Andrea Williams interview, part 1, 2022-08-29

This is an oral history interview with Andrea Williams conducted by Obden Mondésir on August 29th, 2022. It covers the years 1964-2002. Andrea Williams worked at the Women in Prison Project from 2004 to 2019 as the ReConnect program director and special projects coordinator. In the first section of the interview, Andrea discusses her childhood growing up in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Hackensack, New Jersey during the vibrant political activity of the 1960s. She then discusses her experience attending undergrad at Boston University, where she decided to pursue a career in law. She shares about her formative experiences completing a masters in African American studies at Atlanta University and her subsequent years attending Rutgers Law School. In the next part of the interview, Andrea discusses her professional trajectory beginning at Bergen County Legal Services. She then discusses working on domestic violence issues at NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund. Next, Andrea talks about her job doing policy work and running an advocacy program with the HIV Law Project, which led her into working with the Women in Prison Project. The next section of the interview focuses on Andrea’s experiences working for the Women in Prison Project coordinating the ReConnect program. Finally, she reflects on the CWP’s sunsetting process and shares her vision for the Coalition for Women Prisoners archive.