Shakedown by Abdul-Malik Muhammad

Shakedown by Abdul-Malik Muhammad 2/25/20

Characters: Col. Bill: African American, late 60's - early 70's. An Army Air Corps Veteran, wounded in action, now suffering from urban PTSD. He's serving a natural life sentence in prison.

D.C.: African American, 30's. Someone who's battling with being old – the only black guy who loves hard rock, and don't enjoy rap music. Since he's light-skinned, he acts white and can't believe he's in prison.

The Wolf Pack: African Americans, except for one white boy who everyone calls "White Chocolate." Ages 27 - 30. Easily influenced by rap music, and very misunderstood.

B-way: The leader of the Wolf Pack.

Orange Crush: Tactical Security Unit - that consists of majority of Southern, white males. They go from joint to joint, shaking down the entire compound.

Commander Baker: The leader of Orange Crush.

Place: Stateville Correctional Center, the home of all the cold-blooded rapists, killers, and thieves. Where people lie about everything, such as, how many females they tap, how much money they had, what type of car they drove, to how many people they killed and what they’re locked up for.

Yes, people in prison, especially here at Stateville, lie about what they were charged with.

Stateville is truly a lost population of men, who often brag about what joint they’ve been to, similar to how a person would brag about what college they went to. It’s a place where men are often seen, but rarely heard – for a multitude of reasons. This lost population of men account for and make up an absentee segment of society, and Stateville only serves as storage space for warehousing society’s outcasts – young, poor and uneducated men, who are coping with abandonment issues. Some have managed to keep their heads above water much better than others. But to understand the heart of the problem, you must understand this cycle of poverty and racism that fosters in them negative images and social stereotypes that they feel compelled to live up to. This is the main reason why Shakedowns are important tools to continue to oppress and control those in custody by the vestiges of Jim Crow. These men were forced to turn to the streets to survive and when they found themselves lacking better options, they relied on instinct and social survival skills to help them navigate the streets. Which landed them – here – STATEVILLE!

At rise: The wee hours of the morning. A cell at Stateville. It is criss-crossed with clothes lines on which hang wet clothes. The four walls of the cell stare back at its inhabitants, trapping their rage and violence.

Col. Bill and D.C., the cell’s occupants, are asleep.

Offstage, we hear B-way, leader of the “Wolf Pack” shouting.

B-WAY (Off.) Check your water! They turn the water OFF! (Other voices from other cells respond. This is The Wolf Pack.)

THE WOLF PACK (Off.) Water off!

The water been turn off!

2/25/20

2.

COL. BILL

(Jumps up.)

Got Damn! Them people coming – on a Sunday morning – got damn – where am I going to hang all my we clothes now.

(Yells at D.C.) Cellie get your ass up! Them people on their way.

D.C. (East St. Louis slang.)

What you say, Dirty?

COL. BILL Them people coming.

D.C. Fo’ real Dirty.

COL. BILL Get your fat ass up and get square away. Get your shit together, help me take down some of them clothing lines.

D.C. Don’t be bullshitting, because every time you talk like you back in the military, you be on bullshit.

COL. BILL I wouldn’t shit you for the world. You are my best turd – so, therefore, this isn’t a drill.

This the real thang. So get square away, take down them pictures off the wall.

(D.C. studies the picture that is taped to the wall. It is an obituary with a photo.)

D.C. That’s a picture of my mother. Why I have to take it down, Dirty.

COL. BILL This ain’t no drill, D.C., this the real thang. Put all your shit away you want to keep.

(Yells.)

All hands on deck! All boots on the ground! Get moving around, this the real thang!

Them people is on their way!

D.C. I can’t believe this. I was just sleeping so good. Well as good as I could in this bitch!

COL. BILL Nothing come to a sleeper but a dream anyway. You can sleep better when you dead.

2/25/20

3.

D.C.

Huh? COL. BILL Get your fat ass out that bunk – the water is off.

D.C. How I’m going to brush my teeth?

COL. BILL (Laughing.)

You can’t – (From off, we hear the chanting of Orange Crush – the Tactical Security Unit. The chanting grows louder as they approach.)

ORANGE CRUSH Everywhere we go – Oh, People want to know, Who we are, Where we come from.

We are Orange Crush.

The mighty, mighty Orange Crush.

(They repeat the last two lines over and over as they approach.)

B-WAY (Off.) Orange Crush in the building!

COL. BILL You heard that, Cellie. These bitches here already. Watch your six.

D.C. Huh? COL. BILL If you can “huh” you can hear. Watch your six.

THE WOLF PACK (Off.) Orange Crush in the building!

2/25/20

4.

COL. BILL Get your ass out the bed, the enemy is upon us. You isn’t no good to me in the bunk.

You are better off playing dead.

D.C. You shouldn’t wish death on people, Dirty. I wouldn’t do that to you.

COL. BILL That bunk is your coffin. The only think they need to do is throw some dirt on you.

D.C. (Laughing.)

Huh? COL. BILL Today isn’t a day for kicks and giggles. In a few minutes, they will be throwing handcuffs and shackles on us.

D.C. You playing or are you serious?

COL. BILL You’ll see!

D.C. Move out the way, Cellie, so I can get my shit in order.

COL. BILL Already got rid of everything. But you need to take down that obituary if you don’t want them dirt farmers to take it.

(D.C. jumps down from the top bunk, ripping down his clothing lines. But he ignores the advice to take down his mom’s obituary on the wall next to his pillows.)

(Col. Bill has already gotten rid of everything that the administration might consider to be contraband. Today is D.C.’s first Orange Crush Shakedown, but for Col. Bill, it’s just a normal day. Always remain two steps ahead – since the first time he got shakedown 29 years ago.)

B-WAY (Off. Shouts.)

They got them mucks with them.

2/25/20

5.

THE WOLF PACK

They brung them dogs!

Damn - they got them dogs!

D.C. I don’t think I got anything else to square away, Dirty?

COL. BILL Remember what STOP means: Stop, Think, Observe, and Plan. Don’t panic, slow down.

D.C. I’m not worry. I just got here!

COL. BILL What you planning on doing with them kites under your bunk?

D.C. What kites?

COL. BILL That junk them knuckleheads who call themselves gang bangers gave you to learn. But they rather gang bang against each other instead of bang the gang that’s coming in here tearing shit up.

D.C. You been under my bunk?

COL. BILL I think with all my senses. I know everything about this room.

D.C. Huh, room? You mean this “cell.”

(Col. Bill eats the kites.)

COL. BILL Don’t worry about the kites. They gone!

D.C. What did you do with them?

COL. BILL (Laughing.)

I ate them.

D.C. You ate them.

2/25/20

6.

COL. BILL Yeah, cuz you wouldn’t have the presence of mind to eat it. You woulda ripped it up in tiny pieces and thrown it in the toilet without realizing the water’s shut off and all the people gotta do is put the kite back together.

It tasted like shit, too, if that makes you feel better.

D.C. Thanks.

COL. BILL It’s all good. Just don’t piss on my leg and tell me it’s rainy!

(He begins to strip down.)

D.C. What are you doing, Dirty?

COL. BILL To be aware, is to be alive. You have to always remain two steps ahead of your enemy.

They will force us to strip anyway.

B-WAY (Off. Yells.)

They coming on the gallery.

(Off, we hear dogs barking and batons rattle the bars.)

THE WOLF PACK (Off.) They coming up the stairs!

They are on three gallery!

They on five!

They going up on nine gallery!

(We hear the Orange Crush approaching.

They hit the cell bars with their batons and shout at The Wolf Pack.)

ORANGE CRUSH Lights on!

Turn your lights on!

I.D.s on the bars!

Face the wall!

Face the wall!

(The Commander enters, fully dressed in tactical gear.)

2/25/20

7.

COL. BILL

How’s everything, Officer?

COMMANDER (Without looking. Routine.)

Don’t speak unless you spoken to. Strip down, hand me everything out you going to wear out. You can’t have on no socks, no boxers, no T-shirts. Just your blues, blue top and bottom.

(Col. Bill clears his throat. The commander looks up and sees that Col. Bill is already standing at the door, naked.)

Holy shit! Just the blue uniform!

COL. BILL Here you go!

(He whispers to D.C.) You hear the man, look, listen and learn and do exactly what he says.

D.C. You know I’m paying close attention, Dirty!

COMMANDER Back there in the back! Stop talking, eyes to the wall.

D.C. It’s your world, Dirty. I’m just in it.

COMMANDER Shut your pot hole before I come in there and shut it for you.

(Off, we hear the Orange Crush performing cavity searches.)

ORANGE CRUSH (Off.) Bend at the waist.

Separate and lift.

Cough.

COMMANDER (Grinning.)

Bend at the waist.

(The lights fade.)

(In the dark we hear ...)

2/25/20

8.

COMMANDER Eyes down. Keep the line tight. No gaps. No talking. Head down. Now – move out.

COL. BILL Here we go.

END OF SCENE SCENE TWO (Lights up. D.C. and Col. Bill inspect the damage to their cell. ) D.C. These people are tripping. They had us in that chow hall, facing the wall for two hours.

(Sighs.)

Them dirt farmers.

(The Wolf Pack calls back and forth off stage.)

THE WOLF PACK (Off.) Everyone straight?

B-WAY (Off.) I’m straight. They didn’t hurt me.

WHITE CHOCOLATE (Off.) These bitch ass, hoe ass niggas fucked my shit up.

THE WOLF PACK (Off.) What happen, Joe?!

What they do?

Tell the lieutenant to come down here – they took my legal books.

They stole my commissary.

WHITE CHOCOLATE (Off.) Man, I bullshit you not. I don’t see my damn TV. THE WOLF PACK (Off.) What the fuck. That fucking dog took a shit on my bunk.

2/25/20

9.

What?

Its foot-prints on my bed sheets.

WHITE CHOCOLATE (Off.) Where’s my damn TV? D.C. Where’s my mother’s obituary? Where’s my – family pictures. They mean a lot to me – please give me back the only picture of my mom!

WOLF PACK (Off.) We need to see a lieutenant or a sergeant on nine gallery!

Look through your shit good.

Move some of your shit around.

Look in your legal correspondence box.

WHITE CHOCOLATE (Off.) I look already. I can’t find my shit.

D.C. You pussy, bitch ass hoe ass niggas threw away the only picture I have of my mama.

COL. BILL Be cool, Cellie. Watch your six.

D.C. Fuck that. It too damn late for all that. My mama dead.

COL. BILL Take cover!

D.C. What?

(He turns to see the Commander enter.)

COMMANDER Do we have a problem in here?

D.C. Hell yeah. One of your punk ass officers took the only picture I have of my mom.

COMMANDER Where did you last see it?

2/25/20

10.

D.C.

Right here, on my wall.

COMMANDER (Sighs.)

You will have to write a grievance because everything that was on the wall got thrown in the trash.

D.C. But it was a picture of my mom.

COMMANDER It doesn’t matter. It could have been a picture of Jesus.

(Beat. D.C. controls himself.)

D.C. Get me a lieutenant or sergeant up here.

COMMANDER Okay Son. D.C. I’m not your son.

COMMANDER I forgot. Your parents are dead. Or is it just your mother.

(A moment. Col. Bill shakes his head “no” in warning to D.C. D.C. regards him. Then he regards the Commander.)

D.C. Fuck you!

BLACKOUT END OF PLAY