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https://reasonstobecheerful.world/formerly-incarcerated-mentors-california/>
"When he walked out of prison after 28 years, the first thing Allen Burnett did
was drive to the ocean. “I just stood there for a minute,” he recalls. “I
wanted to feel the air.”
For most of his life, Burnett never expected that moment to come.
He entered California’s prison system as a teenager in the early 1990s after
participating in a fatal carjacking. Sentenced to life without the possibility
of parole, he believed he would die behind bars: “I was told I’m not worthy.”
Instead of planning for freedom, he focused on finding purpose within the
prison walls. That choice set him on a path that would reshape not only his
life but the lives of countless others.
At California State Prison, Los Angeles County — often simply called Lancaster
— Burnett eventually earned a college degree with magna cum laude honors thanks
to a pioneering in-prison education program through Cal State, and he found
mentorship with other prisoners. Governor Gavin Newsom commuted his sentence
and the parole board found him to be no longer a threat to society in 2019.
Today Burnett is the co-founder and executive director of Prism Way, a Los
Angeles nonprofit that trains formerly incarcerated people to become peer
support specialists — mentors who help others navigate trauma, addiction and
life after prison. The work draws directly on the peer-counseling culture
Burnett experienced during his own incarceration.
The mission is clear: turn lived experience into healing."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
