Hamdiya Cooks-Abdullah has over 30 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. Hamdiya is currently the Administrative Director at Legal Services for Prisoners with Children in San Francisco, CA. Her responsibilities are wide-ranging as she works to eradicate systematic discrimination practices against formerly incarcerated people.