Liberating From Hate -- Building a World of Encounter, Not Confrontation

It is easy to think of militant hate group and gang members as heartless, self-centered, hostile people with no sense of compassion or appreciation for their fellow humans who are different in any way. In the same way that we believe these hostile acting “haters” are ignorant of others, most of us are also ignorant of who many of those who live by violence truly are. Sammy Rangel was one of these hate group gang members who lived by violence and hate. Today, he is a proponent of compassion and recovery, having co-founded a group that reaches out and helps others recover from a life of hate and violence. Hear his story and what he says are the keys to reaching others living from hate and violence and helping them turn their lives around.

Drew Benton, Founder of Project Live Love and Director of Safehouse Outreach talks with host, Dawn Ely, about the homeless population, what it is like to be homeless, who are those suffering homeless, what they do and do not look like, how the realities challenge preconceived notions of what we think about those suffering homelessness, and what is needed to help those in homeless situations rise above. Host, Dawn Ely, also shares some of her eye-opening experiences with those in homeless situations. As Drew says at the end of the conversation, if we all took just one step towards informing ourselves by having just one conversation, we could make tremendous steps to solving many of the problems associated with homelessness. Don't turn away. Next time you are on the street faced with someone suffering from homelessness, choose to encounter them differently and hear some small piece of their story. We promise you, you'll be surprised, and you'll start seeing and understanding so much more about this circumstance and the people in it. Links referenced in the video: www.projectlivelove.com under which you can find the program 3-0-WeGo to volunteer to hand out items during cold winter nights in Atlanta www.safehouseoutreach.org to volunteer and/or donate Contact Drew: drew@safehouseoutreach.org drew@projectlivelove.com

The first episode in a series exploring how we can minimize conflict in our life and in our world through understanding more about others and gaining the tools to better manage our own thoughts about others. The series will involve stories and experiences of others engaging in encounters with those different from them and how these encounters can turn our thought worlds upside down in what we think and believe. This first episode describes a few real-life stories that begin the journey.