Something in Common

Producer: Dorothy Johnson-Speight, MHS, LPC and Erika Mijlin

Mothers In Charge is community advocacy and support organization for families affected by violence. Something In Common is a documentary that profiles the women that make up the organization, most of whom have lost a child or other close family member to violence. This group of strong, inspired women labors every day to reach out and make a difference in our community, through a powerful sisterhood that guides them through pain and joy to transform their personal tragedy into lasting social change. Urban violence will have a ripple effect on families and throughout our communities for years to come, and Mothers In Charge is a leading grassroots community response to this violence. This film brings to life the very often untold, very human stories that shape this ongoing social tragedy, where violent crimes are more than statistics.

Dorothy Johnson-Speight, a family therapist, founded the Compassionate Friends Temple University Chapter (1986), a self help grief support organization for bereaved parents after her three-year-old-daughter Carlena died from bacterial meningitis. When her first born, 24-year-old Khaaliq Jabbar Johnson was murdered senselessly over a parking space, Mrs. Johnson-Speight was determined not to let the death of her only son be in vain. Instead, she chose to take action. Mrs. Johnson-Speight along with two other grieving mothers founded the organization Mothers In Charge, Inc., (MIC). The goal of Mothers In Charge is to become a national organization whose mission focuses on violence prevention through education and intervention for our children, young adults, families and community organizations.

Erika Mijlin is a documentary producer, editor and a founding partner of Artifact Pictures. Some recent credits include : The View From Amber Street 2008 (Producer/Editor), The Adventures of Teddy P. Brains (Producer), From Philadelphia to the Front (Associate Producer/Camera); Viewfinder (Co- Producer/Editor) and Bet Herut: The End of the Beginning (Associate Producer/Editor). Erika received her MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and her BA from Vassar College. She has taught documentary production, post-production, and media studies at Bennington College, Temple University, and Columbia College. She has worked as an editor for projects produced by Discovery, Animal Planet, and TLC. In addition, she has also produced many short films using archival or found image and sound, and in 2008 she wrote and directed 'Feldman and the Infinite', an original play which was staged for the Philadelphia Fringe Festival. .