It was the biggest mistake of this life.
1/ Marcus Bullock went to prison in the mid-90s at the age of 15.
Today, he's the CEO of Flikshop -- the "Instagram for the Incarcerated", an alternative to the outrageously expensive phone call system.
This is a truly inspirational founder story 👇👇
It was the biggest mistake of this life.
In the aftermath, nearly every state passed new laws that made it easier for courts to try youth as adults.
With onerous prison phone charges ($18 / 15 mins), Bullock's mother kept in touch with him by sending a photo or letter every day.
"She saved me," he says of his mom's efforts.
For the right to operate these phones lines, prisons effectively pay kickbacks to state and local government. The highest kickbacks win bids, which drive up costs.
He eventually found a job in painting. He learned everything he could and launched his own contracting business, reaching 7 figures with projects like BWI Airport.
"He was rapping about how to be a successful businessman with a nontraditional path. He didn’t go to college but became a multimillionaire. Jay-Z gave me permission to believe that I could be a successful entrepreneur.”
The process is done through the click of an app and only costs $0.99 (vs. pricey phone system).
Over the years, Bullock visited countless prisons administrators and wardens and pitched Flikshop: by facilitating comms with loved ones, his startup could improve mental wellbeing and reduce recidivism.
NGOs and corporations can use Flikshop to communicate information to inmates (e.g., job opps and criminal justice reform).
A big enterprise biz can keep the regular Flikshop affordable for families.
https://t.co/ANq8H2vHh0
More from 𝚃𝚛𝚞𝚗𝚐 𝙿𝚑𝚊𝚗 🇨🇦
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@bellingcat's attempt in their new book, published by
@BloomsburyBooks, to coverup the @OPCW #Douma controversy, promote US and UK gov. war narratives, and whitewash fraudulent conduct within the OPCW, is an exercise in deception through omission. @BloomsburyPub @Tim_Hayward_
1) 2000 words are devoted to the OPCW controversy regarding the alleged chemical weapon attack in #Douma, Syria in 2018 but critical material is omitted from the book. Reading it, one would never know the following:
2) That the controversy started when the original interim report, drafted and agreed by Douma inspection team members, was secretly modified by an unknown OPCW person who had manipulated the findings to suggest an attack had occurred. https://t.co/QtAAyH9WyX… @RobertF40396660
3) This act of attempted deception was only derailed because an inspector discovered the secret changes. The manipulations were reported by @ClarkeMicah
and can be readily observed in documents now available https://t.co/2BUNlD8ZUv….
4) @bellingcat's book also makes no mention of the @couragefoundation panel, attended by the @opcw's first Director General, Jose Bustani, at which an OPCW official detailed key procedural irregularities and scientific flaws with the Final Douma Report:
@BloomsburyBooks, to coverup the @OPCW #Douma controversy, promote US and UK gov. war narratives, and whitewash fraudulent conduct within the OPCW, is an exercise in deception through omission. @BloomsburyPub @Tim_Hayward_
\u201cAllegations of our involvement with the intelligence services are of course false,\u201d says Bellingcat founder @EliotHiggins https://t.co/55V7sJV9or
— UnHerd (@unherd) February 15, 2021
1) 2000 words are devoted to the OPCW controversy regarding the alleged chemical weapon attack in #Douma, Syria in 2018 but critical material is omitted from the book. Reading it, one would never know the following:
2) That the controversy started when the original interim report, drafted and agreed by Douma inspection team members, was secretly modified by an unknown OPCW person who had manipulated the findings to suggest an attack had occurred. https://t.co/QtAAyH9WyX… @RobertF40396660
3) This act of attempted deception was only derailed because an inspector discovered the secret changes. The manipulations were reported by @ClarkeMicah
and can be readily observed in documents now available https://t.co/2BUNlD8ZUv….
4) @bellingcat's book also makes no mention of the @couragefoundation panel, attended by the @opcw's first Director General, Jose Bustani, at which an OPCW official detailed key procedural irregularities and scientific flaws with the Final Douma Report:
