Shaka Senghor served 19 years in prison for second degree murder. While incarcerated, he underwent a transformation. Since his release in 2010, he has become Head of Diversity, Equality and Inclusion at TripActions, the President of Shaka Senghor, Inc. and Founder of Redeemed Sole. Senghor is also author of the New York Times bestseller Writing My Wrongs: Life, Death and Redemption in an American Prison and Letters to the Sons of Society.
DeAnna Hoskins was able to transform her life, too. After serving time in prison for felony theft and overcoming a drug addiction, she earned degrees in criminal justice and social work and became a licensed clinical addictions counselor and a certified workforce development specialist training formerly incarcerated people.
Hoskins is now President and CEO of JustLeadership USA, an organization dedicated to reducing the level of incarceration in the country. She was previously a Senior Policy Advisor for corrections and reentry at the Department of Justice during the Obama administration.
Aswad Thomas has dedicated his career to advocating for victims of crime, like himself. In 2009, he suffered two near-fatal gunshots to his back. He is now Vice President of the Alliance for Safety and Justice and National Director of Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice where he works to organize survivors to end mass incarceration.
Join PBS NewsHour chief Washington correspondent and PBS News Weekend anchor Geoff Bennett Thursday, October 6 at 7pm ET for a live conversation with Senghor, Hoskins and Thomas on race, redemption and reentry.
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