Journalist Nathan McCall can be considered one of the lucky ones. In his autobiography, entitled Makes Me Wanna Holler, McCall recounts a life filled with terrible events and a happy ending in which he was able to get out of prison on parole and, unlike most young black men in America, escape the trap of recidivism and re-make his own life. But any happy ending to a story like McCall's is, at best, bittersweet. His experience with parole and the difficulties that exist for, or are put in the way of, those who need to reinvent themselves nearly overwhelmed him. But, as with so many of his experiences, McCall realizes that although he managed to defeat the effects of America's systemic racism in his fight against a parole system designed to help young black men right back into prison, the system and its motivating prejudices continue. Most of the men he knew in prison never had a chance and things have not changed at all since that time. The overall social response to the very high level of recidivism among paroled felons was not to ask what society was doing wrong (or why it was being done this way) but to insist that parole did not work at all. McCall is not, therefore, an example of how parole can work to defeat recidivism and get people back on their feet. Instead he is an example of how a few individuals can defeat a system and a set of attitudes that work directly against their stated goals.
After over two years in prison for armed robbery McCall took some good advice and got himself transferred to the St. Bride's facility where he was able to get excellent training in the printshop in preparation for the parole he hoped to gain. McCall's reading in prison had led him to a book on human development by black psychologist Na'im Akbar and its emphasis on human beings' "potential to develop and transform in stages" provided him with a model for his personal regeneration. His reading also helped him develop an interest ...