the more during this journey of life.

Gangster Turned Guru

#gangsterturnedgurupresents

#voiceforthesilentfathers

#lasvegas

#currentevents

Gangster Turned Guru Presents: Current Events: Puerto Rico/Trump/Kaepernick

One of the challenges with writing about current events while in prison is that unforeseen obstacles can delay my post even more then the slight delay system I’m dealing with in having to have a third party post on my site. This post is almost two weeks overdue because the day I went to type it out, two MS-13 members attacked and stabbed a member of a rival gang on my unit, triggering a chain reaction of events throughout the prison.In the past two weeks while I’ve been locked in my cell much has gone on with the continued neglect of Puerto Rico due to the hurricanes which is Donald Trumps “Katrina” moment. I kept waiting to hear one of the Puerto Rican entertainers pull a Kanye West and state “President Trump doesn’t care about Puerto Ricans!”

Instead of caring support, he sends insulting tweets. Two days after Haiti’s earthquake, there were 20,000 American troops deployed to help a foreign country. It took over a week to deploy half that amount to Puerto Rico, a territory of the United States. In two weeks time Haiti had 300 U.S. military helicopters deployed to transport the sick, deliver water, food and supplies. It’s been over two weeks and Puerto Rico has received only 40 military helicopters to assist in their recovery. The brutal attack by Trump on the female Mayor of San Juan who was only trying to get the help that citizens of United States deserve once again reflects the character of our President.

Although I was prepared to write more thoughts on the Puerto Rico catastrophe, the recent Las Vegas incident is now overshadowing all else so I had to mention the Puerto Rico condition which affects the lives of millions of Americans. I’ve written a separate piece on Las Vegas.

But I still wanted to also share what I wrote prior to being locked two weeks ago which may read like old news but I still think is worthy of a read.

President Donald Trump never stops giving us incredible opportunities to express who we are in response to the tweets he sends out and the statements made, not only at his rally’s when he’s specifically speaking to his fan base but when standing on the world stage in front of the leaders of the United Nations where he actually threatened to commit a war crime saying he would “Totally destroy North Korea” prompting their equally crazy leader to respond with similar threats. This is reality TV at it’s best!

Now Trump calls on the NFL owners to “fire any son of a bitch…” that peacefully protest the injustices in America by taking a knee during the National anthem in unison with the movement started by quarterback Collin Kaepernick, which resulted in him being blackballed by the owners of the NFL organization, in an attempt to silence his voice.

The first Sunday of football games after Trump’s directive resulted in over 150 players locking arms or taking a knee in solidarity which isn’t disrespecting the flag or our country, it’s actually reminding us of the freedoms that the flag is supposed to represent.

I’m not surprised that Trump thinks since athletes are paid large salaries by these team owners that they literally own them and they lose their constitutional rights, especially when expressing that right goes against his overall agenda, clandestinely stated with slogans of “Taking back our country” or “Making America great again.” At least Trump is blatantly honest in his opinions that a black man peacefully protesting by taking a knee while the national anthem is being played makes you a “Son of a bitch.” But as long as you’re a white nationalist, marching at night holding tiki torches shouting “You will not replace us!” resulting in a woman being run over and killed, the president stated his opinion saying “Some of those are good people.”

NFL owners were forced to recently come out in public support of their players because of the Presidents statements and tweets. Collin Kaepernick probably feels those owners are a little late, especially when they were in 100% compliance with assuring that he no longer had a job in their organization. Maybe if he chooses to fight dogs on the side or physically abuse his wife, he’d at least earn a couple of million as a substitute quarterback, but to peacefully protest the undeniable injustices in the black communities of America wasn’t going to be tolerated. Hopefully, one of these owners will come to their senses and have the courage to offer him a contract, particularly since he’s a better quarterback than some of this seasons starters.

The president injection into this football topic is possibly a masterful distraction from other significant issues such as the third failed attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act. The Republicans, who for the last seven years did everything to criticize our health care system, haven’t taken the time to create a better comprehensive program equal to the needs of all American people. There are no perfect Health Care policy’s, but there are systems in this world that work and can be improved. The biggest problem America has concerning Health Care is that it’s based on a profit margin, which automatically institutionalizes discriminating practices between the have’s and the have not’s.

Late night talk show host Jimmy Kimel entered the health care debate after his newborn son had to receive open heart surgery and he realizes that if he wasn’t so well off financially, his infant son wouldn’t have received the same quality of care, and there is something inherently wrong with that. We live in the richest nation in the world, yet can’t come up with a method that provides equal and adequate health care for all? The truth is that we choose not to by continuing to allow pharmaceutical manufacturers and health insurance conglomerates that make hundreds of billions of dollars in profits dictate the rules to the game. I’m sure those same companies can still do their research, provide adequate health care to all while continually earning enough to provide for a luxurious lifestyle.

Or could it be it wasn’t the health care issue, but a distraction from this Russian investigation? President Donald Trump is exposing how the laws in America are applied differently based on who you are. Being a guest of the federal criminal justice system for the past 13 years, I’ve witnessed and experienced what little evidence is needed for a successful criminal indictment. Government officials have been caught lying under oath and changed their stories after their lies have been exposed. The FBI director in charge was fired by the President who was under FBI’s investigation.

This Russian debacle isn’t a republican or democrat issue, it’s an American one and it would be hypocritical to lay all the blame on the Russian government for succeeding in the manipulation of our elections. Let’s not forget when the Palestinians held democratic elections and the leaders of Hamas won. Instead of respecting the rights of the Palestinians choice, regardless if we agree with them or not, the United States chose to physically put in place a government and president of their choosing, not of the people.

But the problem here in America is that those in the Trump administration, prior to him being President, actively sought help from a foreign government to gain an advantage in our American elections, which is treasonous. That’s been admitted to by Donald Trump Jr, after months of denying that any meetings with Russians took place once that meeting was exposed.

How deep does that rabbit hole go? We have yet to know, but if there was half as much evidence in a regular criminal conspiracy, because this is what it is, not a collision it’s a criminal conspiracy that would have seen swat teams deployed kicking down doors, assets being frozen and anyone who knew anything being charged with a statue that carried a mandatory minimum sentence to force them to talk regardless of the role they played. This double standard of the law is just what it is and nothing new.

Who knows’s what’s going to come of this Russian investigation, the racial discussion from the NFL protest, health care or the two psychotic egomaniacs both threatening nuclear global destruction? Only God.

As chaotic as the world appears, I never lose sight of the fact that life is based on a Universal spiritual system. That’s difficult for many people to comprehend, especially in the violent conditions of a Penitentiary where your faith and goodness of life and God is constantly under attack.

But I’ve long ago learned the secret power of not having to prove myself right, admitting when I’m wrong and accepting that I don’t know the answer to a lot of things. Yet I do know that God is all there is so regardless of how divided America or really humanity as a hole may appear to be, there is an inseparable unity that we share which is the Divine energy of life. That’s the first fundamental principal I try to keep at the forefront of my mind, which isn’t always easy when interacting with gang members or correction officers who don’t recognize the divine essence within themselves.
I’ll admit it took a lot of work and spiritual soul contemplation to expand my conception, detaching myself from what appears to be and trusting in God’s overall plan. I know that sounds a bit cliche, but my faith and conviction of God has given me the ability to accomplish far more then when I felt I had to do this life thing on my own. So regardless of how much political turmoil there is, don’t loose faith in your higher power and rely on your spiritual relationship more, that may be the reason things seem so chaotic on the outer world, from failing to recognize the divine essence of life which we all share within.

Gangster Turned Guru
#gangsterturnedgurupresents

#voiceforthesilentfathers

#puertorico

#Kaepernick

#currentevents

I’m Glad Trump is President

Dumb ass trump!  

There hasn’t been a day of this year where I didn’t have the urge to shoot off my opinion about the ramification and the underlying meaning of what President Trump brings to the table. 

 At first, I was disappointed, especially in my current position as a federal inmate. The momentum of the prison reforms in an attempt to correct draconian mandatory minimums laws that were put in effect back in the 80’s came to a sudden halt. Although I wasn’t a Hillary supporter since it was Bill Clinton’s administration and Joe Biden’s articulate drafting of the mandatory minimum laws that continue to disrupt communities across America, they did attempt to right the wrongs of the past with the Fair Sentencing Act (the name in itself reveals just how unfair it was) by supporting the Obama’s administration’s criminal justice reforms. That was really my only issue as far as who won the Presidency.
Once Bernie Sanders, who was my preferred candidate, got cheated, I knew the fix was in. That fix happened on both sides, so who could really be mad? I’m actually glad that Trump is our president, and when I said this to my mother in the visiting room triggering the rage that’s been eating her from within since the November results, her eyes got watery, and her face turned red with a volcanic fury, gripping my arms, digging her nails into my flesh intending to draw the blood of her only son. Glaring her squinting blue eyes, slowly shaking her head through clenched teeth she said, “How dare you say that to me!”

My mother was a hippy, who’s been marching for civil rights since the sixties so she lives and dies for that love, peace, and happiness movement. She’s a white woman who in 1969 married my father, a big strong bald headed black man when interracial marriage was still ILLEGAL in some southern states of America. Just because interracial marriage was legal in New York, it didn’t stop a local racist from attempting to burn a cross in my parents’ front lawn.

That was one of the proudest stories she told me about my father, catching the ignorant fool in the act and my dad beating the shit out of him.

My mother raised two black children on her own in an all white community, suffering her share of racist insults like being called a nigger lover. Derogating stares, humiliating whispers behind her back but loud enough for her to hear, while walking by with my three year old sister, holding her hand and cradling me, a new born on her opposite shoulder keeping her head held high, ignoring the hurtful taunts, that in those days people felt way too comfortable expressing.

The strength and fortitude my mother displayed to change the world that my sister and I grew up in was always evident. Taking us to marches protesting nuclear facilities, demonstrating for women’s rights, painting our faces with flowers and peace signs to spend out childhood Saturdays, walking with thousands of people for whatever cause my mother felt needed to be addressed, was normal for my sister and I growing up.

Jean Wright was grooming me to be the first black President, after a revelation she had when she took me to the 20 year anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s march on Washington.

Although she loves President Obama to the point that she’s probably on some governments watch list of those willing to martyr themselves for his cause, she resents him just a little for taking my spot. But it wasn’t Obama’s fault, I was a rebellious confused teenager that took to the streets.

When I explain to my mother the politics of living in the Penitentiary, between the different races, gangs, and religious groups, most of the time I’m able to equate the same or similar issues to the outside world. When I’ve shared certain situations where I’ve had to intervene by resolving a peaceful solution, she’s proud that I’m finally channeling mementos of the political ambitions from her vision she had while standing with me bare foot, knee high in the Washington memorial reflection pool.

For me to support Trump in any manner was a betrayal, the kiss of Judas in my mother’s eyes. As she released her imprinting nails in order for me to explain why I would make such a cruel statement, I asked her to breathe and calm down while I explained my train of thought.

President Donald Trump has removed the veil that a big portion of this country has hidden behind for years. Now that he’s so boldly put out there what many of us have known, but couldn’t prove without sounding like a conspiracy theorist or bitter fools, is the reason I’m glad he’s president.

Trump exposed how easily people can be manipulated and controlled by ignorance, fear, and anger. There was no doubt in his display of insolence for women, blatant racist remarks and overtly prejudice policies, that he planned to implement once he was in the office he now occupies.

President Donald Trump is not the problem and he’s defiantly not the solution. He represents a time of a not so distant past that he camouflaged in his campaign slogan “Make America Great Again.” Donald Trump is nothing more than a reference point, an indicating marker of the type of character that appeals to enough voters to get him elected. That in and of itself reveals a lot more to me than anything he can say or do and that’s why I’m glad he’s President. The power is in the people and like it or not, the people have spoken!!

But now my dear reader, what are the people saying? Eight months in and it’s scandal after scandal, some are just distractions from what’s really going on of course. Look how close we came to losing the Affordable care act, and more importantly look who saved it, Republican Senator John McCain.

Quick side note: Why is it that we have Universal health care for prisoners but can’t figure a way to provide it for every other American? Better yet, why is it always the lack of money which seems to be the excuse for not saving peoples lives but there is an unlimited about spent on bombs and weapons of war to kill people? But let me get back to this topic.

I’ve hesitated on writing politically because so many people are already doing it and I’ve somewhat detached myself to try to stay focused on the bigger picture with my spiritual perspective with all things. When I said to my mother, “God must have wanted Trump to be president”, I saw that her faith and belief in an all loving God begin to falter, and that’s the last thing the Gangster Turned Guru intended to do and what inspired me to write this piece.

Currently, there are protests over Confederate statues, some for them and some against them. Donald Trump made it perfectly clear where he stands on the issue. Who’s surprised? I’m not. It’s comical when the argument is made that the Confederacy is part of our history, which is true, but a statue or a confederate flag is honoring that history.

Why is it that Germany doesn’t have statues of Hitler in state parks or streets and colleges named after him? Is Adolf Hitler not part of Germany’s history? Why is it that there is only one African American museum dedicated to the history of slavery, yet there are over 50 museums dedicated to the Holocaust that didn’t even take place in America, well the Jewish holocaust didn’t but the American Indian holocaust did and I’m not even sure what the number of holocaust museums dedicated to that atrocity is, if any at all. What about that history? The Confederate flag, statues and all that the Confederacy represents is a silent acknowledgment and honoring of an institution of oppression which still exist, although it’s cleverly veiled from most.

Many thought that the institution of oppression was gone once Barrack Obama got elected, but those that are really conscious couldn’t be lulled back to sleep so easily, but enough of us were.

It’s still a shock to some that Donald Trump is the president, but his presidency is not a mystery to me. This experience of Trumpism is necessary for our countries unfoldment in representing who we are. The spirit of one’s character is revealed in one’s personality. The protesters marching, CEO’s resigning from Trump’s cabinets and Republican Senators speaking out against their own party all reflect a unifying indication of morals and principals that this concept of America is supposed to represent.

We are one nation under God and the collective consciousness of our Nation will attract the experience to match the predominant mental attitude of our ideas.

To think that an eight year Obama administration would wipe clean the slate of the effects and consequences over two hundred years of institutionalized oppression has caused, is idiotic.

So when I told my unconditional loving mother that I was glad Trump is president, it’s not because I believe in any of his policies or the character he’s displayed, it’s that he continues to inadvertently reveal the core mental attitude of an overwhelming portion of this country.

Unlike my mother, I’m able to maintain my peace of mind with Donald Trump being President, mainly because I never lose sight of the fact that we come from One God who’s ultimately in control and allowed Trump to be President for a reason.

Listen, I’m the first to admit that I’ve disagreed with the way God has done things a number of times in my life, but looking back from who I was to who I am now, I’m able to recognize the infinite Source of life was always in control.

President Trump is the ultimate wake up call, for those that have eyes to see and ears to hear.

We each have a personal responsibility to respond accordingly. By maintaining positive, peaceful, constructive thoughts we’ll attract the experience that reflects our inner mental attitude.

God is good, which means there is always more good than bad in people. Not only in Donald Trump because he is just one man, but also the abundance of good in the ones he represents. There is always a silent power behind all things that attract the results of our thoughts and ideas. So, if our dominate inner attitude is to be at peace, more harmonious with all people, not just Democrats or Republicans, but with humanity as a whole, reflecting that helpful, joyful nature, then by the year 2020, we should be cheering “Michelle Obama for President!!”

Eddie K. Wright, AKA The Gangster Turned Guru.

Hey… How You Doin’?

It’s been a little over a year since the release of “VOICE FOR THE SILENT FATHERS” and although I have yet to receive a call from Oprah’S Book Club or NPR producers since I’m the first father ever to write about being the parent of a gay son from a father’s perspective, the feedback from those that have read the book keep me positively optimistic.
I’ve done a podcast, newspaper and a magazine interview and any other limited promotion I can from my unique position at MDC Brooklyn in N.Y. which is the federal holding facility I’ve been at for over a year appealing my case.

This is where I get the core of my book reviews. I have 5 copies of that I keep in circulation throughout the unit of around 110 inmates. Most are coming through on transfer to other prisons unless their pre-trial or like myself back on appeal.

As you would expect, there are avid readers in here who give me their honest opinions about “Voice”. I’ve had guys come into my cell returning the book and not knowing what to say just giving me a hug which has actually become a normal response. I enjoy pulling out my picture album showing the main characters written about, especially the photos from the Disney world trip.

I had an openly gay man read the book three times. In the visiting room, my mother is like a celebrity with guys just walking up to shake her hand and tell her what an amazing mother she is and wanted to meet who they read about. The discussions I have with guys after they read the story is an added bonus, solidifying my claim that everyone can relate to this topic.

Each time I read the letter to the reader from my son, I get choked up and it actually brought one guy to tears. My purpose for writing is to bring understanding and healing. My son and I have achieved that goal and I hope my writing does the same for others.

I look forward to releasing “THE EVOLUTION OF A GANGSTER TURNED GURU” in 2018, which gives more insight to my personal spiritual journey. Although I haven’t posted much recently, it’s not due to my lack of writing. I have a number of books in the first draft condition that I’m currently going back to work on. Plus I’ve taken on freelance writing which consists of letters and speeches to the Judges prior to guys in here that are going for sentencing. Talk about having to write emotional, meaningful words in an attempt to get a lower sentence.

So I’m still at work with my craft and if ever an idea or topic comes up that you think calls for the Gangster Turned Guru’s perspective, please send a message and I’ll be glad to post my insight.

Thanks for all the support!!
Eddie K. Wright, Author

…I thought my life was over.

The writing process of my memoir “Voice for the Silent Fathers” was emotionally therapeutic, making the book a personal success by helping to heal the relationship between me and my son. The readers’ comments have been and continue to be very inspirational and I’m thankful for them all.

I have a few copies of “Voice for the Silent Fathers” circulating through the prison and a list of names of those next in line waiting to read it. Who would think that a book about a father’s struggle to accept his homosexual son would be competing with all the urban hood novels so popular in the penitentiary?

Having people I don’t really know mention certain intimate parts of my life or thoughts I’ve had that at one time I never expected to share took some getting used to. Everyone has a story of a sibling, nephew or uncle in their life that’s gay and after reading “Voice for the Silent Fathers” they were able to relate with many of my struggles and came to the same conclusion of what loving unconditionally really means.

Another rewarding gift which makes the book a success, are the conversations it stirs that has lead to the launching of The Voice for the Silent Fathers Talk Radio Show which will launch later this fall.  Not everyone holds the same point of view on topics but a healthy discussion is better than staying silent. Various issues that are challenging society today will be explored. (Subscribe to the channel here:  blogtalkradio.com/voiceforthesilentfathers)

In 2017, my publisher, The M Wright Group will be releasing “THE EVOLUTION OF A GANGSTER TURNED GURU” from the Gangster Turned Guru series, detailing my transformation upon discovering God’s unconditional love, the Universal laws, and the self-empowerment of consciously creating our experiences.

At a time when I thought my life was over, I was awakened to the truth and realized that my life had just begun. This insightful memoir is a journey of moral growth, ethical guidance and the spiritual enlightenment of a Gangster Turned Guru.

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Chattin’ it up with Ms. Jamie Timmons

I was very excited to be asked for a follow-up interview with Ms. Jamie Timmons, Author and Owner of Matters of My Heart, an emotional support program for adult survivors of domestic violence and/or sexual assault.

This interview, more like a discussion between friends talks about Jamie’ thoughts on Voice for the Silent Fathers and how it’s impacted her life personally.  We also touch on my upcoming Gangster Turned Guru Presents series.

Grab a cup of coffee, sit back for the next 30 minutes and listen in.  Don’t forget to leave a comment and let me know what you think. “Chat It Up…”

Thank you,

Eddie K. Wright

 

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INTRODUCTION: “The Evolution of a Gangster Turned Guru”

When I first sat down to write “THE EVOLUTION OF A GANGSTER TURNED GURU” it was the easiest 300 pages I ever wrote reliving the experiences of my criminal past. I wanted the reader to know that there wasn’t an aspect of this gangster lifestyle which I hadn’t participated in. The ‘go hard or go home’, ‘get rich or die trying’, ‘feast or famine’ attitude for over twenty years had so many stories that it was going to end up being a four book series. But what I recognized was that the content of what I was writing in what would turn out to probably be the first three books would read like Urban novels, or what I generally call “Hood Books.” I knew the message wasn’t corresponding to what I’m inspired to express. Although it’s who I was, it’s no longer who I choose to be and even though my intent wasn’t to glorify my gangster past, some might interpret it that way and influence anyone on that path is the last thing I wanted to do. What if they only read the first three books without getting to the transformation part? No. I don’t need to build my gangster credibility with the reader. Trust me, my forty-five-year sentence from the United States Government as the leader of a criminal enterprise for a resume is enough to do that alone.

Who I thought myself to be I discovered was not who I truly am and with the realization of life’s laws and principals, I’ve experienced how the truth is always the solution to difficulties that I’ve been faced with. That truth lead me to change my process of thought because I’m the first to admit that I didn’t know how to think. Oh, I thought I knew it all when entertaining my gangster mentality in an attempt to achieve what I expected to bring peace and happiness. Yet the cause, which was the way I thought, didn’t correspond with the effect I was attempting to accomplish. I had no idea of the Universal laws and principals that govern life until I consciously made a decision to search for the truth.

My inner desire enlightened me to a spiritual way of living by realizing that we are immersed in a creative intelligence, an eternal goodness of unconditional love and law. The awakening to my true being under conditions that most consider hell on earth is just more evidence of the power we all have access to. I’ve achieved that peace and happiness which is enhanced by sharing this truth with others.

I’m not a spiritual sage or mystic. It wasn’t a beam of light or burning bush that woke me up late at night to tell me this spiritual truth. It was the experience of the laws and love of God that shed the light on the darkness, making it clear for me to see that the darkness didn’t’ even exist.

Yet, as long as I continued to hold the perception and belief of being a criminal gangster, the laws corresponding to that thought pattern of my inner concept created the outward experience. But the essence of who I am and who you are cannot and does not change. The journey of life’s unfoldment is one of self-discovery that we must each individually experience in our own way. The importance of one’s own personal experience can’t be emphasized enough since this is the foundation of your conviction in what you believe.

It’s not enough for me to say that we are all spiritual beings, unified with life, living in a Universe of creative intelligence that operates according to these Universal laws that are set in motion due to the way we think, words we speak and actions we take to create our experience. That this law is God’s law of cause and effect based on an impersonal principle of being a natural law, which means that regardless if used destructively or constructively the law will take the impression of our thoughts and attract the experience that our thinking directed it to do. As good as that sounds, learning is just not that easy. Most of us are actually bound by our creative freedom for not consciously being aware of the influence our thinking has in the conditions we find ourselves in.

With the limitless law and infinite intelligence of God, there’re no limits on what we can individually achieve except the limits that we place on ourselves according to what it is that we each believe.

Spiritual knowledge of this Universal system of life brings the essence of your spiritual perfection to the surface. But until we individually make a conscious decision to challenge the false ideas held about ourselves and analyze why our lives are in what appears to be a constant state of turmoil, then we can’t expect the habits of thoughts that created the present circumstances to attract something different in the future.

By changing my thought patterns from a gangster living in fear, being angry and frustrated with the world, to a mentality of a spiritual nature, God’s laws direct me to the right path in the choices that I make and experiences that I create. When I don’t know what to do or seem confused, I understand that there is an intelligence within me that does know and will reveal the answers, giving me this unyielding poise that I experience creating peace, harmony and happiness that so many have trouble finding. They search outside of themselves for that which resides within.

This understanding didn’t happen overnight. What’s important is that it happen and regardless of my outer situation, my inner experience of the peace and love in God doesn’t change. So I teach what I’ve learned in an attempt to help other realize and recognize the divine essence of their being. I write in modern day language of an age old all-inclusive universal truth, teaching God’s love, law and how it works according to the way we think. I keep a mental attitude of gratitude. Discussing this truth that’s an antidote to the deep emotional pain and distress that so many of us suffer from. You may not be in the dire situations that are read about in the following pages, but the method and solutions to find peace and happiness with a meaningful life are the same.

One’s outer circumstances cannot dictate your emotional state unless you allow them to. We see this all the time with two people in the exact same environment, one is joyful and the other is miserable. The only difference between the two are the inner thoughts they choose to entertain. This is the essence of our free will, the choice to choose how we think and what we think about. This makes all the difference in the creation of your life because you’ll experience who you think you are even if it isn’t true. And here is where we find the unconditional love of God’s laws, allowing us to experience who we are not in order to discover who we truly are. I’ve created immeasurable challenges for myself, transforming them into opportunities that inspired a change that brought about The evolution of a gangster turned guru.

 

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