Beyond the Block Ep.3 - 3400 Malcolm X Blvd

00:00 Hello. I'm gonna let y'all know where I'm from outside the village. Begin here in a part of south Dallas that unfortunately is no stranger to shootings. Police say the victims of mass shooting at a weekend party in south Dallas were not the intended targets. Ten people were shot in what police say was a shootout. The youngest victim, 15 years old. Another victim, an 18 year old, is in critical condition. Police say there were. What can you tell the people about this neighborhood? I mean, get some good size out this neighborhood. You can get some bad size about this neighborhood. It all depends on you. You know what I'm saying? But the neighborhood ain't nothing. It's a bad neighborhood. Get out there and do what you gotta do to get what you gotta get. Welcome my neighbor with number. Crackhead, dope dealer, prostitute imprint. Still gotta get the people to understand we is not violent, though. Yo, man, we not know. If you were described as someone who had never been to Dallas before, what would you say? I put it to you like this. It's the closest thing you can get to heaven without dying. We're talking about Malcolm X Boulevard in Hatcher street and a convenience store called Little World, where last night a woman was shot in the head. A man also shot in the side. I'm playing the game on my phone. I just feel the Wall street. He could hear the gunfire from his home blocks away. I was like, God, Lee. Like, it's not even so much a frustration. It's just like, sort of getting to the point of being overwhelmed. It's just like, damn, man. Another one.

01:53 This call is being recorded. Hello? Hi. Okay, can you hear me? Yes, I can hear you. How you doing? Shay Shay? I am good. How are you? I'm doing pretty good. Okay. Before we begin the interview, if you can describe the car wash, how would you describe it? Using my senses, with hearing, I would describe the car wash with loud music and laughter. There's always some great music going on. Laughter. While people are getting their car wash and getting food. With taste, I would describe it as maybe some good old southern barbecue. With smell. For me, it smells like home. It smells like my childhood. It smells like nostalgia. Okay. With touch, I would describe it as maybe a warm handshake or a nice big hug. Okay. Okay. So to start the interview, if you can state your name, your age, what part of Dallas, where are you from, and how long have you been there? My name is Roy Sann Caldwell. I go by Shay. Shay. I am 31 years old. I have lived in Sunnyside, Dallas, for most of my life, including now. Okay, what life lessons do you say you've learned living in south Dallas? Living in the hood can teach you a lot of survivor skills. We were taught how to make the best of everything even when you had nothing. I was taught to use school to my advantage so that I can make it out the hood. And you will also talk to help others when we can. Okay. If someone was to move to south Dallas, what advice would you give them? Advice I would give others assume that side Dallas is dangerous or a scary place. For me, side Dallas is my home. The advice I would give about Cuadellas is that we are a family. You can do anything you apply yourself to. South Dallas has produced doctors, lawyers, musicians, NFL players, NBA players, etcetera. Never limit yourself because of where you come from. Only you can decide where you're going. Okay. How's living in South Dallas shaped your mindset? If so, how? South Dallas has changed my mindset by teaching me how to hustle when you don't have much, you taught to do your best to find a safe way to make an income. At the age of ten, I began to braid hair. Braiding came natural because my entire family were braiders. By the age of eleven, I mastered my braiding craft. I began to make money doing my friend's hair. By doing so, adults started to book me for grades, and I began a lifelong hustle. When I was old enough to get a job, I did just that. By the time I was 20, I began a career working for a Fortune 500 company, making a pretty decent amount of money. Because the hustle that was instilled to me as a child, I would continue to hustle while doing the things I love. Yes, ma'am. Okay. What is a memory, mama, you carry with you being at the car wash? Memory of the car wash. I have a lot of memories. I got my first bike when I was six at the car wash, my mom a bike. I remember growing up assisting my brother washing the cars. Because my godfather owned the car wash. I would assist in washing cars. I would just remember happiness. I would remember anytime the kids, which was me at the time, we had anything going on, there was always full support from everybody. If you were selling candy, everybody bought some. If you were, you made good grades, everybody to give you something for being an exceptional student. I have plenty of great memories of the car wash. Okay. Do you think South Dallas is dangerous? No. Well, I mean, not to me. It can be dangerous, but not to me, I feel, because it's my home. Mm hmm. What do you love about south Dallas. There's a lot of history in south Dallas. My absolute favorite thing in south Dallas is my grandma's house. My grandma lived on Warren street, which is around the corner from the car wash and across the street from the historical Juanita craft house. And grandma's house just holds so many big memories for me and my entire. All of my family was raised there. One of my best memories would be my grandfather, Papa Willie. He would rake up the leaves in the backyard into a large pile and just let us go back there and have the time of our life jumping, flipping, rolling in an extremely large pile of leaves for hours. That's my best memory. Okay. Do you still live in south Dallas today? I do. I do. I live maybe 30 seconds away from my grandma's house. Okay, so to end the interview off, I would like to do a check up on everyone that I've interviewed. So how are you doing in life? I'm doing well. I'm doing well. I'm happy. I am still living here, home in south Dallas. I have my own house about 30 seconds from my grandmother. I'm raising my two year old daughter here in south Dallas, and she loves to walk the streets and go to the parks I went to as a child and just discovered. So, yeah, I would say life is good. All right, thank you, Shayshay. I'm going to hang up and call you back on regular, but thank you. You did so good. No problem.