What Do You Mean By That?

83: Truths About the US Prison System, with Marcus Bullock, CEO of Flikshop - Part 1


Listen Later

Have you ever had someone who has been incarcerated over for dinner, to learn about their story? Or, if you knew that someone was in prison, does that frighten you enough to stay away?

Whatever you think about "law & order," 95% of incarcerated people do leave prison and rejoin society. What is being done to help support them, instead of making it more difficult to succeed post-incarceration?

If any of these questions have intrigued you - at any level - we encourage you to take some time to listen to this special two-part series, where we interview someone who helps us answer all of these questions and more. Introducing Marcus Bullock, the CEO of Flikshop.

What to listen for in Part One:

  • The proper terminology to refer to someone who has spent time in prison
  • What does it feel like to stand in front of a judge, and end up going to adult maximum-security prison as a 15-year-old boy?
  • The connections that kept Marcus going through eight years of incarceration, and which inspired the creation of his current company
  • His interactions with other prisoners and the misconceptions people have of the motivation to get out and succeed
  • … and subscribe to the show to make sure you don't miss Part Two, where we will talk about life after prison.

About Marcus Bullock:

Marcus Bullock is an entrepreneur, justice reform advocate, and TED speaker. Following his 2004 release from prison, he launched a construction business that grew to employ other returning citizens. Bullock is the Founder and CEO of Flikshop, Inc., a software company that builds tools to help incarcerated people stay connected to their families and build community. He also founded the Flikshop School of Business, a program that teaches returning citizens life skills and entrepreneurship via computer coding and software development.

Marcus is an inaugural cohort member of Techstars Anywhere 2018 and John Legend's Unlocked Futures business accelerators. He was selected as one of The Root's 2019 100 Most Influential African Americans in the U.S. He is also a member of the Justice Policy Institute's board of directors, Advisory Board member for Princeton University's Prison Teaching Initiative, and serves as an advisor to the Georgetown University McDonough School of Business and Aspen Institute's Opportunity Youth Incentive Fund. Married with two children, Marcus' story has received coverage from Forbes, CNN, Washington Post, Black Enterprise, and NPR.

Venture: Flikshop is the tech platform that allows family members to connect easily with their incarcerated loved ones. The Flikshop app is famously known as the Instagram for prisons, allowing users the ability to send personalized pictures and messages delivered as postcards to any person in any cell in the US.

Website: http://ww.flikshop.com/

Like what you hear? Support us through Patreon!

Don't miss another episode and subscribe to the podcast!

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter – and don't miss our new anti-racism action calendar by joining our email list.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

What Do You Mean By That?By Sara and Misasha

  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7

4.7

140 ratings


More shows like What Do You Mean By That?

View all
This American Life by This American Life

This American Life

91,117 Listeners

TED Radio Hour by NPR

TED Radio Hour

22,041 Listeners

Radiolab by WNYC Studios

Radiolab

43,994 Listeners

Hidden Brain by Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam

Hidden Brain

43,691 Listeners

Happier with Gretchen Rubin by Gretchen Rubin / The Onward Project

Happier with Gretchen Rubin

12,914 Listeners

Death, Sex & Money by Slate Podcasts

Death, Sex & Money

7,738 Listeners

StoryCorps by NPR

StoryCorps

4,005 Listeners

Code Switch by NPR

Code Switch

14,612 Listeners

Worklife with Adam Grant by TED

Worklife with Adam Grant

9,191 Listeners

Life Kit by NPR

Life Kit

4,379 Listeners

The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos by Pushkin Industries

The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos

14,395 Listeners

IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson by Higher Ground

IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson

12,691 Listeners

We Can Do Hard Things by Treat Media and Glennon Doyle

We Can Do Hard Things

41,492 Listeners

Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus by Lemonada Media

Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus

10,691 Listeners

Handsome by Headgum

Handsome

13,168 Listeners