Going Beyond Cultural Expectations | Benny Lee | TEDxMcHenry

From “living a life as a street hustler” to becoming an advocate for those entangled with the corrections systems, Benny Lee will share his unforgettable story of reclamation. In his talk, he’ll discuss the power our expectations can have upon our self-worth, and how to move beyond that. A former Leader of the Vice Lords in the 60’s and 70’s, and once a death row inmate, Benny Lee has risen to become the epitome of a lifestyle change from street hustling, gang affiliation and prison culture, to receive his associate’s degree in Mental Health and Substance Abuse at Kennedy King College (Chicago), both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Northeastern Illinois University, where he’s now an adjunct professor in the Justice Studies department. He’s currently the founder and CEO of the National Alliance for the Empowerment of the Formerly Incarcerated (NAEFI), a community-based organization serving the formerly incarcerated living in the State of Illinois. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx