JustUs Speaks Podcast

Jamala Taylor (Leading with Conviction™ 2024) was initially sentenced to a daunting 99-year-to-life term and spent 15 years in solitary confinement at Pelican Bay State Prison/S.H.U. Over his 31-year incarceration in various maximum-security facilities across California, Jamala’s journey took a significant turn when he was granted release on December 30, 2020.Since his release, Jamala has earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology from CSU-Fullerton and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) with a concentration in nonprofit management/Public Policy from the University of Southern California’s Sol Price School of Public Policy.Jamala is also a certified life coach, having completed the rigorous 9-month Coaching for Healing, Justice, and Liberation certification program (CHJL). Recently, he launched a coaching and consulting firm called Amandla. Jamala consults with various companies around the country on reentry and incarceration-related training and issues.In addition to his coaching work, he currently serves as the Senior Reentry Manager for Land Together (formerly The Insight Garden Program/IGP), the program from which he himself is an alumnus.

Stephanie Jeffcoat (Leading with Conviction™ 2024) was in and out of prison because of substance use and addiction, which led to a six-month period of incarceration where she permanently lost custody of her daughter.The trauma of losing her child has led her to found Families Inspiring Reentry and Reunification for Everyone (FIR4E). It also led her to earn five associate degrees, as well as her Bachelor’s at Cal State Fullerton and pursue a law degree through Trinity Law School.Beyond academia, Stephanie has shared her transformative journey from addiction, incarceration, and homelessness in a published memoir.

At the time of this interview last year, Alexander Brown (Leading with Conviction™ 2024) was working with Live Free Illinois, as well as being Community Liaison for Cook County’s Justice Advisory Council and working as a Paralegal with the Cook County Public Defender’s Office, one of the biggest law firms in the country.He talks about fair chances at employment after incarceration.

The In Their Hands documentary tells the powerful personal story of Ronnie Carrasquillo. Ronnie was only 18 years old when he committed the crime for which he was convicted. It was a shooting of a plainclothes police officer that occurred in 1976 during a gang-related incident in Chicago, resulting in a sentence of 200-600 years in prison. As you watch In Their Hands, Ronnie appears destined to die in prison. His life is in the hands of a parole board whose decision-making is swayed by shifting political sands and an ever-present police union. But we’re glad to tell you that Ronnie was finally released from prison in 2023 after serving 47 years. And we’re so grateful he is with us on the podcast today—along with the film’s director/producer Dan Protess—to talk about his story and this powerful documentary that JustLeadershipUSA is honored to be partnering on as it airs on PBS stations across the country during the month of April, Second Chance Month — what we’re also calling “Fair Chance Month.”

Ashley Furst (Leading with Conviction™ 2024) grew up with a father who worked for Wackenhut (later rebranded The GEO Group), the private prison corporation, believing that people who went to prison were “bad people.” That was until she found herself being sentenced to 27 months for her own choices while struggling with substance abuse disorder.Ashley admits she struggles to see herself as a leader, because of experiencing imposter syndrome post-incarceration. Co-host Lana Mendis shares her own personal experience, as well. Ashley also shares what her dream would be.