Often called the ‘new’ Orange Is the New Black, Chandra Bozelko is an award-winning writer and thought leader on matters related to criminal justice reform. As a magna cum laude graduate of Princeton University who was in the middle of postgraduate study (law and public health), Chandra was an unlikely inmate. She was arrested on identity theft charges that remain on appeal, and served more than six years at the York Correctional Institution, Connecticut’s only state women’s prison.

Chandra was the first inmate to write a regular newspaper column from behind bars which was called “Prison Diaries.” Prison Diaries is now a weekly blog of columns written by Chandra while she was still incarcerated. She also has an award-winning syndicated column called The Outlaw, which appears in over 150 daily and weekly newspapers around the country. “We’re all outlaws because an outlaw simply is someone who’s “excluded from the benefit or protection of the law.” She says she’s here to spark transformation because “changing one person’s mind is a revolution.”

GUEST LINKS:

WEB: http://prison-diaries.com/

COLUMN: https://www.creators.com/features/the-outlaw

FB: https://www.facebook.com/chandra.bozelko

IG: https://www.instagram.com/prisondiaries

Twitter: https://twitter.com/chandrabozelko

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

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Brett Jones says he knew as a kid that he wasn't attracted to girls like the other boys he knew. But he didn't have a name for how he felt until he heard a sermon denouncing the evils of homosexuality.  “Oh, that’s what it’s called” he thought.  But even before that sermon, he knew his sexuality wasn’t something he’d be discussing with his father, a Vietnam-era fighter pilot. In fact, when Brett was 16, his parents kicked him out the house when they learned of his interest in other boys.

Brett never considered his sexuality to be his most defining characteristic. His most defining characteristic was his ambition. As he puts it in his book, "I was somehow determined to become a Navy SEAL. I was going to prove to the world that this 'faggot' would accomplish what tens of thousands of straight men had failed to do.”

After he was outed, Brett says “I had a lot of really hateful thoughts "I drank a lot, and I was a very angry person - but I realized I had to change something. I've managed to forgive everyone -- the Navy, everyone."  "It was a process, a coming to grips with the fact

that there was absolutely nothing I could do by holding onto that resentment”

He is the author of Pride: The Story of the First Gay Navy SEAL, which he wrote as a love letter to his son.

He also wrote, produced, and stars in the movie Once a Hero, based on his life, which aims to bring awareness to PTSD for veterans.

GUEST LINKS:

Book - Pride: The Story of the First Openly Gay Navy Seal: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1457531070

Once a Hero movie: https://www.facebook.com/OEDMOVIE/

Riley Website: http://www.rileysecurity.net

Echo911 Website: https://echo911.com

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

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Tonya Surman is a master gardener of social innovation. Tonya’s journey began when she was four years-old. Her mother left, and her father became the sole parent. Tonya, her Father and younger sister struggled with poverty. She says, “My father raised us on love, not food.” She points to this experience as the source of her resilience, strength and a need to create an impact. At the age of 19, Tonya left university life behind and traveled the world. While she was living in a small hut on the Andaman Sea in Thailand, news arrived that a nearby village had been devastated by a mudslide. The primary contributing factor was deforestation. This helped her to draw a direct correlation between the environment and social economic issues.

Tonya is now one of Canada’s leading social entrepreneurs and a pioneer in the coworking and social enterprise movements. She has a passion for bringing life to world-changing  projects. Highlights from her 20-year career include co-founding and leading the Centre for Social Innovation which is a collaborative workspace, a community, and a launchpad for over 1000 social enterprises. She also developed the Constellation Model - a multi-stakeholder partnership framework that was used for a number of projects, including banning toxic chemicals in baby bottles, organizing 40,000+ Ontario nonprofits into a network with policy-making clout, launching the Ontario Catapult Microloan Fund with government, corporate and nonprofit partners, and creating the Community Bond, a social finance tool that raised $6.3 million to purchase two buildings in downtown Toronto for social innovation. Tonya is the recipient of numerous awards: the Ashoka Foundation, Canadian Urban Institute, Toronto Community Foundation, New Media Awards, the Trillium Foundation, and Entrepreneur of the Year for Socialight Canada are among the many organizations that have recognized her leadership and contributions.

GUEST LINKS:

Web: https://tonyasurman.commons.ca/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tonyasurman

FB: https://www.facebook.com/tonya.surman

IG: https://www.instagram.com/tonyasurman/

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

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Adrian Tam is a crusading, 28 year old, LGBT representative in the Hawaii State Legislature. He defeated a Proud Boys opponent to win his seat, with 63 percent of the vote. He is the first openly gay member of the Hawaii State Legislator and says his real victory was not in defeating a Proud Boys opponent in the general election, but rather unseating a 12 year incumbent in the primary.

He was born and raised in Honolulu, where he now represents District 22 serving Waikiki and Ala Moana. He serves as Vice-Chair of the House Committee on Health, Human Services, and Homelessness, and as a member of the House Committee on Culture and the Arts and the Committee on Finance.

As a young, soft-spoken gay man, people tried to dissuade him from running, but he felt he “had to” no matter the odds because no one was doing the work for the people. We discuss his calling to run for state government, his commitment to the people, and how he decided to move from activist to advocate in his leadership.

GUEST LINKS:

Government Web: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/memberpage.aspx?member=Tam&year=2021

Web: https://www.adrianforhawaii.com/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/adrianktam/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/adrianktam

Twitter: https://twitter.com/adrianktam

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

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Angie Wang is wickedly funny, deeply spiritual, swears like a sailor, and has the kind of blunt honesty that’s incredibly refreshing. She grew up poor with working class Asian parents in Newark NJ. She didn’t grow up as a "model minority,” belying the stereotypes of quiet, polite, affluent Asians. She has the gumption to say, “I’m going to do it,” which led her to make her first feature film, MDMA. It’s based on her time at Rutgers when she got a student job in the Chemistry lab and made ecstasy to sell. One reason she loves film is the ability to bring positive Asian role models to the media… including “unmodel minorities.”

GUEST LINKS:

FB: https://www.facebook.com/angie.s.wang

IG: https://www.instagram.com/jadegirlsmom

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jadegirlsmom

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

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Matthew is a truly unique leader in the world of interior design and helping us all create more peaceful, vibrant homes. He spent two years in silence as a Buddhist monk in the woods where he got deeply in tune with the energies of the land. Then he met his partner and became an interior designer in their very successful design firm. In this episode we talk about how these two worlds came together to create an approach to design that Matthew is pioneering, transforming both his clients lives and elevating what design can do in uplifting our world.

LINKS:

True Home Web: https://truehomedesign.com

Joe McGuire Design Web: https://www.joemcguiredesign.com

True Home IG: https://www.instagram.com/matthewtenzin

Design IG: https://www.instagram.com/joemcguiredesign/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/matthewtenzin/

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

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Gevin Fax, a brave black lesbian motorcycle rider and stuntwoman, who has logged over one million miles on her various bikes. Her life motto is “Live Your Dare,” and she’s got stories to tell! She’s a legendary member of The Litas, the world’s largest all-female collective with 5000 women in 200 cities, and is a spokesperson for Harley Davidson and Polaris. We talk about finding your way when you’re “different” and finding your tribe in the process.

GUEST LINKS:

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

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Jody David Armour is the author of N*gga Theory: Race, language, Unequal Justice, and the Law, and is a leading national voice in reshaping our legal system. Jody’s journey started when he was 8 and his father was arrested causing him and his 7 siblings to go from middle class to living on government cheese. His father taught himself law while in jail and eventually pled his own case in front of a federal court and freed himself. Jody was 14 at the time, and he now teaches his father’s precedent-setting case as a Professor of Race and Law at USC. Jody likes to say there are four professions where “word-work” is literally their bread and butter: writers, poets, lawyers and rappers… and how to use words to change the world.

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

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Nadia Bolz-Weber is a “renegade” ordained Lutheran Pastor and NYT best-selling author on shame, sexuality, forgiveness and grace. She was described by Christianity Today as “the now-famous foul-mouthed, tattoo-festooned recovering alcoholic and former stand-up comic.” She says, “Christianity has been used for far too long to lock people into an endless cycle of sexual shame.” We talk about redemption, the power of grace, and being a leader as an outsider.

Web: https://nadiabolzweber.com

Podcast: https://nadiabolzweber.com/podcast/

Books: https://nadiabolzweber.com/books/

IG: https://www.instagram.com/sarcasticlutheran

Twitter:

FB: https://www.facebook.com/sarcasticlutheran

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

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Keith Mitchell went from NFL Pro to Master Yogi. He spent 8 years as a professional NFL linebacker until a paralyzing spinal contusion put a sudden end to his career. He says, “I have two mentalities – I have an understanding of what I know now and I have an understanding of what I knew then. With football, it was all more centred around anger and validation and now I understand the reasons why." He shares his emotional journey from a sudden change in identity and dealing with depression into yoga, spirituality and bringing consciousness to this world… especially to athletes, veterans... and the US Capital!

Web: https://www.keithmitchell59.com

Light It Up Foundation: https://www.keithmitchell59.com/light-it-up-foundation

IG: https://www.instagram.com/keithmitchell59

FB: https://www.facebook.com/keithmitchell59

Twitter: https://twitter.com/k_mitchell59

To find more about Jeffrey’s work, go to: https://thecourageousmessenger.com/

If you like this show, please leave us a review here - even a one-sentence review helps!