Little is known about individuals who studied nonviolence communication and mindfulness through the Freedom Project. This study looks at the lived experiences of three men, as well as members of the Freedom Project “community circle.” A series of literary portraits was created using ethnographic data obtained through observations and in depth interviews. These portraits reveal the relationship between personal narrative and public discourse, as well as the ways that power and knowledge are produced and operate in and through both discourse of violence and discourse of nonviolence, and the discursive practices associated with dominant and resistant discourses. This research documents the process by which nonviolent communication and mindfulness became practices of freedom and facilitated a new ethic of self.