[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 67 (Friday, April 29, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E629]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 IN RECOGNITION OF SABRA WILLIAMS AND ROBY SO BEING NAMED CHAMPIONS OF 
                       CHANGE BY THE WHITE HOUSE

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. TED LIEU

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, April 29, 2016

  Mr. TED LIEU of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge 
two outstanding Angelenos, Sabra Williams and Roby So, both of whom 
were named Champions of Change by the White House for expanding fair 
chance opportunities.
   Sabra Williams is the founder and director of the Actors' Gang 
Prison Project. An actress herself, Sabra conducts an 8-week theater 
program in prisons in California. Through her work, inmates have 
developed key social and emotional skills and also have increased their 
self-esteem and tolerance. As a result, the Department of Corrections 
has seen an 89 percent reduction in prison violations amongst inmates 
who have completed the Prison Project. Further, inmates who have gone 
through the program have the necessary skills to ease their transition 
back into society after prison, resulting in a lower risk of 
recidivism.
   Roby So is a formerly incarcerated inmate of 12 years and has turned 
his harsh life experiences into helping others. Roby is the re-entry 
program manager at the Executive Clemency Initiative with Stanford Law 
School's Justice Advocacy Project. The program helps reintegrate 
returning inmates into society after long prison sentences. Roby is 
also a production supervisor in the entertainment industry, serving as 
an example to former inmates that they, too, can successfully 
reintegrate into society.
   As our nation begins to cope with the tragic human toll of our mass 
incarceration experiment, I am proud of the work both Sabra and Roby do 
to help some of the most forgotten members of our society. The White 
House has rightly named them Champions of Change.

                          ____________________