By Michael Morton
Only this time, the message came from two convicted neighborhood kingpins, not a parent, a teacher or an actor on television.”We don't want to see you go down the same road we went down,” said Todd Feurtado, who with his brother Lance have admitted to running a drug ring in the 1970s known as the Seven Crowns, although they said the crimes they were later sent to prison for occurred after they retired from the trade. “You might say it couldn't happen to you. Wrong answer-it could.”The Feurtados gave their warning during the debut of a new campaign seeking to use the hip-hop culture in a positive manner in order to stop drugs, gang violence and the spread of HIV/AIDS. The campaign, a joint effort between the southeast Queens-based non-profit organizations Hip-Hop Summit Youth Council and the King of Kings Foundation, kicked off at the High School for Law Enforcement and Public Safety at 116-25 Guy R. Brewer Blvd. The event featured a coalition of police officers, hip-hop performers and convicted drug felons trying to turn their lives around as well as community role models from the business and political worlds.”We're doing something a little different,” said Charles Fisher, creator and chairman of the Youth Council and a co-founder, with Lance Feurtado, of the King of Kings Foundation. “We're using street knowledge to get to college.”Fisher and his son, Youth Council Executive Director Randy Fisher, chose Friday to introduce the initiative so it fell within Black History Month, and selected the Guy R. Brewer Boulevard high school because of its proximity to public housing developments and its unique programs. The building is equipped with mock courtrooms and special crime labs, and students can take classes in law and forensics.”What you have at your disposal is something beautiful,” Todd Feurtado said.In addition to the Feurtados, the program's panelists included Andre Williams, a police officer assigned by NYPD headquarters to handle community affairs in the borough; Marilyn Artis, a columnist and motivational speaker from southeast Queens; Anthony Papa, an artist and low-level offender from the Bronx sent to prison under the Rockefeller drug laws; Paul Saint , a community member left paralyzed by gunfire during a drug shoot-out; and Donovan Richards a staff member in the district office of City Councilman James Sanders Jr. (D-Laurelton). Afterwards, students were treated to a performance by Daetrius Craig, an 11-year-old up-and-coming rapper from Atlanta known as Nnocent who is trying to give hip-hop a positive spin.Each speaker addressed questions from the audience and will visit the school regularly to help mentor its 400 students. Once the program is established at the school, the Fishers and the Feurtados hope to expand it to other schools in the borough and eventually set it up on a national level. The Feurtados would travel around from school to school, but the other speakers and performers would vary by city.”Through this project we want to help young people across the country, especially those that are at-risk, better understand how to address some of the problems they are confronted with daily,” Randy Fisher said. Unlike the scared-straight efforts of the past, the new program seeks to make the message more personal and realistic.Still, during a question-and-answer session at the event, some students appeared to be wary of more adults lecturing them on drugs and violence. The Feurtado brothers quickly challenged their skepticism.”I put the drugs in your hand,” Lance Feurtado said, comparing his audience to students back in the day. “I put the gun in your friend's hand. Your mom can't give you this. This is reality.””No one took the time,” Todd Feurtado added, referring to a lack of warning from those who knew better. “That's why it's been placed on our hearts.” The Feurtados will soon issue an anti-drugs DVD entitled “The King of Kings” that will describe their lives.Among the students, 14-year-old Tyleek Parker of St. Albans said he thought the approach was effective.”When these types of things come from our parents we really don't listen,” he said.Principal Diahann Malcolm expressed confidence that the program would help students stay on track and graduate.”They delivered a very powerful message,” she said. Combined with the mentoring visits, “They'll get out of here on time. They'll get the message.”Reach reporter Michael Morton by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 154.
