I'm currently participating in an excellent program being offered to some prisoners in Michigan. Chance for Life offers a two-and-a-half year program in Michigan prisons that is designed to help people develop the skills that will enable them to turn their lives around and become productive members of society. CFL is hoping to become a wrap-around program for the MDOC and they are working towards that end.
In our recent class we were talking about the importance of building character, in particular the ones CFL calls 'Character Pillars'. Although other character qualities are probably as important, CFL focuses on Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, and Citizenship. These are considered by CFL, the six core ethical values, and as such are considered 'pillars' on which the rest of our character rests.
Surprisingly, many prisoners hold others (and sometimes themselves) to a high standard of ethics in some areas of their lives. The problem is congruence. It's easy to show respect to those you hold respect for, and then not only fail to, but refuse to give it to others.
The next few posts I'll talk about these character pillars and in particular, how they relate to Michigan prisoners.
