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Hooked: The Legend
of Demetrius 'Hook'
Mitchell
A
Documentary by
Michael Skolnik and William O'Neill
Screening, Sunday, June 15,
2003, 5:30 p.m.
San Francisco Black Film Festival
Gary Payton is one of the top point guards in
the NBA and arguably one of the best of all time. He grew up
with Demetrius "Hook" Mitchell and says Hook is better
than he is. Jason Kidd and Brian Shaw agree. Yet, most of
the free world hasn't heard of this mythic figure who only
stands five feet nine inches because as legendary as he was on
the court, problems off the court derailed his trip to
immortality and landed him behind bars. This is his story.
Hook's compelling story is told through the
lens of filmmakers Michael Skolnik and William O'Neill. Their
film made its world premiere at The 2003 Tribeca Film
Festival.
The San Francisco Black Film Festival presents
the West Coast Premiere Hooked: The Legend of Demetrius
'Hook' Mitchell.
A native of West Oakland, CA, Demetrius
"Hook" Mitchell is said to be one of the
greatest basketball players never to make it to the NBA.
At just 5"9', he built his legendary street status by slam
dunking over any obstacle he could conquer, most notably over
the top of a Volkswagen. But, it seems, the one obstacle
Hook could never overcome was the street itself. His dream
was to play basketball in the NBA, but since 1999, Hook's been
playing in prison.
Born on September 11, 1968, Hook's parents,
both drug addicts, abandoned him soon after his birth.
While his grandmother did her best to raise him, she couldn't
stop the ever-present pull of drugs and crime that permeated the
streets of West Oakland. By age 10, Hook was smoking
marijuana, at 12 he was snorting powder cocaine and by 17 he was
snorting heroin. Neighborhood drug dealers took notice,
taking care of Hook's
addiction in exchange for entertaining them with his spectacular
dunks.
Oakland is the birthplace to more NBA
basketball stars than any other city in the country. Hook
attended McClymonds High School with Antonio Davis where,
together, they ruled the home court. Across town at the
rival Skyline High, Gary Payton was a favorite. Davis,
Payton and other Oakland natives such as Jason Kidd, Brian Shaw,
J.R. Rider and Greg Foster all ascended to illustrious NBA
careers; Hook sank deeper into his addiction. He never
graduated high school but, astonishingly, Hook ended up as the
star player for two different Junior College teams. The
schools forged Hook's high school transcripts (he never even enrolled in junior college classes) and, as always, Hook
got special treatment as a result of his unparalleled athletic
talent. Hook, his abilities and his habits were exploited
over and over by schools and drug dealers alike.
On December 27, 1999 Hook was arrested
for armed robbery. He agreed to a plea bargain, forgoing
trial, and was sentenced to a reduced term of five years with no
less than 85% time served. Hook is now clean and sober.
He's been transferred to Konocti Correctional Facility, a
low-level institution without walls in Lower Lake, CA, and will
be released in 2004.
His ability on the court made him a
basketball star, even where his choices made him just another
number, another would-be gone wrong. His childhood
friends, many heroes themselves now, still talk about him-his
renowned slam-dunks, his undeniable prowess and his raw,
uninhibited talent-proving that even today, Hook Mitchell is
still a playground
legend.
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Sex at the Margins
Migration, Labour Markets and the Rescue Industry
By Laura María Agustín
This book explodes several myths: that selling sex is completely different from any other kind of work, that migrants who sell sex are passive victims and that the multitude of people out to save them are without self-interest. Laura Agustín makes a passionate case against these stereotypes, arguing that the label 'trafficked' does not accurately describe migrants' lives and that the 'rescue industry' serves to disempower them. Based on extensive research amongst both migrants who sell sex and social helpers, Sex at the Margins provides a radically different analysis. Frequently, says Agustin, migrants make rational choices to travel and work in the sex industry, and although they are treated like a marginalised group they form part of the dynamic global economy. Both powerful and controversial, this book is essential reading for all those who want to understand the increasingly important relationship between sex markets, migration and the desire for social justice. "Sex at the Margins rips apart distinctions between migrants, service work and sexual labour and reveals the utter complexity of the contemporary sex industry. This book is set to be a trailblazer in the study of sexuality."—Lisa Adkins, University of London |
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Debt: The First 5,000 Years
By David Graeber
Before there was money, there was debt. Every economics textbook says the same thing: Money was invented to replace onerous and complicated barter systems—to relieve ancient people from having to haul their goods to market. The problem with this version of history? There’s not a shred of evidence to support it. Here anthropologist David Graeber presents a stunning reversal of conventional wisdom. He shows that for more than 5,000 years, since the beginnings of the first agrarian empires, humans have used elaborate credit systems to buy and sell goods—that is, long before the invention of coins or cash. It is in this era, Graeber argues, that we also first encounter a society divided into debtors and creditors. Graeber shows that arguments about debt and debt forgiveness have been at the center of political debates from Italy to China, as well as sparking innumerable insurrections. He also brilliantly demonstrates that the language of the ancient works of law and religion (words like “guilt,” “sin,” and “redemption”) derive in large part from ancient debates about debt, and shape even our most basic ideas of right and wrong. We are still fighting these battles today without knowing it. Debt: The First 5,000 Years is a fascinating chronicle of this little known history—as well as how it has defined human history, and what it means for the credit crisis of the present day and the future of our economy. Economist Glenn Loury /Criminalizing a Race
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update 6 August 2008
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