Down in the Bronx, you're often looked down upon. People think of you as a second class in society and that you will never achieve nothing. I was made to believe that, always thought of myself as a reject in this city, that's just the way the Bronx is. There isn't much in terms of opportunity in the Bronx neither, it's led me to gangs and doing stuff I didn't want to do.
It's always been tough growing up here, having no dad and a mom working all day so she can put her boy through college. As much as I didn't want to disappoint my mom, I knew I wasn't cut out for college, I was much more of a street guy. As a matter of fact I dropped out of school when I 15 although I'm not proud of it. As much as I wanted to beat that stereotype that nothing good comes from the Bronx, I was just caught up in the life of gangs and crime, I thought I would be different but I was just the same as everyone else.
Out here in the Bronx, you had to survive, it's not like your average suburb, you go to the wrong neighborhood accidentally and that was it for you. Being a kid growing up on the streets, you make a lot of powerful enemies, the kind of enemies you don't want, but you also make the kind of friends you don't want neither. There's nothing positive here, it's a struggle to survive the gang warfare everyday. There's needs to be hope in the Bronx for it to get better.
People made out it wasn't that bad here and we were just exaggerating, that everywhere has minor gangs hanging about. But if they came here they would see what life was really like, it was all about turf and they weren't just minor gangs walking the streets, they were gangs that had connections all over the country. The kind of gangs that struck fear into the people of the Bronx.
Around the age of 15 though, I found myself a passion which made me different. I used to sneak into the Yankee's games until I was chased off by guards. I think sport is what kept me from ending up in jail. The thought that liking the Yankees gave me something in common with normal people, that's what made me change my path. But I knew Baseball wasn't my sport, as much as I enjoyed watching it, I had no idea what was going on. I was more into the Soccer; I remember watching the Metrostars as they were called at the time and thinking that's what I want to do.
I learnt from my ways, I got out of the network of crime, and put my head down, I went back to school, but not studying boring subjects like English and Maths, no I did sport. I wanted to make it as a professional soccer player and show my mom that I had changed but the coach told me I didn't make the cut. It took me back to the life of crime I so desperately wanted to leave but with no hope left I gave up trying.
But things changed for me.
And now here we are 10 years later, I'm still in the Bronx, but I'm a changed man, today I have the whole city of New York behind me as I take on New York City's first season ever, and hope to unite a city.
My name is Jayden Clinton and this is my story - The Bronx is my home, This is My City, This is My Club.
