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HBO: How did you come to the project, and why did
you want to be a part of it?
Mark Wahlberg: Well, being a kid who got in trouble, I'm
extremely concerned with what happens to
young kids in the courts and
the legal system. It's a scary thing. Most of
the kids from where I was raised are all in and
out of jail. I saw Juvies and was very
moved by it, and wanted to be involved and
supportive in whatever way I could.
HBO: What was your own experience like?
Mark Wahlberg: I was tried as an adult when I was sixteen.
And I did a little bit of time in the adult
system. But you know for me, I got the kind
of breaks that these kids aren't getting. I only
spent a few months in jail, and it was pretty
much like being in the neighborhood; I knew
almost everybody.
California is obviously a much bigger playing
field. I was in the county system most of the
time. I was tried by the state, but I was able
to make a deal. But when I think about all
the shit that I did, compared to these kids, I
should have been buried under the jail.
And then to see what happened with Duc (one of the subjects in the film) who never had any other arrests, nobody was hurt in the shooting and he wasn't the one that fired the gun. Yet he was given a deal of thirty five to life? That was a deal. So then I learned more about kids going to juvenile hall versus kids being tried as adults, how many kids were being tried as adults, and all the different gang laws that were being enacted. These kids weren't being given a chance. And in actuality, juvenile crime was down. But the media - which is where I got my information, like most people - was saying that kids were getting more and more dangerous and more and more out of hand. They said the only solution was to put them behind bars. I've been given a lot of opportunities in life, and I finally got it right. But these kids aren't being given a chance at all.
HBO: It seems like the emphasis is not on
rehabilitating the kids, but on harsher
punishments.
Mark Wahlberg: When I was in jail, I had problems and I had
to defend myself. But I knew a lot of people
going in. These kids, they end up joining a
gang once they're inside. How else are they gonna survive? So it's not about, "Okay, I can turn around and do the right thing," because you won't survive doing that.
HBO: It's like a different world, and a different set of
rules that they're living by.
Mark Wahlberg: Exactly.
HBO: What can the average person watching this
movie do?
Mark Wahlberg: Well everybody who has seen the film is
deeply affected by it. And there's a lot of good people out there. But you gotta bring it to their attention. I was really amazed by Leslie (Neale, the director), how a woman like her could get involved in something like this. But she cares. She cares enough to go out there and do something. And I love the fact that HBO is putting it on the air. I've seen some amazing documentaries on HBO, and I think this is right up there, trying to do the right thing. It's beautiful.
HBO: At what point in the process did you become
involved?
Mark Wahlberg: Leslie was the original narrator of the
film. She read the poetry and the narration.
And after I watched it, I said I would be
involved in whatever way. I just wanted to get behind it, try to show it to as many people as possible. And then she asked me if I would
narrate it, that maybe it would bring a little
bit more attention to it. And I certainly didn't
have a problem with that. And then Mos Def
came in and read all the poetry, which is just
great.
HBO: What are you hoping audiences will take away from the film?
Mark Wahlberg: Well it's obvious what they're gonna take away from it: they're gonna have to do something. How can you not? I mean, I think
people are gonna go out there and force
changes in the law. They're gonna do the
right thing because these are our children,
our future.
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