Susan Burton
Personal Information
Born: Unknown
Country of Birth: USA
Nationality: USA
Ethnicity: Black
Education
LA Southwest College
""I just wanted my life to count towards something good." CNN Heroes Archive; "Mistakes belong to the past. We belong to the future." University of Mississippi College of Liberal Arts "Criminal Justice Reform Activist Shares Inspirational Story"; "We help ourselves when we stop repunishing women who need help transitioning from prison & returning home. Their families & communities need them." Irvine Awards"
— Susan Burton
Professional Life
Field of Study: Activist Criminal Justice Reform Movement
Institution/Corporation: A New Way of Life Reentry Program; LA Southwest college; SAFE Housing Network; LEAD Program; All of Us Or None; Formerly Incarcerated & Convicted People & Families Movement
Degrees & Memberships: Honorary Degree from California State University Northridge; Member: LEAD Project; SAFE Housing Network; All of Us or None; Formerly Incarcerated & Convicted People & Families Movement; Board of directors LA Sober Living Network; Advisory board The M3ND Project
Awards & Achievements
Awards: 2010 CNN Top 10 Hero; 2012 Encore Purpose Prize, AARP; 2010 Gleitsman Citizen Activist Award, Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School; 2015 named 1 of 18 New Civil Rights Leaders in the Nation, LA Times; named a Starbucks Upstander; Soros Justice Fellow; Women's Policy Institute Fellow at the California Women's Foundation; Violence Prevention Fellow in California Wellness Foundation; 2014 James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award; 2018 National Women's History Project Honoree for Women's History Month; 2022 Women of Worth Honoree, L'Oreal
Achievements: works with formerly incarcerated people and founded the nonprofit organization, A New Way of Life (ANWOL) in 1998; ANWOL provides housing, case management, employment, legal services, leadership development & community organizing for women who struggle to rebuild their lives after incarceration; her memoir "Becoming Ms burton" was published 2017 & written with Cari Lynn
her 5-year-old son was killed after being hit by an off-duty policeman in 1982 & she turned to alcohol & drugs to relieve her grief falling into a cycle of incarceration that lasted almost 20 years
while being released from her 6th prison sentence a guard told her he would be seeing her again soon & it motivated her to prove him wrong
at her website (beingsusanburton.com) one can request a free copy of her memoir "Becoming Ms Burton" be sent to an inmate for free
was always released with $200 ($50 of which was spent to return to L.A.), no ID or social Security card, or a place to live, making it almost impossible to make changes in her life without necessary resources
gave up drugs alcohol after completing treatment at CLARE Foundation in Santa Monica in 1997
saved enough money to purchase a house in South Los Angeles in 1998 & convinced 10 other ex-inmates to live with her
received grants & was able to incorporate by 2000
75% of the women in her program stay drug-free & remain out of prison for at least 18 months
August 2017 California Gov. Gavin Newsom granted her a pardon
she has mentored women who have established similar programs in 2 cities
after training with SAFE participants can receive grants of $50,000 to establish homes modelled after A New Way of Life (ANWOL)
SAFE Network now has 38 homes in the US & 3 in Africa
the annual cost to house a woman in a California prison is $75,000 as opposed to the $16,000 annual cost at ANWOL