From Hate to Restorative Change

Special guest Sean Gillespie shares his incredible story. From #abuse & #trauma to a lengthy prison sentence for #hate crimes to life altering positive change. Sean’s journey will shake you to your core and stir your soul. As a former neo-Nazi skinhead and member of the white supremacist organization, Aryan Nations, Mr. Gillespie's story will take you through an incredible path from a world of hate into a world of righteous change. A former leader, recruiter, organizer, propagandist, and violent terrorist for the white supremacist and neo-Nazi movement, he promoted hate, bigotry, and racism. He was sentenced to 39yrs in the Federal prison system for a racially motivated hate crime in 2004. Mr. Gillespie spent a total of 16 years in prison, 8 of which were served in America's most secure facility, A.D.X. Super-Maximum Control Unit. Mr. Gillespie was released from prison in 2020, after winning an appeal he filed pro se. Sean got a second chance on life and has been able to overcome the mistakes he made early on. After turning his back on the white supremacist movement in 2008, Mr. Gillespie has been able to do a considerable amount of work to combat and fight hatred and extremism. He has assisted in the teaching of criminology students and written numerous articles against hatred. Mr. Gillespie was featured in the award-winning documentary series 'Indivisible: Healing Hate' (2022, Paramount Plus) narrated by Mandy Patinkin, as well as news interviews both locally and nationally. Jeff Schoep is the Founder of Beyond Barriers. From 1994 until early 2019, Jeff Schoep was the leader of the largest neo-Nazi organization in the United States, the National Socialist Movement (NSM). In March 2019 he became the highest profile former white nationalist to ever walk away from far-right extremism in the USA. Since then, Jeff has been an outspoken advocate against the ideology that he had been part of for 27 years, making him uniquely qualified to understand extremism and extremist ideologies. Jeff now works as an inspirational public speaker helping to educate communities and policy makers on how to effectively counter and prevent violent extremism. https://jeffschoep.com Follow Jeff Schoep on Social Media https://linktr.ee/jeffschoep Jennifer Kreis is a survivor, warrior, truth seeker, and truth speaker. She is the daughter of August Kreis, who was once one of the most well known white supremacists in the USA. Throughout Jenn's teenage years she was forced to go on national TV talk shows and "by the grace of God hate did not consume and destroy my entire life." Follow Jenn Kreis: https://linktr.ee/jennkreis Beyond Barriers is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to a new approach of countering and preventing extremism. For more information: https://beyondbarriersusa.org To donate: https://giv.li/r8xtpc Media inquiries: [email protected] Follow Beyond Barriers: https://linktr.ee/beyondbarriersusa --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/beyondbarriersradio/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/beyondbarriersradio/support Beyond Barriers Podcast is dedicated to dialogue — to honest conversations about growth, leadership, resilience, and the human capacity for change. Through real stories and unfiltered discussion, Beyond Barriers challenges assumptions and creates space for understanding, healing, and meaningful transformation.