Dear Friends,

When I travel for Street Yoga I watch TV. It's an addiction from my youth that I can no longer serve at home, since we have no TV.

There's only two shows i can stand anymore on the box: Lockup and Police Women.

I think these should be required viewing for anyone who wants to understand the United States.

I'll rave about the lady cops in the future (suffice to say the best of them embody a compassion that penetrates the darkest corners, and i am deeply grateful for their showing up), but for now, attend for a moment to America's vast prison industry: at the end of 2009, 3.1% of adult Americans were on probation, in jail or prison, or on parole [link here] and if you add in the guards, jailers, sheriffs, attorneys, judges, probation officers and family members of all of those, it's a huge % of our society. African Americans are incarcerated over six times as much as whites.

Photo by Southern Arizona Prison Project

On the show, they profile specific prisons, and bring you inside. There is more truth in these episodes than any show I've ever seen. The conflicted guards are fascinating; they seem to want to assure security, not get killed, be compassionate, and get what they can from a violent system, all at the same time. I study their often pallid skin tone, the way they hold their bodies, the looks that flash through their eyes. I wonder how my life would be if that was the best way I could find to provide for my family. I hold compassion for them.

Amongst the male prisoners, I've identified three patterns of inmates. First, there are those who do not feel anything other than satisfaction about their crimes. They have cataclysmic empathy deficits. I always ask myself if yoga could help these more psychopathic personalities: if our work is powerful enough to effect real neurological change on their body-minds. I know that it is.

The second group seems completely lost. They vocalize bravado but look like they miss even the tiniest measure of compassion. I cannot imagine how they could possibly ever sleep as scared as they are.   

The third group, though, causes me to watch in wonder. It's like viewing heart surgery in progress: it's all laid bare. What distinguishes these men from the others is that they feel remorse, a "deep and painful regret for wrongdoing". The word comes from Latin and its root means "to bite again". These men have been bitten by the realization --the physical, somatic, emotional and cognitive realization-- that they have severely hurt other people. They not only suffer their own pain, but the pain of those they have afflicted. Many of them sit stunned before the camera when asked to tell their story. They cannot fathom how much destruction they have caused. Beholding the burden they endure of having to live with all that is humbly.

And when they cry, you feel the pain of centuries falling around their feet.

The women in prison are a whole different story, one of relationships and love. I'll touch on that when I write about the lady cops.

Street Yoga is trying to keep young men and women out of prison. We're trying to help kids whose parents are incarcerated, and young people on probation, kids who are at high risk of ending up prisoners themselves. With many millions of Americans at such risk, the stakes are high. I appreciate all your support of Street Yoga in this work, and I send out huge props to

Living Yoga, the Prison Yoga Project , the Give Back Yoga Foundation, the Lineage Project 

and so many others organizations and individuals who are serving with yoga in and out of prisons!  

Blessings all,

m

"One girl announced to me that that Friday was her last day at Trillium and so her last yoga class with us. After class, she told me how she was going home but had some kind of therapy program to continue while at home. She said she had insisted to her counselor that yoga be part of that program because "she thinks it really does help." I was so glad for her and it was a nice confidence booster for me as so many of the kids do come and go."

 ~ Laura Mattison, Volunteer at Trillium Behavioral Health

So many wonderful individuals, organizations, and businesses support Street Yoga. We are continually filled with gratitude for their generous support.

SAN DIEGO TEACHER TRAINING

• Thank you San Diego Youth Services for being such a gracious host for the Street Yoga Teacher Training. Coming to your city fosters so much connection and truly needed service. We look forward to next time!  
• Co-sponsors: Yoga Oceanside, Bindu Yoga and Yoga Del Mar provided amazing support as the San Diego Training Co-Sponsors. The training was so full and vibrant! Community building in San Diego is going full force, we can't wait to come back soon! 

PORTLAND TEACHER TRAINING

• We appreciate Yoga Shala of Portland and enjoy every opportunity we have to create a larger family here in in our hometown of Portland!
• Our amazing teacher trainers created such a wonderful space for sharing, fostering deep trust and playful exploration! Thank you TJ and Sweethome!
   

DONATIONS FROM THE HEART

• Spirit Body Massage donated brand new yoga mats, blocks and straps. Thank you for thinking of us and the kids we serve. Best of luck! 

HUFFINGTON POST FEATURES STREET YOGA! 

AOL/Huffington Post Media Group has also issued a 30-day Service Challenge to every one of its employees worldwide, encouraging them to give their time to non-profits in their local communities and organizing volunteer events in 16 cities. Utilizing the power of online journalism to help people get involved, work together, and bring about real change, HuffPost featured Street Yoga! 

» read more here 

............................................................................. 

VISIONS TEEN BLOG  

Blogger, Sarit is inspured by Street Yoga in this article about healing with Yoga.
 

"I've talked about this before, how there is an intrinsic, healing factor when one brings yoga into their recovery. When we use and abuse, we disconnect. We tune out, shut down, and ultimately unplug from reality. Sometimes, particularly in cases of physical, emotional or sexual abuse, the desire to compartmentalize and/or tune out is particularly prevalent. With yoga, the goal is to focus on one thing: your breath. In those moments, when we are able to do just that, it's possible for a transformation to occur. Within that focus comes the potentiality of acceptance, and with acceptance eventually comes healing."

read more blog.visionsteen.com » 

Community and Donation classes benefit Street Yoga Programming, and are a fun way to give back to the community through your practice!  

Santosha Yoga

Beginning Vinyasa class at 10:30 a.m. Saturdays.

All proceeds from this class benefit Street Yoga.

4876 NW Bethany Blvd, Suite L4

http://www.santoshaforeverybody.com/ 

Yoga Bhoga

Power Yoga for all levels! 12pm to 1:30 p.m. every Saturday
10% of all class proceeds benefit Street Yoga.
1028 SE Water Ave #265

http://yogabhoga.com/ 

....................................................

Trainings are open to experienced yoga teachers as well as those new to yoga. In the past we've had massage therapists, nurses, social workers, teachers and many others join us for a weekend of connection, learning and soul-building.

We now offer CEUs through the Yoga Alliance and the National Association of Social Workers for the SY Training.  Sign up now! 

Tucson · April 2011 (full!) 

Seattle · April 2011 (full!) 

Washington, DC · May 2011

Minneapolis, MN · June 2011

Philadelphia, PA · June 2011 

New York · July 2011

Detroit · Aug 2011 

Boston · Aug 2011
Portland · Aug 2011   

Click here to register and secure your spot »

DRINK STREET YOGA TEA!

SPORT A STREET YOGA T-SHIRT OR TANK!

Look fabulous and support Street Yoga all at the same time!  

Click here to check it out!

Donating to Street Yoga

Thank you, many smiles and blessings to you all! Namaste.

GIVING WITH GRACE 

Street Yoga operates largely due to the generosity of volunteers and Street Yoga supporters like you. And like any operation, we are in need of a few items to support our growing Street Yoga team.

Our website is a growing, evolving space for us to communicate with so many different people. If you would be able to contribute your DRUPAL experience, email Alice! 

Needed: 

• Small round table for board meetings! Our space is growing, and we are creating more space for volunteer work, special projects and more!  
• Multimedia projector
• 2 Desk chairs
• Shelving built for storage unit

http://streetyoga.org/support/wish-list 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . .  

Every donation is tax deductible! Please contact Alice if you have a donation, and for information.  

alice@streetyoga.org 

Contact Us:

www.streetyoga.org

503-232-0362