Ep. 160 (Part 1 of 2) | In this profoundly moving and inspiring conversation, GRIP Training Institute CEO, Kim Moore, and facilitator/trainer Fateen Jackson, Sr., also a GRIP graduate, educate us as to the power and magic of the GRIP prison movement, based on Jacques Verduin’s model: Leaving Prison Before You Get Out. This yearlong trauma healing and accountability program is unique in the degree of radical transformation it aims for—and delivers. It is about freeing minds, and as Kim points out, goes beyond the duality of teacher/student, inmate/not inmate, victim/offender to where everyone joins in a mutual journey of healing, transformation, and liberation.The program is so transformative that ripple effects from GRIP students can be felt throughout the prison, and GRIP graduates often struggle with how little emotional intelligence and trauma healing work the rest of us have done when they get out.

Kim and Fateen shine a bright light on the inestimable value of a caring, compassionate community, pointing out that deep personal transformation and taking responsibility doesn’t happen in isolation. They share illuminating stories of their own experiences, and the dedication and gladness they exude in this talk is itself impactful and inspiring. There is something in this conversation, maybe because it touches our deepest brokenness and then lifts it up and redeems it, that reaches right into one’s heart and infuses it with inspiration, hope, compassion, and love. Recorded November 21, 2024.

“The wisdom that is born in these groups goes way beyond prison.”

(For Apple Podcast users, click here to view the complete show notes on the episode page.)

Topics & Time Stamps – Part 1

Introducing GRIP CEO Kim Moore, facilitator/trainer Fateen Jackson, and the remarkable program Guiding Rage into Power (01:15)
How did Kim come to have a life purpose of facilitating transformation? (04:06)
Moving out of privilege into direct relationship with the realities of criminal justice (06:25)
Fateen’s story and how GRIP allowed him to source the trauma that led to prison and transform it (09:19)
The morning Fateen was released and the ripple effects of GRIP (16:03)
4 foundations of GRIP: cultivating mindfulness, developing emotional intelligence, doing no harm, understanding victim & survivor impact (19:39)
The importance of building a safe container and building trust (20:52)
GRIP assignments: the unfinished business letter, apology to the victims letter, and more (22:18)
The emotional/energetic arc the group goes through, ending with a deep sense of empathy for the survivors or victims (25:33)
What is the power and the magic of GRIP? 1) instruction, 2) practice/tools, 3) processing (28:36)
The incredible power of a healing community (30:07)
Leaving prison mentally, emotionally, spiritually can happen even while still in prison, without hope of release (30:55)
The healing itself is the reward—that’s where the freedom comes from (32:12)
How GRIP students affect the rest of the prison: flipping the culture of the yard (33:20)
Becoming peacemakers: taking responsibility for your own healing doesn’t happen in isolation—it happens in community (34:39)
What happens when you get out of prison?

Kim Moore & Fateen Jackson (Part 1) – Guiding Rage into Power: From Prisoners to Lifelong Peacemakers

Deep Transformation