Through a discussion of the spiritual and mental influences on self-image, the author presents the path to deviant behavior and even physical imprisonment as beginning with higher forms of imprisonment being spiritual and mental resulting in physical incarceration. Dixon argues that not only is this behavior preventable, but through the power of controlling one's own thought process and developing a postive value system, deviant behavior, incarceration and even the recidivism rate may be reduced. Reclaiming Our Children offers a fascinating look into what comprises good households verses conscious households and how the later serves as a transformative power for the lives of our children. Also learn how impoverished neighborhoods are linked to impoverished mindsets and sustained through the process of mind conditioning which breeds thoughts of self acceptance. Reclaiming Our Children also discusses how to unlock the transformative power that will rescind the power of negative thoughts and produce positive, productive fruit in the lives of our children far into adulthood breaking cycles that have plagued far too many generations of our youth.
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Editorial Reviews
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Headline: A Visionary/Practical R/X for Imprisonment Prevention... and More In his indispensable new book, Reclaiming Our Children, much-honored author/lecturer/social critic Robby Dixon asks crucial questions and offers penetrating answers and prescriptions few before him have even thought to ask, about imprisonment (and our prison systems) in America, socio-psychologico-spiritual dynamics that have led so many of our youth to incarceration... and most importantly, how parents can proactively inoculate children against the forces that lead to imprisonment and contribute to the genesis of a national shift away from mass soul-and-actual confinement, to a new, spreading paradigm of material productivity and spiritual liberty. From extensive research and personal experience counseling families and prison inmates and exploration of prison systems and environments, Dixon presents shocking evidence that for certain special interests prison serves as a sinister profit-generator that (wittingly or unwittingly) actually conditions inmates into revolving doors returning them to prisons again and again. Where does imprisonment really begin? Dixon then asks. Long before the iron doors slam behind a person, Dixon avers. In fact, he says, incarceration s start is three-leveled and begins in the mind and heart in ways that if not prevented virtually ensure that a child with an imprisoned mind and spirit will eventually end up behind bars. Such spiritual incarceration begins as a child s moved by the power of images received from unsuspected sources. Dixon clearly identifies these and gives parents incisive guidance about how to deal with them and replace their harm by teaching children the vital significance of the most priceless image of all: the image of God in which human personhood is made. Only from such understanding, Dixon persuasively argues, will a child develop an accurate and spirit-mind-saving sense of true self-worth. What can help parents practice prison-preventing parenthood? Dixon describes and analyzes a unique concept he calls a conscious home environment, as a valuable contribution to planning and strategy for day-to-day parenting. Practical applications he draws will enable countless parents, to ensure freedom, delight and mental and spiritual health for their children. What if anything can be done to heal our broken prison and cultural ethos? I believe Reclaiming Our Children possesses potential impact far beyond its essential uses as a parental tool kit for raising un-jailed children. Educators and criminal justice authorities will find much in this book that rebukes the systems that have increasingly shackled America s children and young adults but also down-to-earth visionary suggestions Dixon gives for reform, restructuring and re-founding harmful societal systems that have not just lost their effectiveness, but also their very functions to protect society and prepare future generations to nourish it. Dixon writes unabashedly from a Judeo-Christian perspective (while not denigrating the value of other spiritual ways ), reasoning that if knowledge of the importance of one s being made in the image of God is central to spiritual and personal growth, it makes little sense to excise all reference to and reliance on God from America s social fabric. He concludes this landmark work by laying out a powerful, comprehensive, God-based vision for replacement of outworn cultural and sociological expressions, institutions and practices with humankind-nation-nourishing mass and individual thought and action that will amount to nothing less than national repentance and renewal --Mark Orrin, --Mark Orrin, Award Winning Author, Journalist/Author's Mentor
Robby Dixon has hit the target dead center with this book! In nearly two decades of working with students, I found Reclaiming our Children to be an outstanding resour --INDEPENDENT BOOK REVIEW, Musings of a Minister
A child s defiant and hostile behavior does not necessarily suggest they are destined for imprisonment. That s usually the forgone conclusion when you see a dysfunctional kid being disrespectful to people or personal property. You may think such a child will only get worse and eventually end up in jail. But, what if that child was incarcerated before the bad behavior erupted? Would you have recognized it? Would you have considered anything else? I didn t until I sat down to read Reclaiming the Children. In this book, Dixon discusses the effect of spiritual and mental influences on a child s self-image and how it can lead to physical imprisonment. He focuses on three types of imprisonment: spiritual, emotional, and physical. Through the use of biblical references and examples drawn from his own troubled youth, Dixon promotes the awareness of spiritual influences and the need for spiritual counseling. He specifically states, I don t believe one must believe in a universal God-power to be morally sound (11). Oftentimes, the principles of right and wrong are called into question when heightened emotions are involved. Rearing the emotional balance of a child is just as important as nurturing a sound moral and spiritual foundation. It is only through creating a conscious home environment, understanding the value of self-worth, and breaking the cross-generational cycles of bad behavior that a child can begin to head in a direction of positive influences. So, what exactly sets this book apart from any other story? As aforementioned, Dixon is a unique authority in the field, having been a juvenile offender himself. In fact, the author first identified this three-fold approach during his own incarceration. He clearly presents his ideas with the latest research, using relevant personal examples to illustrate each point. Perhaps the most outstanding quality of this book is that the author did not set out just to tell his story, he set out to educate and change the way children are raised. Remember the old adage, it takes a village to raise a child? After reading this book, you will want to build a village to help create a stable and enriching environment for your child. Reclaiming Our Children is a short, easy-to-read handbook suitable for adults as well as teens that are struggling to strike a balance between their maturing identities and societal influences. I highly recommend this book as a tool of discussion for mentors and mentees. --Author Exposure, Reviewed by Traci
Robby G. Dixon cares. I care. And if you do not already care, you will once you read this informative and touching book. Dixon offers no apologies for writing from a Christian perspective. God is at the center of his life and he believes that parents must teach children about a God who created them and loves them. He believes that it is from the home and parents that children learn their self-worth. It is impossible to ignore the increase in troubled behavior among our nation s youth. And young people are paying the price with incarceration. Dixon dissects the societal reasons for this distressing behavior. He provides viable, preventative methods to empower parents, children and young adults to avoid the traps that often lead to crime.He educates and informs, leaving the reader with a set of tools to keep young people on the right track. In my opinion, one of the most important things he gives is a sense of hope that young people can get on the right track and stay there. --INDEPENDENT BOOK REVIEW, Musings of a Minister
Robby Dixon has hit the target dead center with this book! In nearly two decades of working with students, I found Reclaiming our Children to be an outstanding resour --INDEPENDENT BOOK REVIEW, Musings of a Minister
A child s defiant and hostile behavior does not necessarily suggest they are destined for imprisonment. That s usually the forgone conclusion when you see a dysfunctional kid being disrespectful to people or personal property. You may think such a child will only get worse and eventually end up in jail. But, what if that child was incarcerated before the bad behavior erupted? Would you have recognized it? Would you have considered anything else? I didn t until I sat down to read Reclaiming the Children. In this book, Dixon discusses the effect of spiritual and mental influences on a child s self-image and how it can lead to physical imprisonment. He focuses on three types of imprisonment: spiritual, emotional, and physical. Through the use of biblical references and examples drawn from his own troubled youth, Dixon promotes the awareness of spiritual influences and the need for spiritual counseling. He specifically states, I don t believe one must believe in a universal God-power to be morally sound (11). Oftentimes, the principles of right and wrong are called into question when heightened emotions are involved. Rearing the emotional balance of a child is just as important as nurturing a sound moral and spiritual foundation. It is only through creating a conscious home environment, understanding the value of self-worth, and breaking the cross-generational cycles of bad behavior that a child can begin to head in a direction of positive influences. So, what exactly sets this book apart from any other story? As aforementioned, Dixon is a unique authority in the field, having been a juvenile offender himself. In fact, the author first identified this three-fold approach during his own incarceration. He clearly presents his ideas with the latest research, using relevant personal examples to illustrate each point. Perhaps the most outstanding quality of this book is that the author did not set out just to tell his story, he set out to educate and change the way children are raised. Remember the old adage, it takes a village to raise a child? After reading this book, you will want to build a village to help create a stable and enriching environment for your child. Reclaiming Our Children is a short, easy-to-read handbook suitable for adults as well as teens that are struggling to strike a balance between their maturing identities and societal influences. I highly recommend this book as a tool of discussion for mentors and mentees. --Author Exposure, Reviewed by Traci
Robby G. Dixon cares. I care. And if you do not already care, you will once you read this informative and touching book. Dixon offers no apologies for writing from a Christian perspective. God is at the center of his life and he believes that parents must teach children about a God who created them and loves them. He believes that it is from the home and parents that children learn their self-worth. It is impossible to ignore the increase in troubled behavior among our nation s youth. And young people are paying the price with incarceration. Dixon dissects the societal reasons for this distressing behavior. He provides viable, preventative methods to empower parents, children and young adults to avoid the traps that often lead to crime.He educates and informs, leaving the reader with a set of tools to keep young people on the right track. In my opinion, one of the most important things he gives is a sense of hope that young people can get on the right track and stay there. --INDEPENDENT BOOK REVIEW, Musings of a Minister
About the Author
Robby Dixon is a noted author and lecturer and has spent nearly eleven years studying the multi-faceted and hidden elements of the Federal Prison System. Becoming acquainted with the prison s profit industry, prison staff, inmates, their families and how the reality of prison affects their lives on a daily basis. Robby has made the distinction between the true criminal element and those who merely fell victim to a mistake in life and has uncovered the parallel that brings these two contrasting elements together in one common environment. Has lectured throughout the Northern California area and participated in numerous community workshops designed to enlighten parents and children to the benefits of right thinking, positive influences and conduct. Happily married, father a one nine-month old son.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Every Child Is Born in God's Image. Why Do They End Up in Prison?,
By Regis Schilken "Rege" (Bethel Park, Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Reclaiming Our Children (Advice on Parenting) (Paperback)
Reclaiming Our Children is a small, easy to read book, filled with valuable information about today's youth. In many ways, it is a frightening expose' of America's growing cancer where children commit crimes, some very serious such as murder. This can only bring to mind the mass murders and then the suicide killing which took place at Columbine High School.Dixon claims that our country is on the brink of losing the majority of its "youth to crime and moral/ethical decay." The cause: imprisonment. Immediately, what comes to mind by "imprisonment" is physical restraint in a jail or prison of some type. But physical incarceration, Dixon claims, is the end result of the spiritual and mental imprisonment that takes place early in a child's life. Mental imprisonment implies that a person is locked within the confines of their own way of thinking. Once this occurs, it is often quite difficult to escape. It means that a victim's mind is walled into a way of thinking which could have been otherwise. A mentally jailed individual sees their mindset as the way of thinking and without serious help, can never reach out to accept a more moral, ethical way of living. The Columbine murders are an example. With a host of available weapons, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed twelve students and a teacher. During their murderous melee, twenty-four others were injured before the two youthful killers committed suicide. An after the fact study of these youths and their backgrounds showed many troubling tendencies in both youths that had not been dealt with: one was considered a clinical psychopath, the other a very depressed individual. After reading Reclaiming Our Children, I feel Dixon would suggest that the mental instability that confined both of these youths was yet a symptom to a far more serious problem: spiritual imprisonment. A person's spirit "is the underlying learned force that influences our way toward either positive or negative thoughts." Dixon states many times that all people are created in the image and likeness of God. As a result, the very earliest natural inclination as a new-born, our innermost nature, is to act God-like. What can alter that God-like nature are the influences of home, family, school, society, and government. Reclaiming Our Children offer solutions to this downward moral spiral of today's youth. Changes must occur in: 1) national government; 2) entertainment industry; 3) educational systems; 4) penal systems; 5) American culture; 6) small businesses; 7) current tax system. I found Reclaiming Our Children a bit disturbing to read, but nevertheless learned many lessons from it. I was unaware of how quickly the revolving door returns some people, who have committed injustices, back into society WITHOUT any real preparation for a hopeful, challenging, changed life. (An equally revealing book is Saving Childhood: Protecting Our Children from the National Assault on Innocence). In a real sense, I learned that jails and prisons simply babysit prisoners until their release date. Some offer educational programs and adequate recreation, but according to Dixon, few psychologically prepare about-to-be-released inmates for the challenges and prejudice they are about to face, often for the rest of their lives. In the case of the author, he admittedly picked himself up by his own bootstraps seeking through books and education, information that would change his spiritual mindset to an extremely positive set of values that would carry him through life. I would recommend Reclaiming Our Children to every reader; to psychologists, ministers, social workers, politicians, and wardens, because every one of us in the United States is concerned, openly or secretly, about the demoralization of our country. We've shared Nixon's Watergate, Clinton's Sex Scandal, Bush's War, The Twin Towers, Columbine, Enron, and a host of other unforgettable moments in our lives. Yet, we forget that all involved in these unforgivable moments were at one time, children--yes, children who started out in the image of God. Dixon's easy to read book might help change attitudes toward those in prison. It might just give inmates a sense of hope and inspire them to change their values. Saving Childhood: Protecting Our Children from the National Assault on Innocence
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Profession of Faith,
This review is from: Reclaiming Our Children (Advice on Parenting) (Paperback)
Considering its subject - nothing less than the overhaul of current American political and social systems - Robby G. Dixon's "Reclaiming Our Children - Exposing the Nets That Snare Them" is, at barely 125 pages, a surprisingly slim volume. And yet, loath as I am to use cliches, to those who would shy away from the book for its lack of heft I would say "Good things come in small packages."In the introduction Dixon states his goal was to write a book that "is easy to read, understand, and apply to . . . situations in the lives of all its readers and . . . to society at large." To this end, he has avoided wrapping his message in buzz words and catch phrases, and at no point indulges in pop/TV psychology or virtual group hugs. There is a decided absence of graphs, charts, spread sheets, and similar arcana as well. His writing style is straightforward and concise, drawing largely on personal experience (including time spent on both sides of the jailhouse door) and his own deeply-held Faith. Make no mistake: "Reclaiming Our Children" is as much a profession of Faith as "The Confessions" of St. Augustine. Dixon's message is a simple one: the Greatness some have called "The American Experience" has in recent decades become so tarnished and worn through neglect and abuse that the future of The Nation - as manifested in its children - is in jeopardy. He's also quite clear on where to place the blame for this sad state of affairs: squarely on the shoulders of the leaders - political or otherwise - and their attendant institutions who have either lost or deliberately cast aside the time-honored principles they claim to stand for in favor of more politically expedient courses, and upon a society that subscribes to a kind of social Darwinism where one is either a Winner or a Loser, in which things matter more than people, and where "family values" increasingly belong to a dim and misted past. His solution is to purge the current social and political climate of their gray areas and situational morals and replace them with a true sense of right and wrong (all claims to the contrary aside, some things do not change), re-instill the belief that all are indeed created equal before God and in the eyes of the Law, that government's first obligation is to promote the welfare of all The People, and that no one - no one - is disposable or expendable. "Marginalization" is not a word found in Dixon's vocabulary. Unlike many would-be social reformers, Robby G. Dixon claims to have no special insight, nor did he experience an all-revealing epiphany in the wee hours of the night. He merely says that as a Nation, we have some serious problems we can no longer afford to ignore, and that he believes the answers may be found within the pages of The Bible, a book the Founding Fathers were quite familiar with.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bless the Children!,
By
This review is from: Reclaiming Our Children (Advice on Parenting) (Paperback)
Someone once told me, "even if you can reach one, then it's worth it."...because I must admit I came in on this one (looking at the cover) with expectations that didn't quite match the content. Gradually, as I kept reading it came to me that those most likely to benefit from this book were those in positions with more time, incentive, and NEED to read it... NEED being the operative purpose ...what makes Reclaiming Our Children significant. But those who work/build the system, to those who live or are incarcerated by the system (as I quickly learned) aren't inclusive of those standing to benefit here. Personally, I connected with Chapter "5" the Conscious Home Environment. ...And really enjoyed the anecdotes or examples such as the reference to the sitcom Good Times in demonstrating how `prison of the mind' begins. There also are biblical versus used as spiritual guides...which the deeper I got into the book, the more I must say... "...oh, just get the book! There is something in here for everyone!" I truly applaud the effort. Children are our most precious resource, which this effort goes a long way to their development and sustainment! Great Job!
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