Disrupting barriers through speaking out and creating movements for national change in our criminal justice system; is what Emily Baxter does with what she has learned. She has found that “one in four people in the United States has a criminal record. Four in four have a criminal history.” We discuss why that is and address the reckoning, the rumbling, and the revolution going on nationally as we become critically aware that our criminal justice system is unacceptable: #MeToo #What’sNext #TimesUp #NowWhat #MarchForOurLives #TruthTellingWins.
A maddening and eye-opening truth: race and class have played an immeasurable role in our criminal justice system and in the creating of dichotomies between populations of people like good vs. bad, us vs. them, and who is a criminal vs. noncriminal. There are reasons why 75% of us are insulated and able to get away with a criminal act. Maybe it is luck, or race, or class, or geography, or education, or employment, or something else. Download
Emily and I talk about The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, “which opened to the public on April 26, 2018, in Montgomery, Alabama. It is the nation’s first memorial dedicated to the legacy of enslaved black people, people terrorized by lynching, African Americans humiliated by racial segregation and Jim Crow, and people of color burdened with contemporary presumptions of guilt and police violence.” National Lynching MemorialListen to learn the steps you can take to claim your criminal history, cultivate mercy for the incarcerated, and decide where in the national revolution you are. Claim your place in these historic times. Awaken an aspect of race you might not have thought about by listening to our conversation, reading the books Emily recommends, and watch the documentaries I have outlined in the Mentoring Conversation Resource section below.
Take charge of your historic revolutionary journey. When you can talk about your story, you can be more receptive to hear the story of others. We are all connected. We are all in this revolutionary journey together!
Mentoring Tips
- Claim your criminal history by writing down how your life would be different if you were punished unjustly for the crimes you committed. Outline some natural consequences that could be implemented into our justice system that would replace punishment.
- For example, if my crime was shoplifting an ice cream bar from a convenience store when I was a teenager; what would have been a natural consequence when caught? Maybe the clerk asking what prompted me to take something that wasn’t mine? Then further problem solve by asking, “If I have that desire again, what might be an alternative to stealing from someone?” One idea might be to stop and notice my feelings. Take a moment to allow the feeling to be as it is. Give the feeling as much time as it needs. Then make a decision that would strengthen my character instead of doing something that would make me feel worse.
- Shape your place in these historic times by devouring the content outlined in the Mentoring Conversation Resources. Accept the truth of what you learn.
- Ready for a Peer Mentoring Leadership Group? A new WeMentor E.L.M. LAB is starting in September. An irresistible offer awaits those who act. I will follow-up with you. Click Here.
- Here are some questions to ponder if a LAB is a right fit for you. Are you reaching your financial goals? Are you having difficulty with focus and productivity? Do you need new skills and strategies to grow your business? Do you want to participate more fully in this economy?
- Are you snuffing out creativity and opportunities for innovation because of how you are leading? Is your business running you? Are you tired of your business? Is there a disconnect between you and those you employ? Are you recovering from a major setback and need more skills to recover and rise from the experience with greater clarity, resilience, and a new perspective? Do you want to increase your business acumen and bump up your emotional intelligence while you generate more income? Are you ready to have fun and make more money with how you are leading and mentoring others? Get started, a new LAB is forming! Call me at 612-804-8920.
Why is it that 75% of us get away with a criminal act? Episode 131 Emily Baxter
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Resources
- The New Jim Crow
- So You Have Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson. As a society there is a possibility of becoming less forgiving. His message is we need to fight against becoming less forgiving.
- Bryan Stevenson Just Mercyo The National Memorial for Peace and Justice National Lynching Memorial
o April 8, 2018 60-Minutes with Oprah Taking a Tour of the New Memorial
o Minnesota Public Radio Covering the New Memorial - PBS Documentary The House I Live In
- This documentary is about the War on Drugs that is rich with stories and facts, heartache, heartbreak, and hope. A way to delve into the particular intersection of race and justice, mass criminalization, mass incarceration. Criminal Justice has been used as a tool to control our society and particular races.
- PBS Locked Up in America
- PBS Documentary Policing The Police
- Frontline Unprecedented Growth In Prisons
- Frontline Dispatch Podcast Juvenile Justice
- Netflix Documentary: 13th (Amendment): 13th
- Document of 13th Amendment
- The 13th Amendment to the Constitution declared that “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” Formally abolishing slavery in the United States, the 13th Amendment was passed by the Congress on January 31, 1865 and ratified by the states on December 6, 1865. (Library of Congress Web Site)
- Research Paper on Prisons As Rural Growth Industry
Podcast Guest Mentor
Emily Baxter. Emily is the founder and executive director of We Are All Criminals. She has served as the director of advocacy and public policy at the Council on Crime and Justice in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and as an assistant public defender at the Regional Native Public Defense Corporation, where she represented indigent members of the Leech Lake and White Earth Bands of Ojibwe charged with crimes in state court. Emily is a former Fellow at the University of Minnesota Law School’s Robina Institute of Criminal Law and Criminal Justice. She began developing We Are All Criminals through a Bush Fellowship in 2012.
WeAreAllCriminals.org is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that seeks to inspire empathy and ignite social change through personal stories of crime, privilege, justice, and injustice, disrupting the barriers that separate us. We envision a more just and equitable world, where each of us is able to transcend our past and reach our full potential. Your book, by the same title, is about who gets arrested and convicted and why.
The We Are All Criminals book opens your eyes to different areas of privilege and helps people see that it could simply be the kind of day an officer has or straight up racism that could ruin a person’s life. We ARE all criminals, and the people telling their stories in the book either didn’t get caught participating in the criminal activity they described, or they just got a slap on the wrist. Everyone should read this book, there is no way someone could read this and not have learned to have even the smallest bit of empathy for those who are accused or caught and incarcerated.
“One in Four People Has a Criminal Record; Four in Four Have Criminal History.”
Episode 131: Why is it that 75% of us get away with a criminal act?
Author: Nancy A. Meyer, M.A.
Nancy A. Meyer, M.A., is a seasoned entrepreneurial leader, business and life mentor/coach/teacher, podcaster, author, and certified mindfulness yoga and meditation integrator (she integrates those skill sets into everything). Nancy’s compassionate and collaborative approach reinforces resilience while maintaining accountable conversations supporting how you redefine your lead while redesigning your business. Nancy calls this “Dual Innovation Leadership.” Nancy founded WeMentor, inc. in 1992 to change the leadership in our country by providing emerging and existing business owners with mentoring in Dual Innovation Leadership. She has mentored thousands and is eager to work with you! Assert self-leadership and get started today! Clients say, “Nancy is a compelling, engaging, and ‘decipher the trees from the forest’ kind of mentor, speaker, and leader. A dedicated entrepreneurial leader and mentor who role models what she preaches. Her style and candor enrich the content she delivers and the results clients experience.” Nancy accepts people where they are while inspiring them to breakthrough into new dimensions: As an Entrepreneurial Leader (Innovator), As a Competent Business Owner (Practitioner) As a Mentor (Role Model) As a Spiritual Being and Self-Leadership Master! Start by subscribing to WeMentor Mondays with Nancy PODCAST. Join your peers and...
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