Meet Our Staff

Executive Director

Dorsey Nunn

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
Legal and Policy Advocacy, Racial Justice, Community Organizing, Leadership Development, Fundraising, Campaign Development, Non-Profit Management, Public Speaking. 

Dorsey is a leading expert with over 40 years of professional experience in criminal justice reform. He is the first formerly incarcerated director of a public interest law office in California. Dorsey was sentenced to life in the California Department of Corrections when he was 19 years old. He paroled in 1981 and discharged from parole in 1984. Under his leadership LSPC has made significant advances including the development of the Elder Freeman Policy Fellowship, legal victories including the Ashker lawsuit that ended long term solitary confinement in California, and policy victories including numerous Ban the Box laws passed at the local, state, and federal levels, the end of shackling of pregnant women, and the biggest drug sentencing reform passed by the CA legislature in recent history (SB 180).

Prior to becoming Executive Director, he worked as a paralegal, community organizer, and program manager at LSPC and as a paralegal at the Prison Law Office. Dorsey’s leadership has helped to establish several local and national institutions and movement building projects including All of Us or None, Free at Last, Critical Resistance, California Coalition for Women Prisoners, and the Formerly Incarcerated and Convicted People and Families Movement. His commitment to anti-racist organizing is international. He has visited numerous international prisons including prisons in El Salvador, New Zealand, and South Africa. He has also served on delegations to international conferences including The International Conference on Prison Abolition in Canada and The International Conference on Youth in Cuba.

Dorsey has received federal and local recognition including the White House Champion of Change Award signed by President Obama, Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition by Nancy Pelosi, the Senate Certificate of Recognition by Senator Jackie Speier and Karen Bass, Certificate of Appreciation from the California State Assembly, Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, and recognition from the SF Board of Supervisors and Mayor Gavin Newsom.  He is the recipient of numerous awards including the Chief Justice Earl Warren Civil Liberties Award from the ACLU of Northern California,  the Movement Builders Award from A New Way of Life, and the Martin Luther King, Cesar Chavez, Rosa Parks Visiting Professorship from the University of Michigan.

Dorsey has been instrumental to changing the national narrative around formerly incarcerated people and centering people with conviction histories as experts in the field of criminal justice reform. His work has been featured in local and national publications including the LA Times, the SF Chronicle, Sacramento Bee, NY Times, Washington Post, and the Nation. Michelle Alexander wrote about Dorsey and his work with all of Us or None in her best-selling book, The New Jim Crow.  He is a frequently requested speaker at conferences, universities, and in documentaries including Ava DuVernay’s 13th. Since Dorsey was released from prison he has focused on reunifying, restoring, and healing his family. He is a loving father and grandfather who is inspired by his grandchildren and great grandchildren to keeping working to create a better future for all youth.

WORKS:
Formerly incarcerated activist fights to give people a chance to change. L.A. Times, March 13, 2015. 
Ex-inmates behind push for California employers to ‘ban the box’. The Mercury News, October 13, 2017.
Ban the Box Keeps Families and Communities Together. New York Times, April 13, 2016.
Millions of ex-cons still can’t get jobs. Here’s how the White House could help fix that. Washington Post, January 22, 2015.

VIDEO:
Free America – Dorsey. August 30, 2016.
Tim Wise & Dorsey Nunn presented by SURJ Bay Area, April 18, 2017.

Administrative Director

Hamdiya Cooks-Abdullah

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
Ban the Box, Reentry, Incarcerated Parents / Children of Incarcerated Parents, Policy Advocacy, Community Organizing, Leadership Development, Non-Profit Financial Administration.

Hamdiya has over 25 years of experience working on issues facing women in prison. Having served 20 years in the federal prison system, while incarcerated, Hamdiya led Muslim women prisoners in the struggle to honor their religious practices, including headgear and fasting. She was also a key organizer for Black Culture Workshops at the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, CA for over 15 years. At LSPC, Hamdiya is responsible for day to day administrative duties. She is the former director of the California Coalition for Women Prisoners. Hamdiya holds a B.A, degree from Columbia College. She published an article entitled “Islam in Prison” in Prison Legal News and an essay profiling the lives of three women in prison in the book Schooling the Generations in the Politics of Prison.

Development Director

Eric Norman

Areas of Expertise:
Fundraising, Community Organizing, Policy & Advocacy, Cooking

Eric brings nearly two-decades of experience in fundraising, community organizing, and political activism to LSPC. Born and raised in Indiana, Eric left for the Army soon after graduating high school. After being kicked out of the military under a Chapter 15 discharge for being gay, he found himself searching for a way to engage in social justice movements happening around him. He soon joined up with a rag-tag group of political junkies and helped form the Stonewall Young Democrats of Los Angeles. Eric would become the first in his family to attend college. He spent two years at Santa Monica College studying political science before taking his journey up north to U.C. Berkeley. Eric graduated from Cal with a degree in Peace and Conflict Studies. While at Cal, he focused on the intersections of democracy and capitalism, as well as internalized phobias that perpetuate hate and bias. Previously, Eric has worked for the Human Rights Campaign, Gay & Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA), Swords to Plowshares, as well as 14 political campaigns and ballot measures.

In his spare time, he enjoys cooking and eating, spending time with family and friends, reading a good book, traveling, or cuddling up at home watching reruns of the Golden Girls.

Communications Coordinator

Mark Fujiwara

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
Ban the Box, Reentry, Incarcerated Parents / Children of Incarcerated Parents, County Jail / State Prison life, Oral History, Video & Photo Storytelling, Social Media.

Mark started interning at LSPC in 2014 and joined the Development Team in late 2015. He now manages all LSPC’s Communications and Media as of  May 2016. A Bay Area native, Mark earned a B.A. in English at UCLA, an M.F.A. in Poetics at New College of California, and an advanced degree in Penal Studies from Cal State San Quentin. Having experienced the mass incarceration system firsthand and its traumatic effect on families, Mark is committed and honored to work at LSPC and All of Us or None to help other formerly incarcerated people and families dismantle the prison-industrial complex. When not watching soccer on TV or at Avaya Stadium as a San Jose Earthquakes season ticket holder, Mark loves to play soccer with his son and daughter, read soccer books, write soccer articles, and attempt to organize an All of Us or None soccer team.

WORKS:
Ban the Box – Calif. Just Passed Landmark Law to Stop Bosses From Discriminating Against People with Convictions – In These Times – November 6, 2017.
All of Us or None – 2017 Community Giveback Video, December 9, 2017.
LSPC – 2017 Victory Party Video, October 19, 2017.

Staff Attorney

Judy Jun

Judy joins LSPC with experience in criminal defense, parental/family defense, and LGBTQQIA2S+ community advocacy. Judy represented people facing criminal charges as a public defender at the Legal Aid Society in Queens, New York. While in law school, Judy defended low-income parents of color against allegations of abuse and neglect of their children and advocated for family reunification with the NYU Family Defense Clinic. Judy also interned at the Sex Workers Project at the Urban Justice Center assisting with motions to vacate convictions. Recently, Judy supported LGBTQQIA2S+ young people in the Bay Area with navigating civil and criminal systems, name and gender marker change petitions, and co-facilitated community groups. In 2018, Judy was a part of ARA III: Waterways, Time Weaves – a ritual, healing and performance collaboration bridging communities in diaspora impacted by state violence and war. Judy is admitted to the bar of New York. Judy is not admitted to practice law in California and currently seeking admission.

National Organizer

Oscar Flores

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
Community Organizing, Policy Advocacy.

Oscar Flores, National Organizer, joined the All of Us or None Family in January of 2018. Oscar has intimate knowledge of the impact of the criminal justice system upon reentry and crimmigration for himself and family. Oscar was a former Director of a Youth Organizing organization in East Palo Alto addressing issues of Environmental Justice and Gentrification. Most recently Oscar was the Coordinator/Facilitator of Contra Costa Racial Justice Coalition, successfully campaigning for the county to return money to families that were unlawfully collected on through the recently banned Juvenile Fines & Fees Statute. Oscar believes that the most effective community organizing involve directly impacted people leading the effort. 

Program Manager

Errol Veron

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
Reentry Mentoring, Finance, Financial Analysis and Accounting (20+ years experience), Excel, Photography.

Prior to LSPC, Errol was in the Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency (BOSS) program, where his interest and passion to help individual and or communities in need were heightened.  Due to his educational background–BS in Business Administration from University of Phoenix–and 20 plus years of work experience in Finance & Accounting, BOSS entrusted him to mentor, teach and or coach formerly incarcerated patrons that were in the program to improve their chances of getting employment. His accomplishments with BOSS lead to being asked to be part of the navigator training program that was facilitated by BOSS and Asian Prisoner Support Committee (APSC). He is the father of two young adult boys, and hopes to be a grandfather sometime soon. In his leisure time Errol enjoys photography and gardening with his wife of 37 years and counting.

WORKS:
All of Us or None – 2017 Community Giveback Photos, December 9, 2017.
LSPC – 2017 Victory Party Photos, October 19, 2017.

Housing Advocate

Taqwaa Bonner

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
Ban the Box, Reentry, Community Organizing, Policy Advocacy.

Taqwaa Bonner, a proud husband and family man, joined All Of Us Or None as a Housing Advocate in August, 2018. During his 30 years of incarceration, Lee achieved a General Education Development (G.E.D.) and an Associate In Arts Degree in Social Science, became certified in three Electrical trades, a 5-year Electrical Apprenticeship training program, and two in painting programs. Taqwaa also became a certified Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselor.On September 10, 2018, Taqwaa officially started an All Of Us Or None East Oakland Youth Chapter in a quest to help rebuild the community which he damaged 32 years ago.

Organizer

Willard “Ali” Birts

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
Ban the Box, Reentry, Community Organizing, Policy Advocacy, Public Speaking.

Ali, a longtime All of Us or None member, became an AOUON Organizer in July, 2018. After spending 38 years in jail and prison, Ali participated in Project ReMADE at the Stanford Criminal Justice Center and developed his own mobile auto detailing business. Because of his conviction history, Ali has worked many “fix it” jobs over his life, resulting is an incredible array of practical skills. As an AOUON Organizer, Ali enjoys engaging with all types of people and educating them about all our rights. 

Office Manager

Tina Nunn

AREAS OF EXPERTISE:
Staff Support, Office Management, Board Liaison, Donation Management / Fund Raiser Data Base).

Tina joined the LSPC family in February 2015. Before coming to LSPC Tina worked in the customer service field for 17 years for companies such as Hewlett-Packard and Xilinx. Her life has been strongly affected by her mother and many family members being imprisoned. It has always been a desire of hers to be of service to those who are in need. She is honored to be a part of such a great organization. A mother of two daughters and grandmother of two grandchildren, in her spare time Tina loves to fish, take long walks and participate in 5K runs.

Receptionist & Administrative Assistant

Ivana Gonzales

Ivana began as the LSPC Receptionist & Administrative Assistant in August, 2018. Before joining us, Ivana worked as a supervisor for Whole Foods. She’s currently pursuing an A.A. degree in Psychology at Laney College in Oakland as part of her effort to better assist people who have experienced Domestic Violence. Ivana’s two teenage kids are members of the East Oakland All of Us or None chapter, and they all enjoy AOUON outreach and team-building activities.

Building Maintenance

Earnest Bright

Paralegal/Staff Organizer

Ken Oliver

Ken joined the LSPC staff as a paralegal and community organizer in September 2019 after serving 23 years of a life sentence. While incarcerated, Ken was an active leader and organizer in the fight for prisoners civil rights. As a result of his activism the Department of corrections placed Ken in solitary confinement for more than 8 years. While there Ken taught himself constitutional law and successfully filed suit against the CDCR for violating his civil rights. Ken’s litigation efforts directly led to his eventual release from prison where he has now dedicated his life to serving others and the fight against injustice and mass incarceration policies.

Staff Organizer/Housing

Succatti Shaw

Succatti is a mother of 3 and a recent addition to AOUON. Upon returning home from incarceration, it became painfully real that her past conviction would bar her from safe and necessary housing for her family. Although employed as a leasing agent, the conviction continued to keep her from successfully securing a place of her own. The turning point was having to deny someone housing based on a past conviction; one that is now considered legal in California. Her mission is to fight to get laws changed that will afford those whom once were felons to live their new lives as upstanding members of their communities, able to lease, rent and possibly own a safe place to live for themselves and most importantly, for their families. During her incarceration, she constructed and facilitated a program to teach fellow incarcerated women how to use both a computer and softwareto ready them and make them a viable candidate for a job outside of prison. When posed with the realization that many women had no idea how to interview, or represent themselves with resumes, she constructed a manual for resumeand cover letterbuilding and gave classes to teach job interviewing skills. Her heart remains with the women she left behind, but will focus on the needed changes to the penal systems in California and Arkansas.Out of all of the positions she’s held in the private sector, AOUONhas been the most freeing organization and being a Staff Organizer, the most rewarding position she’s been blessed to have. Overall, AOUON is not only her life’s desire, but will also help her to accomplish her goal of serving both formerly and currently incarcerated persons.