I was born on what is called the 'Northend' of Detroit in one of the cities toughest neighborhoods. I was drafted into the Army the year they had the biggest call up of the Vietnam War. The unit I was a part of trained to go to Vietnam, however half went to the jungles of Southeast Asia while the other half deployed to the 'asphalt' jungle on the Southside of Chicago. I came to realize, this was really two wars that our government was wagging, and how horribly insane the entire conflict was. Here I was a young black kid from Detroit with relatives living on the Southside told to do what it took to stop the rebelling, shooting, and looting. One of the reasons American soldiers were seen as the enemy back then is because on both fronts, we fought against people who were fighting for their freedom over here and over there. I came home disappointed, angry, lost, and confused. I sought companionship in what we called 'street life'. Thus, I am a graduate of the school of hard knocks along with later becoming a graduate of a four-year college university. I feel it is my duty to help plan a better life for ourselves, our children, and our children's children.