Next Verse: Voices for Change

Down to the Big Apple’s Core
By Briana Rizzo

Listen up, this is NYC talking, midnight’s my prime time, 

But safety’s something so precious, like yours and mine 

Passing a musician in the street and throwing a buck 

Watching pigeons eating bread from generosity not just luck 

I’m the city that never sleeps, let’s use that midnight spark 

To keep these streets secure, from Midtown to Central Park 

Safety’s like the subway map, have to know where you’re going 

continued ->

Eyes open, aware, with mutual respect flowing 

It’s that helping hand, holding a door, or being that watchful eye, 

Community strong, building trust as we all pass by 

I smell like a million dreams, all cooking at once, 

But also, like urgency, you have to dodge the stunts 

It’s the clean feeling of looking out for your neighbor 

Access to resources, sharing the same labor 

Remember I’m the Big Apple, have to keep me from decay, 

Safety’s building up from the core, not letting things slip away 

Down in the subway, where the trains scream and grind 

Investing in neighborhoods, leaving no one behind 

So let’s keep my heart beating, my energy high 

In this city that never quits beneath the neon sky 

Safety’s on us, let’s make it a daily thing 

New York strong. 

New York smart. 

New York tough.  but now what do you bring?

Under Conditions Not Meant for Change
By Wilfredo Laracuente

They said I changed.
Like it was sudden.
Like it was clean.
Like it didn’t cost anything.
But change is expensive.
I remember what it sounded like—
4pm.
300 men generating noise that didn’t stop for nobody.
Two hours before a psychology exam.
Twelve pages due.
A ten-year-old typewriter.
One digital line staring back at me.
No backspace for mistakes.
No quiet for thinking.

continued ->

That’s where change started.
It costs relationships built on survival.
It costs an identity that only made sense inside the system.
It costs the version of you that knew how to move in cages
but didn’t know how to breathe in open air.
So let’s ask the question the right way—
Who benefitted when I changed?
My family did.
Not because I came home the same—
but because I came home different,
learning how to be present
in a life that moved on without me.

The Road to Recovery
By Roberto Cepeda

My life was like a runaway train
On a collision course for ruin
Family many times tried to warn me
I thought I knew what I was doing
“//”
Watched people all around me
Drop as if they were flies
And it awakened that reality
That I didn’t want to die
“//”
So I put the drugs down
As hard as it was
Ceased the drinking and addictive thinking
From the smoking I took a pause
“//”
It was a uphill battle everyday
The cravings were really hard
And maintaining my sobriety
Meant always being on guard
“//”

continued ->

I started attending meetings
And programs designed to help me
I knew I had to work with
The hand that life dealt me
“//”
So I stayed focused on staying sober
With little room for doubt
Knew as long as I stuck with it
Things would work themselves out
“//”
The road has been bumpy
But I’ve stuck with it
Look back on all that been done
And proudly say “I did it!”