In the past week The Facing Project has been featured by The Huffington Post, Soul Train, and Harlem World Magazine as one of three “oral history” projects everyone should know. Before last week, we’ve had the honor of being highlighted in newspapers from Atlanta to New York and have had … [Read more...]
When Kelsey and I brought The Facing Project back to our hometown of Muncie, Indiana, last fall and focused the project on “Facing Autism,” the stories shared definitely hit closer to home—not just geographically, but personally. For Kelsey, his wife Annie told her story about coming to … [Read more...]
As 52,000 children wait in detention at the US-Mexico border, I can’t help but think about all of their stories. Why aren’t we hearing the human side of their existence? Perhaps not knowing is easier because if we knew, it might be harder for us to think about “sending them back” or “not … [Read more...]
In 2005, I traveled to Honduras because my T-shirt was made there. Silly reason, I know. And it felt silly once I showed up at the factory where it was made to meet the workers. I met Amilcar who was 25. We chatted for a few minutes and then we went our separate ways. I became obsessed with where … [Read more...]
Addiction. It knows no boundaries. It does not discriminate. It will eventually kill—if not your body, your mind and spirit. There are 23 million adults currently living in the U.S. who have struggled with addiction to drugs or alcohol.¹ And in the state of Kentucky alone, an estimated … [Read more...]
You want to know what stops me in my tracks? Hearing someone say, “I don’t have time to give back or make a difference.” Okay, let’s be honest—it makes me angry. Just this past weekend I was chatting with a colleague about The Facing Project, and she interrupted to say: “I wish I … [Read more...]
In the last section of my book Where Am I Eating? I wrote about fasting on Black Friday. By dinner, I was experiencing hunger like I hadn’t known hunger. It no longer existed in my stomach; we all know hunger like that—the kind that twists, the kind that growls. This was lightheadedness … [Read more...]
Taking a story someone has lived and translating it into a story you write—as if you were them— is not for the faint of heart. It requires an open mind, impeccable listening skills, and a good amount of empathy. And when the story crafted has a theme of sexual abuse and slavery, it takes a … [Read more...]
We recently had the opportunity to travel to Rome, Georgia, to speak at the Bonner Summer Leadership Institute for college students and advisors from across the country. This was important for two reasons: 1. The theme of the conference was "Live Your Legacy." Part of our message when we give … [Read more...]
When I tell people about the Facing Project, they often say, "Oh, it's like an oral history project." "Sure," I say, not really knowing exactly what an oral history project is. Well instead of continuing not to know J.R. and I are taking it upon ourselves to learn about the tradition and … [Read more...]