a lot of these guys never had fathers in their lives so the idea of being a father is unfathomable because they had never known how to be a father because they had no frame of preference this is life with lisa ling starts now. it s early spring in richmond, virginia and terrance williams is an hour away from the most meaningful day of his life. a tie, going to look good. the city of richland is hosting a father daughter dance for terrance and 12 other dads. man, i feel like money. but there is a catch. these men are inmates of the richmond jail, and this dance will be the first time terrance s daughter takayla will have seen him in eight months.
been waiting for. try to picture the dance happening, and i just see tables with like cloth on top and flowers in the middle. come on, ms. mablean. my dad pick me up and squeeze me really tight. the father daughter dance at the richmond jail is starting in less than an hour. you need to walk with your head up and walk straight. i try. terrance s mom debra will be takayla s ride. you look beautiful. your daddy is going to cry and hold you and not want to let you go. the dance is a partnership between the jail, the health department, the richmond family and fatherhood initiative and girls for a change, a non-profit dedicated to empowering young women. the conference room on the jail s second floor is fitted as
i need all the fathers on one side of the carpet and all the daughters on the other side. make sure your daughter lines up across from you, okay? at the richmond jail, the dance is coming to an end and the fathers are leaving their daughters with a parting gift. this line here for me is called a line of commitment. on the mirror, you write what you want your daughter to see and know, herself worth, her value, how precious she is as she looks into the mirror, you know this is how my daddy sees me, so this is what i know i am. i know in this world, it is crazy, that you need somebody to protect you and love you. no one in this world is going to
how do you feel about the fact your dad has been in jail? like when he goes away, i have my personality with him. there are 2.5 million americans behind bars. more than half of them are parents and while fathers do time, the families they leave behind serve sentences of their own. the richmond jail is hoping connecting inmates with their kids can turn their lives around, but is one dance enough? i never want to dance with my daughter again in jail.
in the house like his whole name and stuff? he knows his name and how to spell it. he know how to spell his name, too. the jail limits visitation to 30 minutes, time that goes by all too quickly. i love you. i appreciate you. and i thank you for having my back. let me just sit here and look at you and riminess for a couple minutes until, until the screen go blank. i love you, too, baby. all right. tell my babies i love them. how has your addiction affected your family? oh, man, i was never sober for any of my kids, never. so when deandra comes here