0:00:03.685,0:00:08.405
My name is John, and I'm incarcerated[br]right here in Monroe Correctional Complex.

0:00:09.892,0:00:13.292
And I want to talk to you about [br]changing the prison paradigm.

0:00:14.147,0:00:17.367
To do this, we must address [br]the misconceptions that we have

0:00:17.367,0:00:19.507
about crime and incarceration.

0:00:19.957,0:00:22.556
You see we think[br]that crime is the problem.

0:00:23.785,0:00:27.534
But the truth is the pains of crime[br]are really a symptom,

0:00:28.086,0:00:30.690
warning us of a problem in our society.

0:00:30.990,0:00:34.484
Much like pain in your left arm [br]or a tightness in your chest

0:00:34.484,0:00:37.135
or a shortness of breath is a symptom[br]

0:00:37.135,0:00:40.160
warning you there's a problem[br]with your heart.

0:00:40.680,0:00:45.264
In that same sense, there's a problem[br]in the hearts of our society.

0:00:46.134,0:00:49.177
We see in the racial disproportionalities[br]of our justice system

0:00:49.427,0:00:51.619
and the failings[br]of our educational system

0:00:52.349,0:00:55.241
and our socioeconomic inequalities.

0:00:55.241,0:00:59.663
Many crimes are merely symptoms[br]of these problems

0:00:59.833,0:01:03.518
and trying to solve them through[br]mass incarceration is not the cure.

0:01:04.328,0:01:08.295
That's like taking aspirin to ease[br]the symptoms of a heart attack,

0:01:09.185,0:01:11.958
which will work, temporarily,

0:01:12.528,0:01:16.228
but it will not fix the problem,[br]which is the heart.

0:01:17.308,0:01:21.383
And in that same sense, there's a problem[br]in the heart of our society.

0:01:24.673,0:01:26.876
Now, what do we do about this?

0:01:27.556,0:01:32.841
Since I've been here the last 16 years[br]I saw so many men, children,

0:01:33.131,0:01:36.071
coming in and out of this [br]revolving door we call prison.

0:01:37.241,0:01:41.157
In my experience, lack of education[br]is at the heart of the many problems

0:01:41.157,0:01:42.819
that lead to prison.

0:01:43.699,0:01:47.860
In fact, if you will, raise your hand[br]if you believe that lack of education

0:01:48.020,0:01:50.423
contributes to incarceration[br]and recidivism.

0:01:51.373,0:01:56.622
Wow, well if we all believe[br]there's a direct correlation

0:01:56.622,0:01:59.339
between lack of education[br]and incarceration

0:01:59.339,0:02:01.482
as well as the rate of recidivism,

0:02:01.802,0:02:05.743
why don't we turn prisons into schools?

0:02:06.473,0:02:09.017
(Applause) (Cheers)

0:02:12.317,0:02:16.144
That way, we can address[br]the symptoms, which is crime,

0:02:16.664,0:02:20.390
and at the same time address what many[br]would call the heart of the problem:

0:02:20.560,0:02:22.071
lack of education.

0:02:22.741,0:02:26.470
And, yeah. I said,[br]"Turn prisons into schools."

0:02:27.070,0:02:29.158
Did I get your attention?

0:02:29.388,0:02:31.579
Let me tell you how[br]this idea came to me.

0:02:31.989,0:02:33.729
When I was around nine years old,

0:02:33.729,0:02:37.877
a bunch of friends and I were trashing[br]this empty lot in my neighborhood:

0:02:37.877,0:02:39.998
breaking bottles,[br]kicking over potted plants.

0:02:40.388,0:02:43.564
There was this old wooden shack[br]we used to practice our karate on,

0:02:43.814,0:02:45.491
trying to break the boards.

0:02:45.671,0:02:47.887
None of us really knew karate though.

0:02:47.887,0:02:51.490
And then one of my friends' grandmothers[br]caught us, Mrs. Alice.

0:02:52.510,0:02:57.455
She called our parents, asked[br]for permission to deal with us herself.

0:02:58.285,0:03:02.696
Now if you've ever had your parents called[br]on you, you know how bad this is.

0:03:02.926,0:03:04.158
(Laughter)

0:03:04.158,0:03:08.120
But when I found out this elderly woman[br]would be in charge of my punishment,

0:03:08.660,0:03:10.188
I figured I'd get off easy.

0:03:10.988,0:03:12.935
Boy, was I mistaken.

0:03:12.935,0:03:13.806
(Laughter)

0:03:13.806,0:03:18.291
You want to talk about misconceptions:[br]this sweet old lady was tough as nails.

0:03:18.821,0:03:21.838
I come to find out,[br]that wasn't just an empty lot.

0:03:22.178,0:03:25.168
It was a rundown community garden.

0:03:25.168,0:03:28.453
She said our punishment[br]was we had to fix it up.

0:03:28.933,0:03:33.512
Next thing I know, my friends' allowance[br]money, even my paper route money

0:03:33.772,0:03:36.365
was going to pay for dirt,[br]seed, and fertilizer.

0:03:36.495,0:03:40.704
She even made us pay for, print up,[br]and pass out flyers in our neighborhood,

0:03:41.024,0:03:44.587
explaining what we did wrong[br]and how we planned to atone for it

0:03:44.587,0:03:47.372
by renovating this garden.

0:03:47.372,0:03:51.431
Now, amazingly enough,[br]our community came out and helped.

0:03:52.231,0:03:57.068
We grew corn, lettuce, cabbage, potatoes;[br]I loved the tomatoes.

0:03:57.418,0:04:00.335
We even turned that old wooden[br]shack into a greenhouse.

0:04:00.905,0:04:04.005
I learned a lot about cultivating[br]but more importantly

0:04:04.135,0:04:07.475
I learned not just what I did wrong[br]but why it was wrong.

0:04:07.925,0:04:11.783
I learned how good it felt to do the right[br]thing and give back in a real way.

0:04:12.203,0:04:16.402
How amazing it felt that my community[br]believed enough and cared enough

0:04:16.402,0:04:19.420
to invest and impart these values to me.

0:04:19.950,0:04:21.805
It's the strangest thing.

0:04:22.465,0:04:24.592
That wasn't just a garden to me.

0:04:24.992,0:04:29.106
It was my punishment;[br]it was also a school for me.

0:04:29.726,0:04:34.150
This, this is what we need[br]to do in prisons today.

0:04:34.630,0:04:37.954
Well, I'm not saying we should call[br]people's grandmothers.

0:04:38.384,0:04:39.888
But could you imagine that?

0:04:39.888,0:04:43.787
A bunch of grandmas shuffling around,[br]snatching up prisoners by their ears?

0:04:43.787,0:04:45.907
(Laughter)

0:04:46.257,0:04:50.648
But, what I do mean, is we need[br]to cultivate a place of learning,

0:04:51.458,0:04:53.907
a place where prisoners[br]can work with the community

0:04:53.907,0:04:56.177
to give back in a real way.

0:04:57.457,0:05:01.361
In that garden Mrs. Alice taught me[br]the whole purpose of punishment

0:05:01.361,0:05:06.737
was to teach me, to educate me,[br]so that I made different choices.

0:05:07.797,0:05:12.968
And when I thought about it, I realized[br]yet another misconception that we have.

0:05:14.118,0:05:19.819
Like Mrs. Alice, prisons are supposed [br]to be teaching a lesson, educating,

0:05:19.819,0:05:23.798
so that these men and women[br]make better choices in the future.

0:05:23.908,0:05:27.881
But somehow we've become so fixated [br]on the punishment part,

0:05:28.951,0:05:31.068
we're missing the whole point.

0:05:31.778,0:05:34.963
And when I thought about it, it hit me.

0:05:34.963,0:05:38.027
And I saw it as clear as day.

0:05:39.457,0:05:45.028
Just for a moment, imagine,[br]if we turned prisons into schools.

0:05:49.368,0:05:50.228
Oh yeah.

0:05:51.028,0:05:52.291
(Laughter)[br]

0:05:52.291,0:05:53.813
(Applause)

0:05:58.696,0:06:00.625
What if we took policies and legislation[br]

0:06:00.625,0:06:03.148
that are overwhelmingly[br]weighted toward punishment,

0:06:03.148,0:06:08.286
and we balanced them out by focusing[br]them on education, redemption as well?

0:06:08.286,0:06:12.105
What if we saved a small percentage[br]of penitentiaries that exist today,

0:06:12.105,0:06:16.540
designate them for initial assessment, [br]placement, behavior management,

0:06:16.540,0:06:21.343
and then reorganize [br]all other prisons into schools:

0:06:21.343,0:06:27.578
high schools, vocational trade schools,[br]technical institutes, colleges?

0:06:27.578,0:06:29.629
Imagine.

0:06:30.469,0:06:33.768
Now obviously we all know[br]the reason for the fences,

0:06:33.768,0:06:37.516
the razor wire, and the walls[br]are to ensure suspension of freedoms.

0:06:37.836,0:06:39.870
But behind these fences and razor wire,

0:06:39.870,0:06:45.479
behind these walls, we should be focused[br]on rehabilitation through education.

0:06:46.649,0:06:49.773
Now this is not something[br]that can be forced or coerced.

0:06:49.773,0:06:54.187
But if a prisoner is showing [br]the desire to change and grow,

0:06:54.187,0:06:59.063
if they have a knack for art,[br]architecture, math, engineering,

0:06:59.063,0:07:02.264
we should be telling them, [br]we have classes for that.

0:07:02.264,0:07:05.122
If they're dedicated[br]to leaving a life of crime,

0:07:05.672,0:07:08.202
and want to become counselors[br]for at-risk youth

0:07:08.322,0:07:12.165
to prevent kids from making the same[br]mistakes they made when they were young,

0:07:12.544,0:07:15.865
we should be cultivating[br]these positive aspirations.

0:07:17.145,0:07:19.877
If we turn prisons into schools,

0:07:19.877,0:07:23.373
we could take committees[br]like multidisciplinary teams,

0:07:23.373,0:07:27.557
facility risk management teams,[br]which for one, it's a mouthful.

0:07:28.357,0:07:32.068
If you're not familiar with these terms,[br]I don't expect you to remember them.

0:07:32.068,0:07:35.440
They're just classification reviews[br]in prison that assess prisoners,

0:07:35.440,0:07:39.550
determining what they should do and where [br]they should go while they're incarcerated,

0:07:39.550,0:07:41.733
and they're closed off to the public.

0:07:41.733,0:07:46.215
We could take those, exchange[br]them for community conferences.

0:07:46.215,0:07:49.331
First thing we do:[br]open them up to the public.

0:07:49.751,0:07:51.314
Let the community see

0:07:51.594,0:07:54.314
the actions that prisoners[br]are making toward atonement.

0:07:54.314,0:07:56.832
Let them see the steps[br]institutions are making

0:07:56.832,0:07:59.826
to facilitate and hold[br]prisoners accountable.

0:08:00.806,0:08:05.533
After all, it's our community[br]that's the heart of our society.

0:08:06.863,0:08:09.026
It's where these prisoners were raised,

0:08:09.446,0:08:13.417
where they committed their crimes,[br]where they will eventually be released.

0:08:14.168,0:08:17.989
And these communities have[br]as much right, responsibility, and duty

0:08:17.989,0:08:21.202
to be a part of the process as DOC,[br]Department of Corrections.

0:08:22.282,0:08:26.631
Just imagine, if we turn[br]prisons into schools,

0:08:27.381,0:08:32.402
we could take things like custody levels,[br]replace them with grade levels

0:08:33.012,0:08:35.007
where the higher the grade level achieved

0:08:35.007,0:08:37.902
through the completion[br]of educational and cognitive programs

0:08:37.902,0:08:39.970
furthered access for reintegration,

0:08:39.970,0:08:42.111
allowing prisoners to use[br]what they've learned

0:08:42.111,0:08:45.891
at their respective schools[br]to earn back their place in society.

0:08:46.921,0:08:50.951
And by doing this, we could take[br]the general public's lack of information,

0:08:51.301,0:08:54.050
the growing communal fear[br]regarding a prisoner's release

0:08:54.090,0:08:57.895
and transform that into a graduation,

0:08:58.715,0:09:03.144
an acceptance back into society [br]supported by the community's knowledge

0:09:03.144,0:09:05.986
of a prisoner's personal progression.

0:09:08.006,0:09:10.952
I say turn prisons into schools,

0:09:11.402,0:09:16.133
because it's not enough to simply bring[br]educational programs behind these walls.

0:09:16.353,0:09:17.253
No.

0:09:18.783,0:09:20.620
Just like Mrs. Alice taught me:

0:09:20.620,0:09:24.651
it's not enough to simply throw seeds[br]in the ground; you've got to fertilize it.

0:09:24.944,0:09:26.735
You've got to till the soil.

0:09:26.735,0:09:28.872
You've got to water it.

0:09:28.872,0:09:33.535
And if the environment is not conducive[br]to producing the type of plants you want,

0:09:34.235,0:09:36.879
you've got to change the environment.

0:09:37.189,0:09:41.436
In this same sense, we need[br]to change the environment in prison.

0:09:42.156,0:09:44.299
We need a greenhouse,

0:09:44.729,0:09:49.789
because as prisons function today,[br]they're an environment of marginalization,

0:09:49.789,0:09:51.189
objectification,

0:09:51.659,0:09:55.739
an environment that is increasingly[br]becoming counterproductive

0:09:55.739,0:09:58.221
to the very ideals of correction

0:09:58.221,0:10:01.381
that the Department[br]of Corrections is named for.

0:10:02.661,0:10:06.767
It's become so systemic that even[br]terms I'm conditioned to accept

0:10:06.767,0:10:10.546
and identify with, terms[br]you will hear today, often repeated:

0:10:10.676,0:10:16.260
"inmate," "offender," "convict" - [br]they marginalize me.

0:10:16.510,0:10:18.334
They marginalize us.

0:10:19.184,0:10:21.557
And I can tell you[br]from personal experience

0:10:21.557,0:10:24.053
that if you're under[br]such conditions long enough,

0:10:24.153,0:10:27.964
it's likely you'll begin to feel like[br]you're incapable of growth and change.

0:10:27.964,0:10:32.244
That no matter what you do,[br]you'll never become a better person.

0:10:33.204,0:10:35.316
And this environment is not just affecting

0:10:35.316,0:10:38.480
the prison population,[br]but the prison staff as well.

0:10:39.690,0:10:42.344
Staff who find themselves[br]struggling between treating us

0:10:42.344,0:10:44.748
like the human beings we are,

0:10:44.748,0:10:47.170
or treating us like[br]the less than human objects

0:10:47.170,0:10:50.578
these institutions have come[br]to define us as.

0:10:50.578,0:10:54.363
Despite the good intentions of many[br]that work within the system,

0:10:55.193,0:10:58.825
despite the good intentions[br]of many in this very room,

0:10:59.875,0:11:03.065
instead of rehabilitating[br]these men and women in prison,

0:11:03.065,0:11:04.972
we're institutionalizing them.

0:11:05.552,0:11:09.840
And because of our misconceptions[br]about crime and incarceration,

0:11:09.840,0:11:12.703
we're perpetuating a disservice,

0:11:12.703,0:11:14.696
an injustice on our neighborhoods,[br]

0:11:15.186,0:11:16.676
our families,

0:11:17.106,0:11:20.849
when we're not properly rehabilitating[br]these men and women in prison

0:11:20.849,0:11:23.021
before we release them[br]into our communities.

0:11:25.881,0:11:30.708
Ask yourself: do you want[br]institutionalized ex-convicts

0:11:30.708,0:11:32.922
being released into your neighborhoods?

0:11:33.572,0:11:36.955
Or would you rather have[br]rehabilitated men and women

0:11:36.955,0:11:39.866
graduating back into society?

0:11:42.036,0:11:43.161
Imagine.

0:11:49.671,0:11:51.418
You see it?

0:11:52.038,0:11:54.616
So, why don't we shed our misconceptions?

0:11:54.616,0:11:58.138
Why don't we address[br]the heart of the problem?

0:11:58.618,0:12:01.501
Why don't we cultivate[br]a place of learning?

0:12:02.931,0:12:05.808
Why don't we turn prisons into schools?

0:12:06.638,0:12:08.075
Thank you for your time.

0:12:08.075,0:12:10.663
(Applause) (Cheers)