Jackson Free Press

Shaka Senghor is a living example of how a person can turn a difficult life around. He is a former convicted murderer turned college lecturer, author and director's fellow of the MIT Media Lab. He will be the featured speaker at a free Continuing Legal Education course on ethics and professionalism hosted by the American Civil Liberties Union today at the Mississippi College School of Law (151 E. Griffith St.) from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. The course is called "Rethinking Restoration." Senghor will talk about his experience as an incarcerated person, dealing with an attorney, and how the ethics rules attorneys are supposed to follow played into his experience in the criminal justice system.

Senghor was raised in a middle-class family in Detroit during the 1980s. He ran away from an abusive home at age 14, after which he became involved in the illegal drug trade. In the summer of 1991, he shot and killed a man and was convicted of second-degree murder, after which he spent 19 years in different prisons in Michigan, including seven years in solitary confinement. He was released from prison in 2010.

Since October 2015, Senghor has taught a class as part of the Atonement Project, a partnership between the University of Michigan and the MIT Media Lab. He is a leading voice in criminal-justice reform and the director of strategy for #Cut50, a national bipartisan initiative to safely and smartly cut the prison population in half by 2025. His memoir, "Writing My Wrongs," was published in March 2016.



Senghor has received such awards as the 2015 Manchester University Innovator of the Year Award and the 2012 Black Male Engagement Leadership Award. Senghor was also a 2014 TED Prize finalist for The Atonement Project, which helps victims and violent offenders heal through the power of the arts.

On Saturday, Sept. 17, Senghor will be the guest speaker at the ACLU of Mississippi Jazz Brunch at the King Edward Hotel (235 W. Capitol St.) at 11 a.m. Senghor will talk about his journey through the criminal-justice system, inside and out, with the goal of reforming the system through #Cut50.

To register for the free ethics course, send an email to [email protected]. For more information, call 601-354-3408. A VIP Reception and Book Signing of Senghor's "Writing My Wrongs" will take place tonight at 5:30 p.m. at the Parlor Market (115 W. Capitol St.) in downtown Jackson. There is no cost to attend, but book purchase is separate.

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