Nelson Beats The Odds

To deal with police brutality towards black teens and adults requires building higher level of social awareness, as well as telling youngsters how to understand and behave safely and reasonably in such situations. “Rest in Peace RaShawn Reloaded”, revised version of its previous version released in April, adds new material in the form of five pages a cover. The comic book has been illustrated by Traci Van Wagoner, designed by Kurt Keller, edited by Tiffany Carey Day, Francesca Lyn and Samantha Willis, and has contributions from Laurence Jones and Steve Silverman.

“Rest in Peace RaShawn Reloaded” tells the graphic story of a black teenager shot and killed by a police officer who mistakes his airsoft toy gun for real. This narrative is all too common in America, and the novel brings home the fact that a young, innocent life was snuffed out too soon.

“Our young people are being traumatized daily by directly experiencing violence, or viewing violent videos of men, women, and children being killed by private citizens or police officers. My hope is that “Rest in Peace RaShawn Reloaded” gives young people a platform to process police-involved shootings, gangs, and grief. As adults, it’s essential that we’re physically and emotionally available to help our young people through these processes,” said Ronnie Sidney, II, LCSW.

The cover of “Rest in Peace RaShawn Reloaded” has been inspired by the National Football League (NFL) protests led by Colin Kaepernick, and honors Eric Reid, Seth DeValve, and Michael Bennett and all those who voiced their opposition to injustice and social oppression.

Author Ronnie Sidney, II, LCSW is a therapist, entrepreneur, app developer, professional speaker, author, consultant, workshop presenter and literary activist. Through Creative Medicine: Healing Through Words, he has facilitated expressive writing programs since June 2014. The earlier publications include “Nelson Beats the Odds” and “Tameka’s New Dress”, which inculcate love for reading as well as open up conversations  around the mistrust between the African- American communities and the police.

“Rest in Peace RaShawn Reloaded” will be launched on November 11, 2017, and will be available from Amazon.com, Walmart.com, Barnesandnoble.com, Booksamillion.com, Createspace.com, in paperback, hardcover, and as an eBook.

About Creative Medicine: Healing Through Words LLC

Creative Medicine: Healing Through Words has been facilitating expressive writing programs since June 2014. The program served adult male offenders at the Northern Neck Regional Jail in Warsaw, Virginia. Creative Medicine: Healing Through Words, LLC (CMHTW) was founded by Ronnie Nelson Sidney, II, LCSW. Our mission is to improve participants’ social, emotional and physical health outcomes through therapeutic writing and dialogue. We envision a world where people will use therapeutic writing and dialogue as tools to restore hope and heal wounds. We offer professional speaking, workshops, book publishing, and consultation services.

For more information, please visit: www.creative-medicine.com

Media Contact Company Name: Healing Through Words, LLC Contact Person: Ronnie N. Sidney, II, LCSW Email: [email protected] Phone: 804-833-4171 Address:PO Box 2749 City: Tappahannock State: VA 22560 Country: United States Website: http://www.creative-medicine.com/ Information contained on this page is provided by an independent third-party content provider. Frankly and this Site make no warranties or representations in connection therewith. If you are affiliated with this page and would like it removed please contact [email protected]

Local author hosts the launch of his new book “Rest in Peace RaShawn”

By Donna Jackson, Northern Neck News

Why are you proud of being Black started the discussion and what motivates you when you wake up each morning was the final question moderator, Elsie Delva-Smith asked at a panel discussion held at Essex High School, Friday, May 5. They are just two examples of the thought-provoking questions asked that evening. At times panelists grappled with answering…

Critically Acclaimed Novels Help Young Adults Explore Race and Police Brutality

15-year-old Jordan Edwards is the latest victim of systematic racism and police brutality in America. Edwards, who was described as a “loving child with a humble and sharing spirit,” was a straight-A student and standout athlete at Mesquite High School. On Saturday, April 29, 2017, Balch Springs police officer Roy Oliver arrives at a party after gunfire erupts. As Edwards and his brothers were…

Author-Therapist Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW, works as a therapist for court-involved youth in Warsaw, Virginia. Rest in Peace RaShawn completes a trinity of quality young adult literature by Sidney, including the first books in his series Nelson Beats The Odds, Tameka’s New Dress, and Nelson Beats the Odds: Compendium One. All three inspire confidence in children, especially children of color, and encourage a fondness for reading and a heightened level of social awareness; Sidney’s stories equip kids with a broader understanding of America’s current culture and climate.

Illustrator Traci Van Wagoner paired with Sidney on their fourth joint project. Rest in Peace RaShawn is a bleak story aimed at teenage readers. “I really wanted to illustrate the grief, the anger and the rage that people of color are feeling,” Sidney says. And, he adds, “I really think that this book can keep that conversation going.”

Sidney, works as a therapist for court-involved youth in Warsaw, VA. Rest in Peace RaShawn tells the story of a young football player, the golden child of his family, who dies in a police-involved shooting. His younger brother, Jeremy, finds an outlet for his anger in joining a local gang.

  “I was inspired to write Rest in Peace RaShawn in the aftermath of Tamir Rice’s death,” says Sidney. He adds, “I love children, so to see one gunned down like that made me sick to my stomach.”

Sidney is well aware of the racial disparities that exist in the criminal justice system. In 2013, Sidney presented “Liberty and Justice for All? Examining the Untold Trayvon Martin Stories” at Virginia Commonwealth University. The presentation examined the lives of nearly a dozen unarmed African-American and Hispanic teenagers who were killed by vigilantes or police officers.

  Rest in Peace RaShawn captures the emotional upheaval suffered by families and communities nationwide following the sudden, violent demise of black men. Sidney presents the violence and suffering in a sensitive, easy-to-understand and age-appropriate format for kids. This book is a good way to broach the painful but necessary conversations families across the nation are having with their children.

Sidney’s latest book provides thoughtful discussion points on how to heal the legacy of distrust between African- American communities and the police. Over the summer Sidney met with a diverse group of young men at a Virginia academy and asked them to answer the following questions: What solutions do you think will bridge the divide between communities of color and the criminal justice system? What are your opinions on the recent officer-involved shootings? What is it like to be Black or Hispanic today? The answers to those questions are littered throughout Rest in Peace RaShawn and give a real voice to a fictional story.

“It was really important for me to give young people a platform to process what they’ve been experiencing and seeing on the news,” says Sidney. The Tappahannock native offered a workshop to a group of teenagers in Portsmouth, Virginia. The city was grieving the death of William L. Chapman II, an 18-year-old man, who was shot and killed in a Walmart parking lot by Officer Stephen D. Rankin. During the workshop 16-year-old Lawrence Jones penned an essay that Sidney included in Rest in Peace Rashawn. Below is a snippet of Lawrence’s essay:

“It’s a cold world. Where are the love and peace? It seems like life is on repeat. Dude had a toy gun and they still shot him. It seems like what Dr. King fought for doesn’t even matter, they still want to see our blood splattered. It seems like if we talk, we get a bullet. It makes me think about what to do in life. Do I need to carry a gun?

Junior editors Dion Allen, Jamal Ball, Christian Brown, Diojé Ellis, Tiojé Ellis, Ricardo Henson, Terrell Hundley, Tamaje Jones, and Isaiah Taylor helped Sidney design a story that young people would relate to. Sidney partnered with Essex High School principal Patrick Doyle assemble the group. “What made the experience even more special was that the kids attended the same school I attended as a youth,” says Sidney.

“My hope is that readers will have courageous conversations about gun violence and the racial disparities that exist in our criminal justice system,” says Sidney. He adds, “People of all races standing in solidarity together is the only way we can prevent the extrajudicial killings of unarmed Black teens in America”.

Rest in Peace RaShawn is currently available on Amazon, Createspace and Kindle.

About: Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW is an author (Nelson Beats The Odds, Tameka’s New Dress, Rest in Peace RaShawn, Nelson Beats the Odds: Compendium One), publisher, therapist, app developer , philanthropist and literary activist. Sidney also created a free mobile app, the “Nelson Beats The Odds Comic Creator” that allows users to add their face to the illustrations, create photo collages with accessories like a cap and gown, and share their own stories. For inquiries email us at [email protected] or visit http://www.creative-medicine.com.

Dear NAACP Image Awards, Give Me an Explanation or My Money Back

My name is Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW and I’m a self-published author out of Tappahannock, Virginia. On October 24, 2016, I received this email from Malica McLyn, Literary Coordinator at the NAACP Image Awards:

I was so excited, the first thing I did was post the email on Facebook. It received a ton of likes and support from my Facebook friends. I spoke with Malica over the phone and decided to…

Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW was inspired to tell the story behind Tameka’s beautiful dress by his daughters. “My daughter Mali feels like a queen every time she puts on a new dress,” explains Ronnie, “It transforms her, all she wants to do is smile and twirl around in circles.”

Tameka’s New Dress is a visual tale of loss, hope, and female empowerment. Tameka’s dress is her cloak, an impenetrable force field that shields her from past trauma and bullying. The dress gives Tameka the ability to love unconditionally without the fear of being hurt.

Tameka, a gifted Kemet Middle School student, is accused of pushing another student in the hallway. When Mrs. Lopez, Tameka’s principal, mentions to Tameka that she may be suspended, Tameka starts to panic. Tameka’s fear stems from the abuse and neglect she experiences at home. Inside the home Tameka’s step-father disrespects her body, her mother fails to protect her, and both parents neglect Tameka and her siblings.

One of Traci Van Wagoner most aesthetically pleasing illustrations show Tameka holding the fabric for her new dress, visualizing herself as warrior queens Nefertiti, Nzinga and Nandi. Tameka’s grandmother uses the African wax cloth to sew her a new dress after she comes home from school crying. Tameka’s grandmother, a true alchemist, turns lemons into lemonade by comforting Tameka with a new dress.

Throughout Tameka’s New Dress you will find references to Queen Nefertiti. Queen Nefertiti is the wife of the of one of the most famous pharaohs of acient Kemet, Akhenaten. The two began a religious revolution in Kemet, or Ancient Egypt, that influenced contemporary religions like Christianity and Judaism. After Nefertiti’s husband died, scholars believe she ruled Kemet as Neferneferuaten.

On the very next page is an illustration symbolizing the rising of a phoenix. In Kemet, or Ancient Egypt, the phoenix originated as the Bennu. Greek historian, Herodotus, said the Bennu came from Arabia every 500 years. Before the phoenix dies, it builds a nest of cinnamon twigs, lays down it and dies. A new phoenix rises out of the ashes, able to regenerate when injured by a foe. Tameka embraces her African roots and her transformation into a phoenix symbolizes her overcoming past trauma.

Colorism

Sidney hopes Tameka’s New Dress will help lift the ugly curse of colorism. “I want girls of color to know that it’s our shared history that unites us, not our complexion,” says Sidney. Tameka’s New Dress pays homage to Beyonce by including a line from “Sorry”. Mesha, the book’s antagonist, bullies Tameka because she is a new student and is light-skinned. After class, Mesha approaches Tameka and says, “You must be the new girl! Hey, light bright! You must think you’re cute like Becky with the good hair!”

Tameka’s New Dress features a quote from Barbadian recording artist Rihanna, who spoke candidly about her experience being picked on in school because of her complexion. Sidney grew up not to far from the Johnville plantation, a place where his great grandparents were enslaved and literally worked to death. “Light-skinned vs. dark-skinned was alive and well when I went through school. I didn’t realize how divisive it was until I read the Willie Lynch papers in college,” says Sidney.

Rebecca Knight, one of Sidney’s former classmates, submitted the book’s foreword. Her first hand account with colorism made the political personal. In the foreward she writes:

Tameka’s New Dress, resonated with me and I know it will for many others. Like Tameka, I have been persecuted for being a fair-complexioned, Black girl with “good hair”…despite the many successes of African-Americans, society equates being Black with being inferior. It’s sad. As a Black, educated, articulate, professional and driven female, I cannot and will not subscribe to these stereotypes. I believe in and pledge my life to Black excellence.

  Bullying

“When I heard about what happened to Amy Francis-Joyner  on the news, I thought it was eerily similar to Tameka’s story,” says Sidney, “I decided to dedicate my book to Amy’s memory because she did not deserve what happened to her.”

On Tameka’s first day at her new school she is harassed by three bullies. Initially, Tameka runs home crying after being tormented by her bullies. The book’s ending teaches young people how to mange conflicts verbally. “Violence should always be the last alternative, not the first,” says Sidney.

What happened on April 21, 2016 was a tragedy; Amy Francis-Joyner lost her young life and Trinity Carr’s life will forever be altered. “Hurt people hurt people,” says Ronnie, “My hope is that Tameka’s New Dress will inspire girls to find beauty inside themselves and others.”

Grandfamilies

  A 2012 United States Census Bureau survey found that 10 percent of all children in the United States lived with a grandparent. Of children living with their grandparent, aged 18 years and younger, an estimated 2.7 million grandparents were the primary caregivers for the children. Compared to other ethnic groups, African-American children are more often raised primarily by a grandparent. According to a Pew Research Center report, African-American children are twice as likely to live below the poverty line compared to children whose grandparents are not primary caregivers.

Author-Therapist Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW believes grandparents raising their grandchildren is on the rise. “I’m seeing more and more families where the grandparents are the primary caregivers. Grandparents of color face a number of challenges such as poor health, poverty and a lack of access to critical resources,” says Sidney. Sidney’s experience working with families headed by grandparents encouraged him to author and self-publish Tameka’s New Dress. “When young people read Tameka’s New Dress they will find characters and experiences they can relate to,” explains Ronnie.

Tameka’s New Dress features the author’s sister, Cherlanda Sidney-Ross, a former social worker and Family Services Supervisor. Mrs. Ross is contacted by Tameka’s guidance counselor and asked to investigate allegations of abuse and neglect. The social worker removes Tameka and her brothers from their chaotic home environment and places them in the care of their grandmother.

“My sister has always been a role model of mine. I credit her with inspiring me to enroll in Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Social Work and pursue my Master of Social Work degree,” said Ronnie. He wanted to honor his sister and the thousands of other child welfare workers advocating for children every day.

Tameka’s story celebrates diversity and visually empowers readers. Tameka’s New Dress gives girls of color new-found confidence.

About the author: Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW is a therapist, author and business owner. He is the author of Nelson Beats The Odds, Tameka’s New Dress, and Nelson Beats the Odds: Compendium One. With the help of Protenza Global Solutions, Sidney developed the Nelson Beats The Odds Comic Creator app . For inquiries, email him at [email protected]. Please visit his website at www.creative-medicine.com for more information.

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I didn’t know he went by “C-Syzle”, even though we rode on the same school bus to school in the mornings. Chris and his family attended a church my father pastored at for over 20 years. I saw Chris at least six days a week, so you can only imagine how surprised I was to see him on television as a teenager. I remember watching the “Run It” video at Old Dominion University like, “yoooo, that’s Chris Brown!” Chris had star power since Kindergarten. The older kids on the school bus would practically beg him to sing Candy Rain by Soul For Real every single day. We would also ask him to do Michael Jackson and Usher Raymond impressions. 

My fiance is a few years younger than me so there were photos of Chris in her old yearbooks. I was shocked to see how tall he grew- the Chris Brown I remember was a short, curly haired kid. His older cousin was in my grade, the two were inseparable.

Not only was Chris a great singer and performer, he was also a really good basketball player. I remember him wooing the crowd with back flips and Harlem shakes during half time of varsity basketball games. A lot of folks back home said he could have easily went D-1 if he pursued basketball instead of a music career.

Not many people make it big from Tappahannock, so it’s been amazing watching you grow Chris. I knew one day he would be famous, but had no idea he would be one of the most talented artists of this generation. Through the ups and downs, you always have my support homie. You put our town of the map and inspired me to push Nelson Beats the Odds to the top!

About the author: Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW is a therapist, author and business owner. He is the author of Nelson Beats the Odds, Tameka’s New Dress and Nelson Beats the Odds: Compendium One. With the help of Protenza Global Solutions, Sidney developed the Nelson Beats The Odds Comic Creator app . For inquiries, email him at [email protected]. Please visit his website at www.creative-medicine.com for more information.

Shortly after releasing Amazon best-seller Nelson Beats the Odds, a semiautobiographical comic book about a young man who struggles with the stigma of being placed in special education, Sidney developed the Nelson Beats the Odds Comic Creator app.  The author-therapist partnered with Potenza Global Solutions, a successful IT company out of India, and released the app on October 7, 2015. The author-therapist found the Indian IT company on freelance website called Upwork.

Sidney says the the inspiration for the app came from an unlikely source:

I met a lady at a National Foster Parent Association conference in Norfolk, Virginia and she suggested I create a page in my book where a kid could add their face to Nelson’s body. She believed young people would be inspired to beat the odds if they could picture themselves in the book. That is when the light bulb went off, instead of having kids mess up their book, I could create an app that would help them celebrate their strengths and improve their self-esteem.

Nelson Beats The Odds Comic Creator is a simple way to inspire the world with your creative photos. You can snap photo with your iOS device or choose a photo from your photo library. Apply stunning filters, photo effects, and an ever growing collection of stickers, comic strips, frames, word bubbles, text art and more. Users can crop out their face and place them on one of ten Nelson Beats the Odds and Tameka’s New Dress illustrations. Nelson Beats The Odds Comic Creator allows you to share your photos social media Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and more.

Sidney’s app allows users to add graduation caps and gowns to their photos- he hopes it will encourage struggling students to beat the odds. “We underestimate how powerful images are,” says Sidney, “If a kid can see themselves graduating, they may think twice about quitting school.”

  While attending Essex County Public Schools (ECPS), Sidney struggled academically and behaviorally. He spent seven years in special education after being diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and a Specific Learning Disability (SLD). Sidney graduated from Essex High School in 2001 but with a 1.8 GPA, ranking at the bottom of his class. The author-therapist went on to earn his Bachelor of Science degree in Human Services from Old Dominion University in 2006 and his Master of Social Work degree from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Click here to order a copy of Nelson Beats the Odds, Tameka’s New Dress or Nelson Beats the Odds: Compendium One.

The self-esteem app includes one more big surprise, free access to Nelson Beats the Odds and Tameka’s New Dress eBooks. “I want every kid to have the opportunity to experience my books,” says Sidney. The best-selling author hopes to release the app on android devices summer of 2017.

About the author: Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW is a therapist, author and business owner. He is the author of Nelson Beats the Odds, Tameka’s New Dress and Nelson Beats the Odds: Compendium One. With the help of Protenza Global Solutions, Sidney developed the Nelson Beats The Odds Comic Creator app . For inquiries, email him at [email protected]. Please visit his website at www.creative-medicine.com for more information.

Best-Selling Children’s Book Author Spills the Tea on Self-Publishing

Click here to order a copy of Nelson Beats the Odds, Tameka’s New Dress or Nelson Beats the Odds: Compendium One.

My name is Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW and I self-published Amazon best-seller Nelson Beats the Odds, a semiautobiographical comic book about a young man who struggles with the stigma of being placed in special education. I…

Author-Therapist Seeks to Help Kids Overcome Disabilities and Trauma with Comics

Hi, I just read Nelson Beats The Odds. I just met you today and you told me to tell you what did I think. It is the best $15 dollars I ever spent. I related so much about the book, keep up the good work.

Teen, Northumberland High School

After being classified as learning disabled and spending five years in special education, the…

Purchase a copy of Tameka’s New Dress by clicking here.

Simone Biles earned four gold medals and one bronze medal during the 2016 Olympic games in Rio De Janeiro. Team USA selected the 19-year old American gymnast to be their flag bearer for Closing Ceremony. With Simone’s rise to stardom came criticism about her traumatic past.  Sports commentator Al Trautwig publically shamed Simone by saying…

We Need Diverse Books: African-American Author-Therapist Answers The Call

In less than twelve months, Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW has authored and self-published two children’s books. Sidney partnered with Imagine That! Design to help him illustrate Nelson Beats the Odds and Tameka’s New Dress. Nelson Beats the Odds, the author’s first book, is a semiautobiographical graphic novel about an African-American boy…

In Wake of Castile and Sterling Shootings, Best-Selling Author Readies Third Book

To donate to Kickstarter Campaign R.I.P. RaShawn click here.

The nation’s latest victims of police-involved shootings were 37-year-old Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and 32-year-old Philando Castile in Falcon Heights, Minnesota. Castile, a beloved public school employee, was shot by a police officer during a traffic stop on Wednesday, July 7, 2016. Sterling, a father of five, was…

Tameka’s New Dress Is Beyonce’s ‘Lemonade’ of Children’s Books

Click here to purchase a copy of Tameka’s New Dress

Like Lemonade, I use political messages, themes and symbolism to get my points across in Tameka’s New Dress. The young-adult graphic novel is a visual tale of loss, hope, and Black female empowerment.

Beyoncé ’s Lemonade is a lengthy, creative concept video and album. The video is divided into 11 chapters: “Intuition,” “Denial,” “Anger,”…

Purchase a copy Tameka’s New Dress by clicking here

Amy Francis-Joyner was born on March 8, 2000 and was a resident of New Castle, Delaware.

The 16-year-old was fatally assaulted in the girls bathroom at Howard High School of Technology. Amy passed away April 21, 2016 from a pre-existing heart condition exacerbated by the brutal attack.

Three teens were charged in the death of Amy. According to…

Dear Abby: We’re Not All Affirmative Action Babies #BeckyWithTheBadGrades

Dear Abby,

My name is Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW and I am from Tappahannock, Virginia. Contrary to popular belief, my path to college wasn’t paved in gold. In 3rd grade I was referred to special education. My parents were told that I was too hyper and needed to be placed on medication. I remember being placed in the slow reading group and sent to another class with a handful of students for extra…

Tameka’s New Dress: New Children’s Book Explores Race, Trauma and Education

Richmond, VA, June 21, 2016– Approximately 10 percent of all children in the United States lived with a grandparent in 2012. These families are commonly called “grandfamilies”. In Tameka’s New Dress, Tameka and her two younger brothers move in with their grandmother after the mother is sent to a drug rehabilitation facility.

Ronnie Sidney, II, MSW is the book’s author and works as an Outpatient…