John Tolliver

Brainstormer, Change agent, Christian, Concerned citizen, Connector, Idea generator, Parent, Potential employer, Single, Writer/Editor

John Tolliver is more than the "Criminal" he was once regrettably known as in the streets of Buffalo, NY. He is no longer robbing the world or even himself of his full potential. At 16, armed with his GED, he dropped out of college -- this was the first in a series of bad decisions that eventually led to him being incarcerated for 25 years to life. On both sides of the bars, he has sought to encourage youth to remain in school and not replicate his mistakes. While incarcerated, he has earned a certificate as a legal assistant / paralegal from the Blackstone Career Institute. John has also spent over 7 years in Attica helping inmates to address and resolve their complaints about staff and jail conditions. John is the father of three awesome boys and is constantly striving to improve, evolve, and live as a contributing member of a healthy society.

My family; criminal justice and prison reforms; inequality; autism research; youth mentoring; reading; football; and everyone finding happinesss

Remaining open-minded is vital to a healthy lifestyle. Because, sometimes, we can grow so accustomed to a particular viewpoint that it can skew our perspective on it. In fact, it may even cause us to be unwilling to accept views contrary to ours. Due to our incessant culture of categorization, we have become very divisive. If this can occur with a topic as mundane as whether a hotdog is a sandwich, then we should reconsider our need to constantly label things. Perhaps, when we set aside our opinions and beliefs, we will live a much happier, conflict-free life.

Being optimistic, NY State's Inmate Grievance Program, Surviving "crazy"

A hot dog is indeed a sandwich. By conducting a simple unscientific poll on whether a hot dog was considered a sandwich, I was able to see how we can be so ingrained with an opinion or belief that we may fail to see something another way. Personally, I held views on myself and sex offenders that were not conducive to making this world a better place. Once I challenged my own opinions and beliefs, I recognized how truly wrong I could be at times. This led me to being a lot more open-minded and finding a sense of happiness. I believe we all can be much more happy when we're open-minded.

cooking, bowling, and swimming