Everyone loves a good story about someone turning their life around. But sometimes, the most incredible tales of redemption happen in real life. Get ready to be inspired by these amazing comebacks.
Abdel Nasser Ould Ethmane
Abdel Nasser Ould Ethmane grew up in Mauritania, where slavery was a part of everyday life. On his seventh birthday, he received his first slave. But as he got older, Ethmane began to question this practice.
He started reading about world history and realized that slavery had been outlawed in many countries. Ethmane eventually founded SOS Slaves, an international organization dedicated to ending slavery. He’s also worked with the United Nations and the Human Rights Foundation.
Libby Phelps-Alvarez
Libby Phelps-Alvarez is the granddaughter of Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) founder Fred Phelps. She was raised to protest at soldiers’ funerals and carry homophobic signs. Holidays were not celebrated because they were considered “too pagan.”
As a teenager, Phelps-Alvarez began to question the church’s teachings. In 2009, she left the church and publicly apologized to the family of a soldier whose funeral she had picketed. She now supports Planting Peace, an LGBT organization located across from the WBC.
Mike Anderson
In 2000, Mike Anderson was arrested for robbing a Burger King. He was sentenced to 13 years in prison but was released on bail. Due to a clerical error, he never received orders to begin his sentence.
Instead of returning to a life of crime, Anderson started a construction business, coached youth football, and volunteered at his church. Thirteen years later, the state discovered the error and sent Anderson to prison for nearly a year. After international coverage and an online petition, a judge acknowledged that Anderson had changed and granted him credit for time served.
Michael Slusher
Michael Slusher spent years performing medical experiments on animals. He struggled with his attachment to them but convinced himself that his research was valuable.
After losing his job, Slusher became vegan and wrote a memoir called They All Had Eyes: Confessions of a Vivisectionist. He now raises awareness about the moral consequences of animal testing and donates a portion of his book’s proceeds to a farm animal sanctuary.
Frank Meeink
Frank Meeink was recruited into a skinhead gang at age 13. By 18, he was convicted of kidnapping and torturing rival gang members. During his three years in prison, Meeink befriended inmates of different races and realized he could no longer live that life.
After his release, a Jewish doctor offered to remove his neo-Nazi tattoos. Since then, Meeink has become a motivational speaker and released a memoir called Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead. He also coaches children’s hockey to promote racial tolerance.
Faustin Ntiranyibagira
Faustin Ntiranyibagira grew up in Burundi, where wife-beating was common. He used to beat his own wife and encourage his friends to do the same. But after attending community development meetings with the relief agency CARE, he learned about nonviolent conflict resolution.
Ntiranyibagira stopped beating his wife and began helping her with household chores. Now, he arranges public meetings to speak out against domestic violence and teach his male friends to treat their wives better.
Alvaro Munera
Alvaro Munera grew up in Medellin, Colombia, and became a bullfighter at 17. He knew the sport was cruel and after witnessing the horror of killing a pregnant cow, he was ready to quit. But he continued until he was paralyzed by a bull.
After moving to the US for physical therapy, he realized he could no longer support bullfighting. Since then, Munera has become an animal rights activist.
Ric O’Barry
Ric O’Barry was a dolphin trainer for the TV series Flipper. However, after the dolphin who played Flipper died in his arms, O’Barry realized that keeping these intelligent creatures in captivity was wrong.
O’Barry founded the Dolphin Project, which rescues and rehabilitates dolphins worldwide. He also campaigns against dolphin hunts and has appeared in the Oscar-winning documentary The Cove.
Jerry Givens
Jerry Givens was one of the most prolific executioners in US history. Over 17 years, he executed 62 inmates. In 1999, Givens was arrested for money laundering and spent four years in prison. This experience changed him.
After his release, Givens became an opponent of the death penalty, believing that some of the men he executed could have been innocent. He now speaks nationwide about his experiences and advocates for alternatives to capital punishment.
General Butt Naked
Joshua Milton Blahyi, also known as General Butt Naked, was a Liberian warlord who committed horrific acts, including recruiting child soldiers and eating human hearts. He estimates that he killed at least 20,000 people.
Blahyi had a religious epiphany and now works as a preacher, rehabilitates child soldiers, and asks for forgiveness from his victims’ families. While he has never been charged for his crimes, he claims he would willingly go to prison to atone for his actions.
These stories show that no matter how dark the past, redemption is always possible. What do you think of these incredible transformations? Leave your comment below!
