Is there really a birth lottery in life? How do you choose between "breaking bad" or breaking out? You will learn from this episode how James McKeever was able to break free from the jail of poverty and how he chose purposeful work over violence and crime. We talk about the power and relevance of race, the role of mentors and family and what it takes to change your personal history when your parent’s legacy is dragging you done rather than propelling you upward. James has a long history of involvement in social justice work. He has worked for the Los Angeles County Probation Department, where he was involved with the design and implementation of prevention and intervention programs for detained youth. He has also worked with the National Committee for Community and Justice (NCCJ), a group that is dedicated to fighting racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. He received his bachelor degree from California State University Los Angeles where he graduated Magna Cum Laude. He received his PhD from the University of Southern California. Currently he is a Professor of Sociology Department at Los Angeles Pierce College.

His interests lie in the areas of the intersection of race, gender, and class as well as issues that have to do with negative outcomes for minority youth. James is a former American Sociological Association Minority Fellowship Program (MFP) Fellow and National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) Fellow. His dissertation focused on African-American men’s mentorship in majority Latina/o communities.