As you read through the text below, you will find links to audio snippets from an interview I conducted with Benjy recently. The text is a snapshot of some of the topics we covered in our talk. Click the play button to "Listen In!" and hear Benjy in his own words.
(Be patient - depending on your connection speed, download may be dealyed a few seconds)
Written by, Chuck Reese
enjamin Melendez was born in San Jaun, Puerto Rico, August 3, 1952. Shortly after Benjy was born, his parents, in search of better economic circumstances, migrated into the continental United States and settled in New York City. Listen in!
History tells it that Puerto Rico was ceded over to the United States On July 25, 1898, as one of the outcomes of the Spanish-American War. It jump started an era of economic stimilus, road building and school construction. One of the after effects was the introduction of the Anglo culture into the spanish culture. Listen in!
Benjy"s mother practiced embroidery, and also cooked for very important families in Puerto Rico. Listen in! His Father was a laundry man, that was his business. The family lived down the block from the Headquarters of Don Pedro Albizu Campos, President of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party.
Benjy would find out later on after he started the Ghetto Brothers that his Father used to cook and iron the clothes of Albizu Campos. Listen in! At this point Benjy was already developing his sense of nationalism and had been a strong admirer of Campos. Even though his father didn't agree with Campos's politics he recognized that Benjy was getting more involved in Puerto Rican Nationalism. That's when he opened up and discussed his relationship with Campos to his son.
Benjy's father was a very religious man, and always respected authority. Although he didn't see eye to eye with Campos he respected him. He told Benjy that Campos was a decent and fair man , who never imposed his ideology on anyone, but rather he encouraged independent thought. Allowing you to form your own opinion about the world. Campos was loved and respected throughout the spanish community. Listen in!
With the promise of a better life blossoming over the American horizon, Benjy's family was shocked to experience the same discrimination that the blacks, the irish and a host of other immigrant groups went through after reaching American shores. Listen in!
The Melendez Family also suffered from environmental shock coming from a tropical climate to a place where temperatures sometimes plummet into the single digits. Being poor didn't help things out a bit as the family had to go without heat and hot water as so many of the workng poor at the time. Listen in!
By now you are probably wondering how a poor family from Puerto Rico acquired the means to migrate from the Island to New York. As Benjy tells it, his Father's sister already lived in Manhattan, and that's where his father lived until he was able to get up anough money to send for the rest of the family. His father got a job and saved up enough to get an apartment in lower manhattan. Listen in!
Benjy's parents were strong disciplinarians, but equally as loving and giving. They promoted positivity through their own actions and always demanded the kids do the same. Many of these lessons manifested themselves as Benjy became to grow into a leader of young men. Listen in!
As if coming to a new country and trying to assimilate wasn't enough, the Melendez family had to also deal with a language barrier. Being spanish speakers outside the spanish community was hardly an advantage. Without formal schooling they had to pick up functional english through everyday conversation. They sometimes used Benjy's older brother as an interpreter. This was life in America for a spanish immigrant family. Listen in!
At the time Benjy entered the school system, things weren't as bad as a kid. He recalls not feeling the sting of racial discrimination as he did later on. There was a sense that everyone coexisted without conflict back in the days. Listen in!
It didn't take long for Benjy to be exposed to the harsh realities of racism. While in school in the Bronx at P.S. 23, an incident occurred, and another student, well let Benjy tell it. Listen in!
Discipline was always a point of emplhaisis in Benjy's life, knwing he had to live up to the standard his mother and father set for the family. He was also no stranger to getting a physical attitude adjustment from his folks. Listen in! Before becoming the charismatic leader of the Ghetto Brothers Benjy tried his hand at a few sports. Only one thing seemed to stand in his way, his height. Listen in!
At this time the crack era was still a few decades away, but that didn't mean a lack of street level drugs weren't available. Although Benjy was surrounded by the trappings of normal life in the Bronx, he never felt it neccessary to dabble in drugs, as dealer or a user. Listen in! Benjy was a studious fellow who was into dinosaurs. He loved to read and ended up collecting most of his remedial school materials to this day. Listen in!
Benjy discusses how racism was introduced to him from the outside. He coulnd't understand why people would suggest who to talk to and who to avoid. This concept was foriegn to Benjy, who always was taught that everyone was equal. you treated people the way they treated you. If they treated you with respect, you recipricated, that simple. Listen in!
Later on Benjy was introduced to the martial arts by a black man. He went on to talk about how he was introduced to Puerto Rican history by a black man. Listen in!
With street gangs ruling the streets of the Bronx Benjy and his brothers began to run in their own little clique, called the Barbarians. They wore masks and the whole nine. Benjy particiapted under one condition, that they didn't become a group that preyed on the community. This was strictly to defend themselves from other more violent gangs. Listen in!
At the time Benjy was running with Ghetto Brothers, he was able to keep it secret from his family for a while. I was only until his father stumbled across him having a conversation with some high ranking members that he asked confronted Benjy about it. Listen in!
Benjy's father was a very wize man who always taught love, tolerance and peace. The more you learn to discover that Benjy was grown to become the man he has beocome, it wasn't by accident, it was by constant reinforcement by his parents to do good to all people. .Listen in!
This concludes this part of the story. The next chapters will be added soon. Thanks!