Rev. Eugene Williams III was the Founder and Executive Director of Los Angeles Metropolitan Churches (LAM), a network of small to midsize African American congregations across Los Angeles County. Founded in 1994, the organization was established to build the capacity of these churches to meet the needs of their communities. Its mission is to address the growing sense of hopelessness in the African American community related to joblessness, illiteracy, and the high incarceration rates of young men. In 1998, LAM successfully advocated for major prison reform legislation requiring ex-offenders to pursue a GED as a condition of probation. Prior to founding LAM, Rev. Williams was an organizer in Philadelphia.
