The Other Page Radio

0:00Music Music Music Music Music Music Music Hey, hey, hey, hey, welcome everybody to the other page radio right here on WBCALP102.9 FM Boston Boston Faded Radio stations and my name is Hayley Fennel's program is brought to you in part by Triad, Veterans League and Association with B&N Media Services and we really, really happy to be here today to talk to you and you to talk back to us, you know,

1:04when you see us in the streets of wherever streets, oh, that's a code word, that's a code word, streets, we got a man that lived in the streets and now he's no longer in that particular space, but he's still in that space, we got Mr. DeBon McNeil, DeBon McNeil, say hello to everybody. Peace, peace brother, how you doing, how you doing? Absolutely, man, glad to get you back up in there. 20 Yeah, yeah, yeah, man, I know you've been doing some beautiful things, I've been sitting here on Facebook from time to time. When I have time to read it but I gotta say you are a remarkable young man and I'm glad to have you here today to talk of our solution to different strategies that you have in place. You know, we want to start off as one of our technicians was asking you a little bit about your self-satisfaction, just want you to tell us what you told him, you know, in terms of who you are, where you are and where you plan to go. Oh, peace brother.

2:05As always, my name is DeBon McNeil and I'm just one of the ones that chose myself to come out of the darkness. Okay. I was 12 years old when I found myself on a street corner selling drugs. I didn't even know. And 12 years old? 12 years old brother, 12 years old. And as I tell my story, I didn't get my street education in the streets. Okay. I got my street education from the very individuals who are responsible for my love, nurturing, nourishment and so forth. But I understand today, as you taught me many years ago, is I was misinformed by the misinformed. Yes indeed. Yes indeed. So when I went outside and took that wilderness that you just called the streets, which loves nobody, the streets lie down. We believed I went out there with no agenda, no program, no plan because I didn't know who I was brother. I got lost in that thing called the streets. And so I led that lifestyle from 12 to 22 years old. 11 years. 11 years.

3:05Okay. Lost. I didn't have no identity. I didn't have no qualifications as a student. I thought in all reality and reality, brother, I thought that I was a gangster. You thought that you were a gangster. I thought I was a thug brother. Okay. It's okay. We're going to get to that. Okay. We're going to be schooling on top. So when I went out there under these false identities, I went and I went and I poisoned my community with all kinds of different things, different kinds of activities that wasn't my natural self. And then on July 19th of the year 2000, a young black man lost his life. Young black man lost his life. And it cost me 20 years of my life. There's another black man lost his life for 20 years. I had no idea. No ideas. That my life as I understood it on that day was going to change.

4:08Change lives coming down the road. And I found myself inside of a prison cell asking myself how did I get here? Asking for toilet people at the same time. And that darkness, brother, there was a light at the end of the tunnel because it was individuals wise counselors like yourself who wrote me many letters to tell me that if I took the time to listen to the inner voice, yes, I could leave prison a chain. Coming out of the darkness, coming out of the darkness. You said, but that was a choice I had to make on my own. Make it choice, make it choice. I made that choice. And for 17 years, I was able to work on the internal side of myself. Here the voice inside talking to you and the dark cell bringing the light to him. And that voice told me inside, it's time for you to be better than what you was the day you went to this prison.

5:17And I have a plan for you. I walked out of prison, brother, with a non-profit organization on my mind, with a plan to save inner city, black youth, telling them about my lived experience. And it was said to me, Devon, who better than someone like you? Who better? Who better? Who was a youth? Just like the ones you're going to go mentor. They need to hear your story about your mom who passed away in that prison cell. No, I know his grandmother. They need to know the story about your little brother who passed away in that prison cell. They said, Devon, because of your choices that you made, did you leave two daughters alone in the world to be raised by single mothers? Uh-oh. Is that true? Is that true? And I had to confess my truth and say yes, because I chose a way of life.

6:21It took me away from my two daughters. One to be a gangster, he said. Today, I mentor about 15 to 20 years weekly on the corner of 314 Bowden and Quincy Street. And the only reason why I'm able to mentor these youth is because of the lived experience that I found myself in that prison cell 26 years ago. Bowden and Quincy, from the prison cell, the Bowden and Quincy, he said he came. And when you ride through there and you see these young men out there selling bottles of cold water, you see these young men selling my books that I saw published while incarcerated. What's the name of your books? My first book that I saw published while incarcerated is called The Streets Lied and We Believe. The second book that I saw published while in prison is called From Negative to Positive in My Own Words.

7:30I got in and rippy right now. We got to let people know who we are and where we are. This is the other page radio. My name is Haywood Sonel. I guess today is the one, MacNeil, who came from the documents into the life wild and incarcerated. And he spent almost 20 years or maybe a little more than that, recognizing that he has something better to offer than the street. But the music was not the kind that he could dance with. And we were real grateful that God came into his life and that his mother gave him some principles that he's now incorporated in his life so that he can be a parent such as some of these young men. So you don't have to be the birth parent, but you can be a spiritual parent. You can teach them because he's reaching them now. He's just said he's on Quincy and Bowden Street. It's a tough neighborhood. In order to be surviving in a neighborhood, you got to have somebody that got a strong message.

8:30Somebody like the bond MacNeil. He's here today. We're so grateful. And he said to tell us the name of those books again, was you? Yes, sir. The first book I saw published is called The Streets Lied and We Believe. My second book that I saw published is called From Negative to Positive in My Own Words. My third book that was published about four months ago. Oh, wow. Which is a children's book. My first children's book. And it's called King Zulu in His Special Powers, which is about my dog. My actual dog, King Zulu, that I went and I got from my birthday last year. And his dog has done wonders for my life. He's the mascot of my nonprofit organization called King Zulu in His Special Powers. He's a lovely dog, all the kids love him. So that's my third book. And brother, I'm having fun out here. Really God needs you to go into the right path because I'm witnessing young men who I see myself and then when I was their age.

9:38And I come to them as a mentor who I needed when I was their age. Yes, yes. And it's beautiful to see mothers request that I mentor their sons because they see the results. But what they don't see and what they didn't see was how I got there. Okay. But today I'm here, brother, and I just love nothing more than sharing my story because I don't have a unique story. I'm just not afraid to share it. Right. They're so true. That's right. There's so many youth in our community of Boston Mass that really need guidance, need direction. And they just don't know who they are. Like I didn't know who I was. Well, you got to literally stay and go and test them. Another way to, you know, they kind of introduce yourself spiritually to these young people and they get home today. Parents. And you know, my mother used to say, sell me your friends and I could tell you what you're doing. Wow. So now, here's a situation where they're able to show their mothers and their dads and their grandparents and maybe some other family members.

10:45Well, their friend is you, the farm, McNeil. And they get comfort from that, you know, because believe it or not, parents, worry about their children. Yes, they do. But they so overwhelmed with their complexities of society with racism on the bottom and seeps its way to the top. It takes the way any kind of ingenuity, if you will. You don't want to be anybody. You don't want to be just something, not somebody able to read, able to relate, able to deal with interpersonal skill development like you're doing with these young men. And see, and parents have to pay attention to who their friends are, to mean to friends of their children, you know, because they smile and look like they're not menace about it. The devil they are.

11:45You know, we got too much going on in the wrong direction. We have to be God directed, if you will. So you, you're coming with a story, but you know, let's talk a little bit more about your family life now with the girls. Man, my family life. That's a beautiful topic that we're going to venture down because right now in reality, my relationship with my daughters. It's not the best. Well, I mean, you know, I don't want you to be holding back because you're not the only parent. A father who's been incarcerated and had to, first of all, get yourself straight. You know, if you're not straight, then you can't get nobody straight, okay? Wow. And so they missed their dad, but they don't want to lose you and you don't want to lose them.

12:49So we got to like tear down that wall, that barrier that they have because they don't want to get hurt anymore. And you don't want to hurt them. So let's look at that as a building tool. We want to restore the reality of a lovely situation. Everybody makes mistakes. Some were still others. But we can't live with those mistakes. We can't live in yesterday. We must move into tomorrow's. And not only are you doing that for yourself now, you're doing it for these other young men that I've been around and seen. And your daughters, man, we'll see that. You gotta be a blessing. You can't deny that they were hurt. Yes. But you can't deny that you weren't hurt too. True indeed. You can't be, you know, macho when you're coming to a child's love. And that separation based on a past mistake that you made.

13:50But you can't allow people to hold you back and point at finger and try to anchor you down in your mistakes. And that's just the reality of it. You know, we got to grow. That's what you're doing. But then another thing there is showing that sometimes you gotta work a little harder. You know, but you don't stick your neck in the hammer's loose because you got something going on. True indeed. And I would love nothing more than to men build and get that relationship back with my children, which I know is going to happen in the very, very near future. It's just sometimes I don't think.

14:50I don't think men like myself and I don't think children understand the dynamics of when you're taking away. And you're putting prison for the amount of time I was putting prison. Having children that was raised on social media platforms, and that's all they know. When you come home and you strive to introduce to your children who you are and what you have been through to get back to their lives. Some children like mine have a hard time understanding what you're saying to them. Let me give you an example. My daughter's they've never seen addiction. They've never seen anyone up close and personal going through the trials and tribulations and the struggles of addiction. So when I explained to them that their grandmother, my mother, that was one of her battles.

15:54And because I was too young to understand the battle that my mother was facing, I in turn ran into the streets for comfort. And that lit that kept me away from them for many years because I didn't know what I was going through and the trauma I had. So coming back after 20th of incarceration, working on myself, doing many programs such as fatherhood programs, self-development programs, addiction programs. And now, Charlie explains to my children who've never seen their grandmother go through any of this. To them, it sounds like a cop out. It sounds like an excuse. But for those who were there with me, for those from my era who understand who are also struggling to go back inside the lives of their children, they understand. So I'm just fast and meditating and praying that in time, I can sit down with my two daughters and revisit the very thing they want to know.

16:59How was you able to leave us for 20 years when we were here, daddy? And not only that, why can't we have a decent relationship with you while you're free? What is the problem? And I always said it. It takes more than me to answer you. And that's true. Through the conversation. W-B-C-L-P-1-0-2.9 F and Bustin, this is the other page. I'll guess today. How are you talking? I love him. Devon MacNeill. We'll be right back at the center of mind. It's just music. It's supposed to be here, folks. We're not going to let you down. We're going to get some more Devon. I'm going to take you to time. I'm going to take you to time.

18:06I'm going to take you to time. I know I need to make things right. At the right, to the right. I said I'm going to take you things out tonight. While I'm waiting for the side. Yes, we need a new win. To wipe away the tears we've been given for our sins. I said we need a new win. To do away with the wicked stuff that we can make and once again my friend.

19:09And I'm tired of seeing my people struggling with me. Take us to a place with no more pain or suffering. And you say, do like life is feeling better, but I ask you once again. But I still feel like Daniel when the mind is dead. We must make a change in all we've ever been. Every enemy will truly win. So I said to tell me, Larry, you don't have any more vacations this hour. Why did you leave that round? You don't have any more time for him this hour. But we don't have any time to say we need a new win.

20:10To wipe away the tears we've been given for our sins. I said we need a new win. To do away with the wicked stuff that we can make and once again my friend. Nice party isn't it? It's a wonderful life. So I'm good but a shun. We can't let the delivery book. We got to guess that we just can't. I mean, it's unbelievable. It's a man that spent 20 years, young man, 20 years in prison.

21:14And he was able to find the light. And in that process, he created a life, removing him from the strife of the streets that almost deviled him. See, it's easy to eat you up. You know, you ran round and big old cars and got a bank load and crossing people across you and all the things that are part of street life. You know, we know the holes and pimps and scumps and fakes. He was able to disarm himself with those lies as I was. And today he is putting his life back together.

22:17But let me ask you just, when you came out, you knew you had these girls, your children, and their family to deal. But how did you get to do so? What was it? It wasn't hard. It wasn't hard because I had already started the process of changing my life while incarcerated. A lot of the um, letters I wrote to my children, a lot of the phone calls that we shared. These phone calls were spent with me, explaining to them exactly who I become. And a lot of it was explaining to them what my plans were to pull my release from incarceration. Let me just add into that, you know, because I was in your life and a couple of other people's lives that were incarcerated. They were on the head to go before the parole board.

23:19And then I had a friend about what she was talking about. And we were yesterday in New York, I called her up. And she had a life without parole sentence. And then I found out that Alabama with their stuff, you know, and she was talking about giving up at that time, you know. I got, I got, I got her letters and so many of your letters and some of the other guys letters and stuff, you know. But I told her, you know, don't write me back, tell me nothing like that, because it's like, I'm 30, and I'm trying to write this letter for you to get some support. So don't tell me about giving up and then what I went down to New York, you know, neighborhood guy asked me, so you still working with that girl, man. I said, yeah, you say, wow, I should look, man, I don't hate you. Go someplace and get knocked off, man, and nobody cared about me, man. You know, and you're coming out, you know, and, and, and addressing the, you know, with your program, you know, you never said anything about giving up on yourself, man.

24:31That's why I kind of stuck with you, man, you know, and the other guy too, man, because you got to be strong and determined and, and no God. You know, you got to know about God. You can't do nothing, but at least I can't do nothing without it. Let me just speak for myself, you know, and I know your family. You know, I know they probably you, and I know you surprised a lot of other people. So keep on surprising people, brother. You know, work as best you can on yourself, and don't worry about other people's and their thoughts, about a mistake that you made, it was very costly, you know, because somebody lost their life, man. True indeed. And, and, and, and that's one of the things that I think our community as a whole, sometimes I sit back and I, and I reflect on how violence has become so normalized,

25:34within our city, brother, because why does it take for a young brother to lose his life on a hot summer day for stakeholders to be really concerned about what's going on in the community? When I have a space, I have a shop where I mentor youth every single day, and all it would take is for a couple of people to drop by and see the program and how it works. Because these are young men who are really being impacted by my life experience. So we've got to work on that, you know, because I know you know that ingenuity, man, it's necessary in the work that we do, man, because it inspires kids, you know, for instance, you came up with the idea of, you know, let's go out and sell some books. That's right. What is the benefit of them doing that? I think, first of all, it establishes up their place as young men, using their mind, talking to people, developing skills, getting somebody to listen to you.

26:44It's not something that adults do it all young people. But because of what you're doing and your belief in what you're doing, you've able to be able to persuade your crew to do what you do and get the results that you get and make them a better candidate for making it through this part of their lives when they are really endangered species. You came from a place in a space of darkness, flesh, cash, death, God, 20 years, 20 years. Now, you got to look at that and the significance of an incarceration because Malcolm was incarcerated. I missed some brief minds to realize that I had a mind as well.

27:50You didn't come out trying to be Michael Jackson, a smooth criminal. You came out, man, knowing that there was work to be done. There's hills to climb and hills to go down into the valley and bring them out of there. Those young men, I think you mentioned five as a number, are doing something today that they will be able to do tomorrow and tomorrow will bring the confidence for them to do something else. It's a communicate with you because they're yours. Just like you as the streets. That's right. We were the streets product. And we spoke that language very well, brother. Yeah, and then, you know, it's so many like I was saying, fakes and, you know, things that numb your thinking.

28:55Drugs taking them selling them money, flash cash, dash, then comes gels, bells, gels, bells. It's like all the time back to back. So, be proud of what you're doing. Folks, this young man, it's no doubt a leader. And I want you to tell them where your organization is, but so they can come and see you give them a yard. So, my number, my organization, again, is called not on my watch, mentoring, incorporated. Our mentoring space is at 314 Bolton Street in the heart of Dorchester on the corner of Bolton and Quincy Street. You can see about 5 to 7 youth every single day out there either selling ice cold bottles of water.

30:00Or you can see them out there selling my book. You can find that book on Amazon. You can find that book on Barnes and Noble's. You can also find that book right in the heart of Bolton Street from the youth. And that's about them bicycles right there. Oh man, the bicycles, my bike program is a beautiful thing. What we got going on next week is I'm going to put 10 youth between the ages of 10 to 15 years old on a bike. Each youth is going to get a stopwatch. We're going to ride 10 miles. Each of them youth are going to track their own miles. And when they come back, they're going to receive a stipend for every mile that they rode. And what that's going to do is cause the release of pent-up energy. It's going to teach them discipline.

31:00It's going to teach them working out. But it's also teach them how to never give up because that's 10 mile ride. Some of the youth have never even rode one mile on a bike. So that's a part of them bikes and that bike program. You just asked about brother right now. I'm about 15 bikes deep. And the youth love it. Regular pedal bikes. Regular BMX pedal bikes that we get on and we ride. And that's it. What's the name of your program again? It is called Not On My Watch Mentoring Incorporated. I mentor inner city youth every single day. We'll be right back folks. Triad Veterans League is a community-based education and cultural enrichment program that is seeking US military veterans interested in the arts and literacy enhancement. Interested? You can check out our website at triadveteransleaboston.com That is triadveteransleague Boston all one word dot com. Veterans are an overlooked and underused community resource.

32:02And thank you for your service. I just want to slow down the conversation folks because you know I'm a veteran. I'm probably a veteran. I haven't always been proud of it. But I served my country for six years. Not combat and I had not combat rolled. I didn't go in the Vietnam but I was in Okinawa. I was a writer in Okinawa. And I had some drama and drama around racism while in the military. And today a lot of that is surfacing up and triadveteransleague. That's the organization that I formed in 1997. I was in an MCI Northfolk and I formed a veterans group up there for disabled veterans.

33:02You know guys was doing forever. I had military service trying to get them recognized in some way. Because that's what I do. On November 5th, 2026, November 5th. At the strand theory, you know where the strand is up on Columbia Road 543. Columbia Road, November 5th. We're doing a project called Beyond the Uniform Initiative. Beyond the Uniform Initiative is to acknowledge people that have gone into the military and serve their country and came out still ready to do some things in the community. You know like mentoring, creating programs to help people with their social and interpersonal development skills

34:09and just build a presence of veterans helping after they get out the military. They still doing things using their military experience and their education to come into the community. And help heal the wounded. Not just the veterans because like you heard brother Archie say, I mean brothers, Devon say that he works with young people that have been exposed to violence. He came from the streets where there's latens and latens and latens of violence. All kind of violence. See violence has all different kind of shapes, you know. It's not just somebody shooting somebody or stabbing somebody. It's premeditated hate that manifests as physical force and it hurts people. And the people that perpetrated are hurt but they don't know it because they're not dealing with those things.

35:14That's what many of them like racism is easy to identify or associate that we need to really pay attention to. And when we communicate with each other especially these young people, you have to learn how to not use these ethnic slurs and the inward and all of that and think that a person being called like is comfortable with that. You got to learn how to communicate. So we have the CUDA literacy learning project which is my books, you know, the CUDA books. We're working on that, trying to get them in the school. So I'm so happy, you know, that my nephew is here today and he's talking about the young men that's out there selling that book. Maybe, maybe, maybe, you know, things happen. When it then might come up and say I'm writing a book. That's right.

36:14We don't give up on ourselves. We encourage our young people and that's what he was talking about today. You know, so November 5, 2026 is to honor some veterans, male and female that are involved in the community but were once in uniform. We are looking at building a voice for changing how we treat our veterans and how we must treat ourselves. That's all we're not trying to do nothing, you know, fancy like grow up on the Empire State Building jump off in the parachute. You know, that's the, no. We're talking about doing back work without young people. We're talking about building relationships with the parents and the community. We're talking about giving kids HOPE and not DOPE. That's right. You know, I see them, you know, these politicians, some of them, you know, I'm going to need to call their names that are now, you know, their own liquor stores and selling weed and all that once they pass that law, man.

37:22See, these kids today, they know when you're livin' or when you're jiving. They don't say nothing, they just look at you. And when this brother told them what he was doing and offered his children how they took her doing, we need mentors. We need mentors. That's what he's doing. What's that number again? Again, again, get in touch with you, bro. The number to get in touch with me directly is... They can call... 508-857-9271. Oh, we got to get in touch with you. I'm gonna say it again because there's mothers in our community right now. Right now. You know, I'm looking for safe, secure, structured, and positive outlets for their young children.

38:24I am a resource. I am a positive outlet for your son. So you can reach me at 508-857-9271. My non-profit organization is called Not On My Watch Mentoring Incorporated. Give me back, give me back, give me back. You know, we gotta get you back on. To indeed. We gotta get you back on. But let me just, you know, we're doing some stuff folks out here, you know. I'm looking at that day. I thought I was gonna be on time because I thought I didn't know where I was going, but sure enough, God is in charge. He put me right over there in time to go into that room and see them people. I went in that room to see them people. I didn't know what I was gonna say for this brother, but I know that I would say something that would be profound.

39:26Because that's how God works. When you out here and God directed, then you know that, you know, always say what you think He was gonna say, but what you say will be heard. And I spoke. I spoke. And I was heard. I was heard. And I'm grateful to God for giving me that voice. To say the truth. I lied so much one time. It was a shame. But I was in the streets. That's right. And the streets are alive. Yeah. And they took everything from me. Everything. So I thought. When this man wrote me and told me what he was trying to do, I got it. I got to get involved. I had a man that came into my life on Austin, incarcerated.

40:29And I'm gonna call his name on this program right now. This man had a record as long as I'm here to Brooklyn, New York. Stick up, man. And he changed his life. He did exactly what my nephew did. He saw the program in the prison. His name. And the name of his program. Was just today, today, and tomorrow. And his name Stanley Jones. And I honor him by keeping up the research. What's going on? Why we don't have more housing for those that are coming out. And for me, incarceration. And inspire people to understand that without people like Stanley Jones, glory of Fox, the late glory of Fox State Representative, glory of Fox.

41:31I asked the people, mention glory of Fox, missing the needs to reform. Cory, get rid of it. I said to the district attorney, Kevin Hayden, before he was running, not this last time, but the first time. So he wanted to talk about the Cory Law. He said, oh, yeah, oh, yeah. He went through his whole term, and he never did it. Then I saw him again. And you know, like, nephew, he was like, I was his old friend. And I said, man, we didn't get that conversation. We didn't get that conversation, man. See, I can't play with them because we're losing time here now. If this brother here was not out doing his program about the streets, and he got those young people involved in this program, they would be lost in the sauce. And I would like to tell everybody, go see some of the work that's done in our inner city communities.

42:31Go see it. There's youth being mentored. There's youth being directed. There's youth being guided. And it's being done by individuals and our community who really care. But like you, my brother, I always ask the question, where's the village at? Because I read your Cuda books. And Cuda came up in a village. He was around people who loved him, who cared about him. And they shared with him the wisdom. Today, our youth are roaming and strengthening streets in the darkness, as I was with no wisdom. Thank you for your time, folks, for listening to the Von McNeil. He's a real deal.

43:31Hopefully, come back. It's gone. It's just a more progress. Sure indeed, brother. God bless you and thanks again for coming. Bye-bye. Peace.