Un Nuevo Capítulo / A New Chapter
With over 2.3 million Americans behind bars – an estimated 241,000 in California according to the Prison Policy Initiative – mass incarceration is a serious problem in the United States. With a passion for social justice, prison reform, and a deep devotion to service, see how one San Diego yoga teacher is using her training to help incarcerated individuals develop self-awareness, a sense of worth, and learn self-regulation through specialized trauma-informed yoga techniques. Lindsey Paoloni’s mission is to empower these individuals to make better choices to eventually make a positive impact upon re-entry into society.
January 6, 2020
To Whom It May Concern,
My hope is to empower people through creative activism, specifically documentaries delivering messages that inspire dialogue and action. After a life-saving procedure a few years ago, I had the fortune of personally learning about and benefiting from yoga therapy which includes trauma-informed yoga techniques.
Since then, I have witnessed the remarkable work of so many certified yoga therapists using their yoga for the greater good. After spending more than 15 years working in the news industry, I now get to choose how I use my voice. Mahatma Gandhi said, “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” And, so I’m choosing to contribute by showing and telling impactful stories with the hopes of planting seeds to inspire change.
As a first-time Latina director and producer , UN NUEVO CAPÍTULO / A NEW CHAPTER, is my debut documentary short. It highlights the work of the Prison Yoga Project (PYP) in the Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility, San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, where PYP staff and volunteers continue to make a profound impact on incarcerated individuals by using specialized trauma-informed yoga techniques.
The Unites States of America is the world’s leader when it comes to mass incarnation.
“We are 5% of the world’s population and have 25% of the world’s incarcerated population,” states Bill Brown, Executive Director of the Prison Yoga Project. “This is a historical aberration. We have got to do something to change this.”
Marlyn Ponce, jailed in the Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility, shares how yoga is empowering her to learn about herself, in addition to how the techniques are helping her mentally and emotionally to modify her behavior, and make better choices… as she states, “To think before she acts.”
Lindsay Paolini, Prison Yoga Project Yoga Teacher, believes, “Yoga is a powerful tool that can change your life.” Preferring to work with the underserved and vulnerable populations instead of in a regular yoga studio, she says, “Many of the incarcerated individuals here come from terrible circumstances and deserve to improve their lives just like anyone else.”
A lot of people have an idea of yoga as a fitness regime, but it is so much more than the physical postures. See how specialized yoga techniques are empowering incarcerated individuals to change their lives thanks to everyday heroes like the PYP yoga teachers who are “being the change they want to see in the world”…. in this case, working to heal others while reducing the rate of recidivism we have in this country.
As the daughter of an Air Force officer, Deanna Schultz constantly moved around the globe. She considers it a unique opportunity to have grown up in an environment in which she learned first‐hand about the world, not having to rely solely on a text book. “I have a great amount of respect for the opportunities my parents presented to us while growing up. While other parents pretty much kept their kids within the walls of military bases. My parents purposely chose to live in regular neighborhoods before moving onto my dad’s assigned Air Force base, allowing my siblings and me the freedom to learn that country’s language, customs and cultures.” As a young adult living in Europe, she started to see the world from a different perspective, one that would propel her into the world broadcast journalism, then directing and producing documentaries.
Born in Fort Collins, Colorado as Deanna Reyes‐Ramirez, she is the oldest of four siblings. While in her last year of college in Germany with the University of Maryland, University College, she interned with the Armed Forces Network. Since then she has become an award‐winning, multilingual journalist, working in both English and Spanish news markets. And, is now CEO and Co‐founder of D & G PRODUCTIONS. Using her talents and skills gained from the news industry, Deanna’s mission now is to empower people through creative activism, specifically documentaries… delivering messages that inspire dialogue and action.
In 2014, she – along with additional colleagues – was recognized during the 56th SoCal Journalism Awards by the L.A. Press Club, for her role in field‐producing MundoFox National New’s,“Dios Mio! ¿Ahora Quien Manda?” ”My God! Now Who’s In Charge?” from Rome, Italy covering the resignation of then Pope Benedict XVI and the convening of Papal conclave 2013 that resulted in the election of Pope Francis.
My mission is educating, empowering, and inspiring individuals through creative activism.
“Dream big! Follow your heart. You will run into obstacles, and when you do, welcome them and continue moving forward.”
— Deanna Schultz