James Fox (prison reform advocate)
James Fox | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Known for | Prison Yoga Project |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Prison reform, Yoga as exercise or alternative medicine, Mindfulness, Race in the United States criminal justice system |
| Institutions | San Quentin State Prison |
James Fox is the founder and director of the Prison Yoga Project, dedicated to bringing mindfulness and yoga to prisons worldwide. He is the author of the self-published A Path for Healing and Recovery, which has been sent to over 10,000 prisoners, free of charge.[1]
Early life
Before Prison Yoga Project (PYP), Fox worked as a marketing executive for a wine company. When he injured his back, a friend prescribed yoga. Fox found yoga provided spiritual, as well as physical wellness.[2]
Fox did his first teacher training in 2000 with Erich Schiffman.[3] Shortly thereafter, he began working with at-risk youth at a residential treatment facility in Bolinas, California.[4] In 2002, Fox started teaching yoga to inmates at San Quentin Prison with the Insight Prison Project.[5]
Prison Yoga Project
Fox founded the Prison Yoga Project in 2010 after teaching at San Quentin for eight years as part of the Insight Prison Project.[6][7]
Workshops
As part of the Prison Yoga Project, Fox leads workshops all over the world.[8] The workshops provide education about the prison-industrial complex and guidance in conducting trauma-informed yoga practices, theoretically related to the embodiment therapy PTSD research of Bessel van der Kolk.[9]
Workshop participants can begin chapters in their own towns.[10] As of June 2016, Fox and PYP had trained over 1,500 instructors who are now teaching classes in over 105 prisons in 23 states.[11]
A Path for Healing and Recovery
In an attempt to spread the message of Prison Yoga Project, Fox wrote and self-published A Path for Healing and Recovery in 2011.[12]
The book collects Fox's knowledge and experience in teaching physical practices (asana), breathing practices (pranayama) and meditation (dyhana) to individuals struggling with PTSD.[13]
As part of PYP's mission, the book has been sent to over 10,000 prisoners upon request, free of charge.[14]
Personal life
Fox currently lives in Bolinas, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is married with two children.
References
- ^ "James Fox, Prison Yoga Project | Seva Award Nominee | Yoga Journal". 2015-03-22. Retrieved 2016-08-26.
- ^ "Ex-marketing exec finds satisfaction teaching yoga to prison inmates". Retrieved 2016-08-26.
- ^ "Gritty Inspiration: Chicago Welcomes the Prison Yoga Project | Yoga Chicago". yogachicago.com. Retrieved 2016-08-30.
- ^ "Prison Yoga Is Helping Inmates Transcend Their Cells | VICE | United States". 2015-09-27. Retrieved 2016-08-26.
- ^ "Gritty Inspiration: Chicago Welcomes the Prison Yoga Project | Yoga Chicago". yogachicago.com. Retrieved 2016-08-26.
- ^ "James Fox, Prison Yoga Project | Seva Award Nominee | Yoga Journal". 2015-03-22. Retrieved 2016-08-26.
- ^ "How Yoga Can Help in California's Overcrowded Prisons - Video". TIME.com. Retrieved 2016-08-26.
- ^ "The Prison Yoga Project". prisonyoga.org. Retrieved 2016-08-30.
- ^ "Category: Yoga/Meditation". Insight Prison Project. Retrieved 2016-09-01.
- ^ Grissom, Brandi (2013-12-12). "If the Sun Salutation Has to Fit Into a Cell". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-09-01.
- ^ "James Fox, founder of the The Prison Yoga Project, on Karma Yoga: bringing yoga into action, into service". Retrieved 2016-09-01.
- ^ A Path for Healing and Recovery - Prison Yoga Project. Bolinas, CA: Prison Yoga Project. 2011-01-01. ISBN 9781616238391.
- ^ "Give Back Yoga Foundation".
- ^ "James Fox, Prison Yoga Project | Seva Award Nominee | Yoga Journal". 2015-03-22. Retrieved 2016-09-01.