Question 1

What does the club actually do?

Accepted Answer

Members correspond with incarcerated Southeast Asian men and women as pen pals, providing connection and community support to people who are often underserved within the prison system.

Question 2

How did this project get started?

Accepted Answer

A SASC member named Amy Tran was inspired by UC Berkeley's African American Studies Department Prison Pen Pal Program and developed a similar initiative for the Southeast Asian community in prisons in spring 2009. Larry Bach, Kristine Nguyen, and Irene Van joined to form the first committee.

Question 3

Do I need to be Southeast Asian to participate?

Accepted Answer

The project is open to Berkeley students and community members broadly — the focus is on connecting with incarcerated individuals from the Southeast Asian community, not on the identity of the volunteers.

Question 4

How has the club grown since its founding?

Accepted Answer

Starting with just 3 initial contacts in 2009, the project has grown to connect members with over 35 incarcerated men and women.

Southeast Asian Prison Outreach Project