Albert Barreto

Albert Barreto spent more than half of his life in prison. While inside, however, he honed his creative ability by taking advantage of some powerful carceral programs. InsideOut Writers, which offers system-impacted souls an outlet for their emotions in a way that fosters creation instead of destruction, spoke to him deeply during his incarceration. So much so that, upon his release, he became a mentor/volunteer for InsideOut Writers in Los Angeles. He was also a participant in the Actors’ Gang, which features mentor actors and actresses such as Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon, respectively, telling the imprisoned actors they could be free while they were acting.

He involved himself in many programs from which he learned to help those who came from similar backgrounds and participated in programs related to victim-offender dialog, accountability to peers, and even screenwriting. Albert, a trained alcohol/drug counselor, is passionate about helping the youth who are at an earlier stage of the same journey he was on, the one that, for him, led to carceral institutions.

Today, he is on the Board of Directors of the Ben Free Project as their new Director of Creative Programs. He has been asked to participate in Cohort 7 of the Justice Care Opportunities Department’s (JCOD’s) Incubator Academy to bring the Ben Free Project to the next level. His goal is to remain focused on amplifying the unheard voices of those locked up and in danger of being swallowed up by the system.