Discussions of the relationship between blacks and the criminal justice system in this country too often grind to a halt as people slink down into their silos and arm themselves with their best rhetorical weapons — racial bias on one side and...
On March 20 in the St. Louis County town of Florissant, someone made an illegal U-turn in front of Nicole Bolden. The 32-year-old black single mother hit her brakes but couldn’t avoid a collision. Bolden wasn’t at fault for the accident...
[Image: Rob Donnelly] There's no question that alcohol is a factor in the majority of sexual assaults on campus. And alcohol is abundant and very present at most colleges today. In fact, federal health officials say more than 80 percent of college students drink. And about half say they binge drink. This means more than four drinks for women and more than five drinks for men, within a two-hour time frame. "Everybody's drinking to get drunk," says Dr. Sharon Levy , a...
....So while Jackie hoped for the best, she knew the call she was making had the potential to not end well. "You can't hate me after I say this," she pleaded when, alarmed to be receiving a call in the middle of the night, her mom picked up the...
[Linda Davidson photo] ...Over time, their lives were constrained — or cushioned — by the circumstances they were born into, by the employment and education prospects of their parents, by the addictions or job contacts that would become their economic inheritance. Johns Hopkins researchers Karl Alexander and Doris Entwisle watched as less than half of the group graduated high school on time. Before they turned 18, 40 percent of the black girls from low-income homes had...
David Bornstein, who contributes to the NYTimes.com "Fixes" column, interviewed Parker J. Palmer, author of Healing the Heart of Democracy. ......David Bornstein: What’s the main implication of this idea? Parker J. Palmer. :...
A dingy fleece blanket is draped over the fish tank to keep the kids from watching TV in the reflection of the glass when they are supposed to fall asleep. At bedtime, the four oldest — Jaquan, Matthew, Jazmine and DeArShay —...
As another school year begins and old routines settle back into place, I wanted to share my story in honor of the teachers everywhere who care for our children. I lost my 6-year-old daughter Ana Grace on Dec. 14, 2012, in the rampage at...
The undertaking of Trauma Informed Care here at Hopeworks has taught me something about culture change. I have come to appreciate that culture change isn’t simply a cognitive action–where I learn new information and then...
Dr. Stephen Porges writes that mammals like us aren’t made to be traumatized. We’re made to attach to other mammals, which makes us feel safe, secure and good. When that fails, we’re made to fall back into fight/flight; we get...
Jurisdictions across the country should stop sentencing kids to spend the rest of their lives in detention. “Children are constitutionally different from adults. ... Because juveniles have diminished culpability and greater prospects for reform...
The American criminal justice system is at a critical juncture. In recent years, federal policymakers have called for reforms, following the lead of states that have reduced prison populations without compromising public safety. Nationwide prison...
A growing chain of specialized Los Angeles County clinics is keeping people experiencing mental health crises from ending up in jail or an emergency room, according to statistics compiled by the county and an agency that runs two of the clinics. One...
Changing people’s perceptions of mental illness has been a longtime mission for Dario D’Ambrosi, an Italian avant-garde actor and author. For the past five years, he has led Teatro Patologico, or the Pathological Theater, an innovative...
I can remember the early days of having schizophrenia. I was so afraid of the implications of subtle body language, like a lingering millisecond of eye contact, the way my feet hit the ground when I walked or the way I held my hands to my side. It was...