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Talks with my son behind bars | Kevin Vaughn | TED Goes to Prison at Coxsackie Correctional Facility 2022

Kevin Vaughn has never met his son, as he was just born when Kevin was arrested. Listen to this deeply moving talk about how an incarcerated father develops and maintains a strong, positive relationship with his son solely by use of phone calls. Kevin Vaughn has sacrificed a lot and experienced all the bad that comes with the criminal lifestyle. While in prison over the last 13 years of a 20-year sentence, he learned how to shine bright after so many years of darkness. Among his many accomplishments are multiple alternative to violence programs, aggression replacement training, G.E.D., general business certificate, job/employment titles, substance abuse programs, and a host of volunteer and incarcerated individual-run programs and fundraisers. He’s also a student in the culinary arts program seeking his apprenticeship and certificate in Servsafe food safety. He is a man who checks and renews himself constantly. And his life purpose is to guide and uplift the youth as a whole and have a personal and positive impact on their future. But most of all, he’s the proud father of a 13-year-old son whom he loves and misses tremendously.

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Invisible victims | Bruce Bryant | TEDxSingSing 2020

Incarceration doesn’t just affect those incarcerated; in fact, it has been shown to have a profound effect on children and young adults whose parents have been separated from them. In this illuminating talk, Bruce Bryant takes a realistic look at the unintended price that children with incarcerated parents or family members too often pay for situations that were fully out of their control. Bruce is a self-reflective, happy, and driven man who believes that, “where you are doesn’t define who you are.” Bruce has lived this truth by becoming a published author during his incarceration, writing Closeness is Not Measured by Distance: A Dynamic Journal for Children of Incarcerated Parents. He believes that life is about meaningful relationships and the potential power of the combined efforts of people who care.

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Bars never break bonds: motherhood from the inside | Christy S | TEDxPerryvilleCorrectional 2018

"Bars will never break bonds." That's what Christy has always emphasized to her children, and what her mother always emphasized to her. "My mother was my biggest supporter." She helped look after her grandchildren by providing "stability, normalcy, confidence in their relationship with me." Christy continuously provided for her children through gifts on holidays and birthdays, braces, school clothes and any of their other financial needs. A devoted mother after 24 years of incarceration, she credits her thriving relationships with her children to constant and open communication. Incarcerated since the age of 22, Christy did not let that deter her from being the best mother she could be; from the inside out. Missing some of life’s most important moments were never easy. Instead of letting her situation envelop her, she decided she would stay strong for her children by living a productive life behind bars. This included getting her G.E.D., working a steady job for over 10 years to be able to financially support her three children and being a mentor for women struggling with a similar predicament. Although she was not there in person, she was always there in every way she could be.

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Second chance parenting | David Pride | TEDxDonovanCorrectional 2018

How many of you have the book on how to be a good parent? By taking us on a journey from his childhood to adulthood to parenthood from prison, David confronts the importance of parenting based on children’s personal identities and talents. David also addresses how promising children fall into crime and how at-risk children rise above.“Despite my circumstances, I am an extremely positive, happy-go-lucky and a kind-hearted person. An overly-involved father and loving husband, family is always at the center of my life. I’ve often said that prison has actually saved my life and has given me the blessed opportunity to see things with a clear and sober mind. Today, I can finally focus on a new beginning and turn a dark world into a world of light.”

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My daughter, my hero | Sam W. Johnson, Sr. | TEDxSanQuentin 2016

After turning 6, a little girl visits her dad in prison and changes his life. After being incarcerated for 22 years, Sam W. Johnson, Sr., was released from San Quentin on Friday, February 24, 2017. For the past six years, Sam has been the Executive Chairman of the Men’s Advisory Council at San Quentin, meeting with the Warden and administration to represent the interests of the inmate population. He's also a facilitator for Insight Prison Project's Victim Offender Education Group, a restorative justice program. He is the Co-Leader of the Alliance for Change Mentor Department and also co-facilitates their anger management course. Through the Prison University Project, he received an A.A. degree from Patten University.

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My father, my hero | Cynthia Roseberry | TEDxChesterStatePrison 2016

Cynthia Roseberry, a criminal defense attorney and the daughter of an alcoholic, talks about the labels we give to people that tend to build walls of resentment and brokenness. She argues that love is stronger than those labels and breaks down the barriers that separate us. Ms. Roseberry currently serves as Project Manager for Clemency Project 2014. The Clemency Project - a partnership among the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, American Civil Liberties Union, the American Bar Association, Families Against Mandatory Minimums and the Federal Community and Public Defenders - was created in response to a challenge to the legal profession to provide pro bono assistance for clemency to federal prisoners who would likely receive a shorter sentence if they were sentenced today.

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Me becoming my mother | Matthew Dowsett | TEDxChesterStatePrison 2016

Matthew Dowsett, the son of an incarcerated parent, talks about the nightmare of his mother’s arrest and trying to break free from the cycle. Originally from Northeastern Pennsylvania, the 25- year-old Dowsett has aspirations of becoming a published author and motivational speaker. He credits the support of his fiance, Katrine Karchner, and hopes to become a father someday.

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Our children, our champions | Anna E. Hollis | TEDxChesterStatePrison 2016

Children of incarcerated parents in Pittsburgh are taking on policy-makers to improve their future. Hollis challenges incarcerated parents to in turn, rise to the challenge and change the legacy they leave their children. Ms. Hollis is the Executive Director of Amachi Pittsburgh, a unique partnership of secular and faith- based organizations working together to support children and families of the incarcerated. Under her leadership, the organization has become an ever-growing and diverse network of community organizations, dedicated volunteers, families, and partners in education, government and business.

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