The power of language to redefine what matters | Javier Miranda | TEDxSingSing 2020

What does it mean to be “rehabilitated”? What if the person in question was never taught how to live and stay on the healthy path in the first place? Javier Miranda wants us to think about what it feels like to be someone in need of rehabilitation, specifically those incarcerated in American prisons. In this powerful talk, Javier discusses the power of language to impact someone’s recovery as well as the ways in which we can rehabilitate ourselves. Javier Miranda believes in the power education has to transform lives, communities, and societies. At the time of his arrest in 1994, he could not speak English; today, he holds a Masters Degree and is the author of Out of the Wilderness: A New Approach to Personal Development and Rehabilitation. For over 26 years as a peer counselor, Javier has been involved with many organizations combating AIDS, substance abuse, and epidemics of violence inside prisons. Currently, he is one of the coordinators for the New York Theological Seminary's Master Degree Program at Sing Sing.