LaTonya Cliff is a Case Manager at Towards Employment working with young men and women, hoping that they can learn from their experiences and find the strength and connections needed to build a career. She knows firsthand how trauma, violence and abuse can lead to bad decisions and chaos, and as she listens to the younger participants and graduates of Towards Employment, her life and career journey provide a foundation she uses to provide council, understanding and inspiration.

You got to face it to fix it.
I come from generational incarceration. My father, my cousins, my sister, my brother. I was mentally incarcerated at 4 years old. I have a master’s degree in counselling, I could talk to people about their issues, but the person I needed to taIk to was myself. After I got out of prison I became a general contractor and fashion designer. I did over 900 clothing sketches in prison. I had a prayer: “Father, let there be reconciliation.” My daughters visited me in 2008 when I was incarcerated for the last time. My oldest daughter interrupted me and said, “Dad, we are in prison too. – When there is a father/daughter dance, when you are not there for all the things a child needs a father for because you are in here, then we are in prison too.” My daughters and I have a program – Dad We Are In Prison Too. We give children a chance to talk about family scars and the hurt. This gives children of incarceration an opportunity for healing and reconciliation. That’s a missing piece.