What Is the Experience of Joining a Circle?

Today’s Master of Community is Dr. James McLeary, a forensic psychologist and elder member of the Inside Circle Foundation. McLeary’s life mission is to help incarcerated individuals heal from their past. James himself ran into his own issues with the Judicial System and witnessed first-hand the systematic approach to incarcerating young black people. His experiences led him to working with Rob Allbee in prison ‘Circles’ to provide a safe, trusting, yet firm place for inmates to work through repressed issues, traumas, and wounds. Past and present incarcerated individuals voluntarily join these ‘circles’ to work through their ‘Hero’s Journey’ - reframing, rescripting and reorienting their negative experience into a process that moves them forward and gives them purpose in life. McLeary reiterates the importance of acknowledging the issues in your life or the world around you, talking through those challenges, and reminding yourself that anyone can change and labels are not permanent. McLeary and his son produced the award-winning documentary, The Work, to communicate James’ experience with the Inside Circle Foundation and the power it’s having on incarcerated and previously incarcerated lives. Who is this episode for?: Non Profit, In person & Online, Starting 3 key takeaways: - Labels are temporary and every individual has the potential to change and heal themselves for the better. - The Inside Circle positively impacts current and past incarcerated individuals as they openly discuss repressed pain, develop empathy for one another, and embrace change. - McLeary’s documentary, The Work, provides an in-depth look into The Inside Circle and the work taking place at Folsom Prison to providing healing, purpose, and meaning for justice-involved youth and adults. Notable Quotes: “The idea was just to check in. Who are you? What's going on? The check-in is generally your state of bank. How are you feeling? What's bothering you? You know, some men just checked in with their name...And people began to share and as they began to share, there was this bonding and cathartic release. So even if you're not doing your own work, you were watching someone do their work and identifying with their pain and with their release and it’s a development of empathy along the way. And that empathy grows into a sort of a nurturing wisdom that people care for each other in a circle and it just kept developing.” “The four stages of the hero's journey is that someone hears the call so they show up somewhere. There is the descent and that's the stripping of the armor that keeps you from being transparent, vulnerable, and honest. Then there's the ordeal where you actually confront what your issue is. And then there's the ascent and that's where you determine what's the new vision/purpose for yourself in this thing or in life. And then there's a celebration, which is the coming home. So that's the model method, the hero's journey. And then we introduce processes that help each of those phases progress.” Rapid fire question answers: 1. What’s your favorite book to recommend to others? Sense of Man, the Science of Mind, Sense of Mind. 2. Who’s an up and coming community builder you think is going to do big things? Elder Jackson the Third - hosts Ashanti Workshops 3. Favorite Question to ask to spark interesting conos when facilitating a group discussion? Why Are You Here? 4. One thing all members of Community should believe about themselves? Within yourself, you have medicine that’s brilliant and has the capacity to heal lots of people 5. If you’re on your death bed and you could only leave one piece of life advice behind for all the future generations, what would that advice be? Pause. Do an inventory on yourself to understand what you're thinking, feeling, believing, and know what you want then you’re congruent and are right with the world and know where you fit in.