Imagine being arrested, charged and sentenced to prison for a murder you didn’t commit. This week’s guest, Omar Yamini, experienced just that and he breaks all of the stereotypes of someone who has a murder conviction and served 15 years in prison.
Omar reinvented himself after his release, graduated from college, become an education consultant, built a non-profit, started a family, and is an extraordinary member of society and one of the kindest hearted individuals I have ever known.
In this two-part interview, we explore Omar’s story and how our country’s criminal justice system failed him and thousands more who are and have been imprisoned for crimes they did not commit. He shares his personal experience of living inside prison and how much extreme mental effort it took to not become inhuman or broken. Omar constantly improved himself in preparation for his re-entry into the real world and even still, seven years after his release he continues to improve himself and help others do the same.
Omar is now using his freedom for something powerful and incredibly eye-opening. Apart from writing the book What's Wrong With You!, Omar helps Chicago youth stay out of the prison system by working on their social and emotional learning and teaching them to identify the helpful and harmful influences that they will encounter and to make better choices with his company The Proper Perception.
Resources:
- The Theory of Accountability a law in Illinois and other states where one can be liable for the conduct of another
-
13th a documentary about racial inequality in the United States
- Segregation: A Global History of Divided Cities
- What's Wrong With You! Is the book written by Omar, which you can get from his website at The Proper Perception, LLC