Seen Out Loud - Seen Out Loud Podcast Trailer

Jun 29, 2022

The Impact of Community Conditions with Matthew Jackson

In this episode, Matthew Jackson explains how the community conditions he grew up in influenced the trajectory of his life into adulthood, and the difficulties he experienced with leaving “Jungle” in the past and charting a new path for the betterment of his family. Listen as Matthew shares his story as a single father, passionately invested in his daughter’s life, and how he’s helping other dads, with similar beginnings in Boston, MA and Washington, D.C. [Warning: This conversation contains explicit language] *Show Notes* 00:00:26 | Matt starts the conversation on what he means by child welfare reform. 00:01:18 | Meet Matthew Jackson. 00:04:17 | Matthew talks about parenting his 10-year-old daughter. 00:06:44 | Matthew’s take on how options presented in his community during his youth strongly impacted the trajectory of his early years into adulthood. 00:09:53 | Matthew explains how baseball provided him and his peers a vision of a way out of his neighborhood and the surrounding circumstances. 00:12:06 | How Matthew arrived at the decision to push his baseball dreams aside and pursue the hustle culture that consumed his community and––one by one––each of his teammates and friends. 00:13:50 | Matthew shares how he received his nickname “Jungle” and how the creation of this persona helped him survive in a community where lives were often cut short. 00:17:22 | Matthew recalls the beginnings of his relationship with his then-girlfriend and eventually becoming a first-time dad. 00:20:08 | Matthew reflects on the conflict he experienced while wrestling with how he would provide for his family. 00:21:49 | On Halloween 2014, Matthew’s life changed forever–– he describes the events that take place which hurled him into the role of a single father. 00:24:49 | Matthew shares how wrestling with the grief of the loss of his girlfriend, as well as his newfound responsibility as the sole provider for his daughter, brought him to the decision to leave hustling in his past and chart a new path. 00:27:42 | Matthew explains the difficulties of earning low wages at a retail job and providing for his daughter. 00:31:17 | Matthew shares the impact of the district attorneys on his case postponing his trial and later putting Matthew on probation instead of in jail. 00:35:35 | Matt poses a question to listeners as he reflects on Matthew’s story. 00:36:30 | Matthew shares more on his involvement with Smart from the Start. 00:37:34 | What are some things Matthew is hearing from other dads he works with at Smart from the Start about how they’re viewed and treated as fathers in communities? 00:38:55 | What exactly does Matthew do when working with fathers in the Focusing on Fatherhood program? 00:41:46 | Matt shares final thoughts *Resources* Smart from the Start Fatherhood Organizations | Child Welfare Information Gateway *Bonus Content* Photo album *Connect with us and support us by...* * Rating and reviewing the show * Supporting our show through Paypal * Visiting our podcast website for more content

44 min