Brownsville!

A good friend and I have had this stupid idea of visiting Brownsville New York. (We also want to go to Tennessee. We have the oddest travel ambitions) Brownsville is the home of perpetually angry duo MOP, a 90’s rap group most famous for Ante Up. Either way the stories that they recounted made it seem as if it was a metropolitan Baghdad. During the middle of desert storm. I asked my older brother who lived in Brooklyn whether I could visit, he said no. End of discussion.

Either way here is a quote from Unkut’s guide to the most notorious projects in hip hop.

“Northeast Brooklyn was the location of 765 murders in 1990, while 2007 saw it reduced to 212. Since the locals have adopted LA-style gangs, the Brownsville and Tilden Houses’ Bloods have been at war with the Crips across the street at Marcus Garvey projects, and the murder rate is on the rise again.”

Maybe i shouldn't book that flight yet. Then again.

"According to the New York Post, in January 2008, a “meathead thief shoved seven salamis into his trousers and up his sleeves at the Western Beef on East New York Avenue in Brownsville.” When the assistant manager confronted him, he was “slugged in the face” before other customers grabbed the thief and held him down until the cops arrived at the scene. It’s unclear what became of the recovered salamis."