Ascendivism and the alpha male

In "Brothers and Keepers" John Edgar Wideman portrays a contrast between the lives of himself as award-winning novelist and his younger brother Robby serving a life-sentence for robbery and murder.

Jack Johnson = Alpha male imprisoned (criminalized) after refusing to acknowledge the hierarchy of "white" alpha males.

The thirteenth amendment to the US constitution reads:

"Neither slavery, nor involuntary servitude except as a punishment for crime where of the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States or any place subject to their jurisdiction." = "20th-century slaves."

The African Ink Road is evidence that an economy based on scholarship is viable. People who are in prisons could turn into the forefront of a new economic system.

Ascendivism

Etymology of recidivism
Noun

habitual or chronic relapse, or tendency to relapse, especially into crime or antisocial behavior.

Latin recidivus < recidere,

Taken from French recidivste.

The term recidivism originates from Arnould Bonneville de Marsangy's 1844 book "De la Recidive."

Etymology of ascendivism

noun

habitual tendency to achieve a higher state of accomplishment becoming beneficial to society.

Ascendivism is the use of processes of personal transformation creating desirable behavior after experiencing the consequences of undesirable behavior. It may involve treatment, training or neuro-linguistic programming to create thoughts culminating in desirable results. Ascendivism is quantified as the percentage of people who have had incarceration experience who within a year of said experience become benefits to society by not repeating that experience.

Ascend to go up, move up, rise.

Ascendivism is a tendency to rise above a previous condition or mode of behavior, especially advancing to virtuous behavior.

Wilbert Rideau:Ascendivist

Wilbert Rideau was sent to Louisiana's notorious Angola prison in 1961, at the age of 19, for killing a bank-teller hostage after a botched robbery. After 44 years and multiple retrials, he was released on Jan. 15, 2005.

R. Dwayne Betts on the teaching poetry in the DC Public Schools

R. Dwayne Betts on vimeo

Chuck Brown: Ascendivist

Chuck Brown learned to play a guitar in prison on an instrument made by prisoners.

"A System Does What It Is Designed To Do."

Whether it is poorly designed, flawed in its design or well designed, whatever it does, it does so by design.

The system which is called a "Criminal Justice System" is doing what it does by design. The sooner we design a system that creates more Chef Jeff Henderson's, Reginald Dwayne Betts', Vickie Stringer's, Charles Dutton's, and Malcolm Xs etc the sooner we will have an African Ink Road.

Criminal Justice is an oxymoron

Until caucasians came to Africa we did not have prisons. In the 1800s Caucasians were debating the mind of a criminal. At the same time in Africa there was no such thing as a recidivist. Africa did not have prisons. There was no Criminal Justice system like the one in Europe. Criminal Justice is an oxymoron. When there is justice there will be no criminals.

In the face of Mass Incarceration under "The New Jim Crow" what do we do?

One thing we can do is define and reference the reality we are experiencing. That is what powerful people do. Michelle Alexander is providing much needed information. However, she is referencing it from a position of weakness. True the phrase "New Jim Crow" does pique one's attention, but we need to be more proactive. For instance, I have been using the term "ASCENDIVISM" to describe people who have "incarceration experience." If a person is re-incarcerated in a year's time (in some jurisdictions) they are considered RECIDIVISTS. Recidivism focuses on a failure to enter society and not become re-incarcerated. Ascendivism focuses on success. We have to identify, and study those who succeed after an incarceration experience just as the Department of "Justice" monitors those who fail. The purpose is to create a model of success for those who enter the Criminal Justice system and those who we want to avoid it.

During the chattel stage of the MAAFA, there were abolitionists, people livicated to abolishing chattel Maafa. Now we have to focus ourselves spiritually, mentally, emotionally and economically, not to abolish the "New Jim Crow" but to increase ascendivism among our people. The African Ink Road was an economic system based on knowledge which spanned from Timbuktu in Mali to Kaduna in Nigera. It also reached into Niger and Chad. They wrote libraries full of books, shared knowledge and engaged in economic vitality with each other.

R. Dwayne Betts on the Tavis Smiley show

R. Dwayne Betts on the Tavis Smiley Show

R. Dwayne Betts is a testament to the ability to turn one's life around. Raised in Maryland, his early years showed academic promise. His behavior changed in high school and, at 16, he began a journey that would end with a nine-year prison sentence. After spending most of his teens and early 20s in prison, Betts earned his degree from the University of Maryland, started a book club for boys and is national spokesperson for the Campaign for Youth Justice. A published poet, he's has also written a memoir, A Question of Freedom.

R. Dwayne Betts, author of A Question of Freedom and national spokesperson for Campaign for Youth Justice, reflects on his time in prison, his success after his release, the importance of books and the need to be more involved in the lives of young people.

Michelle Alexander on "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness"

Now that we know the attributes of the challenge before us it is possible to redefine the reality around us.

Ascendivism allows us to redirect the effects of an incarceration experience. An ascendivist rises above their incarceration experience to succeed despite that experience after a "transformational moment." As an antidote to recidivism, ascendivism focuses on success.

Michelle Alexander: US Prisons, The New Jim Crow

A new label has been created for people of color who have transcended the effects of an incarceration experience ...ascendivist.

Ascendivists are people like Charles Dutton, Judge Greg Mathis, Reginald Dwayne Betts, Vickie Stringer, Malcolm X, Chef Jeff Henderson, Robert Maupin (Iceberg Slim) Beck and Ralph Waldo "Petey" Green.

They went through the Prison Industrial Complex and came out the other side. They had a "transformational moment" which triggered a permanent change in their thoughts and behavior. The events which follow that event are the model for ascendivists. Ascendivism is a thought process which has not been tracked, monitored or researched like its antithesis, recidivism.

Judge Mathis Prisoner Initiative

Inspiring the incarcerated

Ascendivist Judge Greg Mathis talks with CNN's Don Lemon about his ideas regarding incarcerated individuals.

A group of successes

Ascendivism groups together people who after a period of incarceration rise to a level of success that even people who have never been incarcerated do not achieve. Recidivism however, focuses on failure.

Why does the criminal justice system do that? Who knows. The good thing is now there are a group of successful people who can be used as a model for success to emulate.

Additionally, ascendivists are usually creative types. Then of course there are the greater ascendivists. It seems that the mind of the ascendivist has reached a point where they have a transformative moment. From that point on the same mind which previously used its ability to think for devious thoughts then begins to think creative thoughts.

Robert Downey Jr: Ascendivist

Robert Downey Jr talks about his role as Iron Man and the importance of moral psychology in maintaining himself as an ascendivist.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJyGYEJsiCI

The difference between recidivism and ascendivism

The one focuses on failure while the other focuses on success.

Success

To laugh often and much;
To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;
To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others;
To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;
To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded.

Often attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson, it is an adaptation of a poem published in 1905 by Bessie Stanley. No version of it has been found in Emerson's writings.

Bessie Stanley (adapted; erroneously attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Who are the ascendivists?

Ascendivism began as a means to balance the focus on recidivism in the legal system. Recidivisim has been monitored, tracked and studied for years while its antonym, ascendivism has only recently been defined and codified.

Who are the ascendivists? They are people like Robert Maupin Beck author of "Iceberg Slim" and other novels. Others include Stanley "Tookie" Williams, Nick Ashford, R. Dwayne Betts, Chef Jeff Henderson, Don King, Vickie Stringer, Malcolm X, Charles Dutton, Judge Greg Mathis, Robert Downey Jr. and others who had an incarceration experience and rose above it.

Ascendivism - a definition

Ascendivism is the act of a person creating desirable behavior after experiencing negative consequences of undesirable behavior. The desirable behavior is the end result of choosing to create desirable behavior through treatment, training, or some other method to replace the undesirable behavior with behavior producing desired results. It can be quantified as the percentage of former prisoners who become benefits to society by remaining at liberty, the percentage of former substance abusers who continue long-term abstinence, the percentage of former welfare recipients who become financially self-sufficient, or the percentage of former illiterates who attain a literacy level of basic or better on the National Assessment of Adult Literacy survey.

Ascendivism is a tendency to rise above a previous condition, mode of behavior or state of mind; most notably advancing to virtuous behavior.