KEN JOHNSON
Kenneth Johnson, a cat burglar and holdup man who had a jailhouse conversion after reading Jean-Paul Sartre in John Wareham's Rikers Island class, How to Break Out of Prison. Kenny subsequently transformed himself into a beloved teacher of inmates on Rikers Island. Kenny taught a class called Reality Check in which he stressed that life was what one made of it and that destiny was created by the power of everyday decisions.
With sly sarcasm, brutal honesty and a velvet, rap-and-banter style honed during his years on the streets, Mr. Johnson systematically dismantled the bitterness and ingrained self-pity of some of his students, encouraging them to see that they were in charge of their own lives and responsible for their every action. His class, was considered one of the finest educational offerings on Rikers Island, and the many graduates their release was a testament to its value. Kenny in Plymouth, Florida, but his family moved to New York City when he was eight. They settled in Brooklyn. By his 30's, he had been in and out of jails and prisons several times.
A smooth character with the agile mind of a street kid and the smoky manners of a jazz musician, Mr. Johnson was also a poet, performing his spoken-word verse at places like the Nuyorican Poets Cafe. He died of a heart attack in 2003, at age 49.
With sly sarcasm, brutal honesty and a velvet, rap-and-banter style honed during his years on the streets, Mr. Johnson systematically dismantled the bitterness and ingrained self-pity of some of his students, encouraging them to see that they were in charge of their own lives and responsible for their every action. His class, was considered one of the finest educational offerings on Rikers Island, and the many graduates their release was a testament to its value. Kenny in Plymouth, Florida, but his family moved to New York City when he was eight. They settled in Brooklyn. By his 30's, he had been in and out of jails and prisons several times.
A smooth character with the agile mind of a street kid and the smoky manners of a jazz musician, Mr. Johnson was also a poet, performing his spoken-word verse at places like the Nuyorican Poets Cafe. He died of a heart attack in 2003, at age 49.
(1953—2003)