Impact Report
KEMBA
MAY 2025
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Executive Summary
Storytelling is power. At Represent Justice, we believe that the stories of those most impacted by the legal system will help end mass incarceration.
In 2024, we partnered with Kemba Smith, the team at MPI, and director Kelley Kali on an impact campaign for the BET Original and MPI Original film Kemba, which shares her incredible life story. The film shines a light on the rising rates of incarceration of women of color and survivors of violence and abuse, and questions the injustices of extreme sentencing and arbitrary mandatory minimums.
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Kemba premiered on BET+ in February 2024, reaching a wide audience on the streaming platform. National and local press featuring Kemba and director Kelley Kali generated buzz and audience reach.
Film festivals and a sold-out, pre-release screening on Capitol Hill convened by the 400 Years of African American History Commission and Congressman Bobby Scott focused on the importance of protecting rather than harming women and girls who have survived violence and abuse.
Represent Justice built on early momentum to facilitate 121 impact screening and appearance events across the country, including screenings for students at universities and high schools; with Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and other national organizations led by and serving Black women; and reaching legal and health professionals at national conferences. Kemba Smith also screened the film and spoke to women and men in 20 prisons and jails across the country, reaching approximately 2,200 incarcerated people.
Audience survey data from our impact campaign shows that after seeing the film, over 90% of viewers are deeply concerned about Kemba’s story and supportive of laws designed to change mandatory minimum sentencing. More than 80% of audiences were also moved to take action after seeing the film.
Across all campaign activities, Kemba Smith and Represent Justice worked to leverage the film’s reach to support the national and years-long coalition effort to #FreeMichelleWest, supporting Michelle’s clemency petition before the President, and demanding broader use of federal clemency to grant second chances to women serving long sentences. After fighting for her freedom for more than 30 years, in January 2025, President Biden granted Michelle West clemency, and she is now home with her family.
900K+
Impressions on Kemba-related digital content
45
Appearances with the film team
121
Impact screenings hosted by 100+ organizations
80%
Of viewers plan to take action
About The Film
Kemba QUOTE
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Kemba is a BET Original and MPI Original film based on the life story of Kemba Smith Pradia. The film follows Kemba’s journey as a college student who falls in love with a man only to find out he isn’t who he seems. When Kemba learns of her boyfriend Khalif’s true identity as a drug kingpin, he turns abusive—grooming straight-laced Kemba to overlook his illicit dealings. Though she never dealt or handled drugs, Kemba receives a sentence of over 24 years for her boyfriend’s crimes—placing her in the middle of the government’s “war on drugs.” Never losing hope, her parents, along with an attorney with the Legal Defense Fund, launch a campaign for appeal and later clemency, harnessing the power of Black civic organizations, sororities, celebrities, and lawmakers to help free Kemba. Learn more at KembaMovie.com.
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Cast
Nesta Cooper
Siddiq Saunderson
Sean Patrick Thomas
Michelle Hurd
Crew
Kemba Smith, Executive Producer
Kelley Kali, Director
Christine Swanson, Writer
Rob Pfaltzgraff, p.g.a, Producer
Lana Link, p.g.a, Producer
Stacey Parks, p.g.a, Producer
Nick Reid, Executive Producer
Constance Orlando, Executive Producer
Maureen Guthman, Executive Producer
Impact Campaign Participants
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Kemba Smith
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Kemba Smith Pradia, once sentenced to 24.5 years in prison for drug-related offenses, became a prominent advocate for criminal justice reform after receiving clemency from President Clinton, and now works as a public speaker, author, and consultant while continuing her activism through various organizations and her own foundation.
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Michelle West
CAMPAIGN PARTICIPANT
A survivor of intimate partner violence, Michelle West was sentenced to life without parole because of the arbitrary minimum sentencing laws of the 1990s, despite having no prior offenses. Kemba advocated for Michelle's freedom for over 23 years. Kemba’s storytelling in the film highlights her relationship with Michelle, the first person to break the news to her that she was granted clemency.
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Kelley Kali
DIRECTOR
Kelley Kali, a Los Angeles native and Howard University & USC alumna, is an award-winning filmmaker recognized for her socially conscious storytelling, directing and producing acclaimed films like Lalo’s House, I’M FINE (Thanks for Asking), Jagged Mind, and Kemba, earning honors from the Academy, Sundance, and SXSW.
How Did Kemba Reach and Engage Audiences?
Kemba Smith, the film team including MPI and director Kelley Kali, and Represent Justice co-created a distribution and impact strategy to address the overcriminalization of women who are survivors of domestic violence and abuse.
Streaming Strategy
BET used the power of its streaming platform to bring Kemba’s story to new audiences.
Kemba premiered on BET+ in March 2024.
To promote the streaming premiere, BET planned email and social media announcements and ads, with in-app and push notifications in streaming platforms and spotlights on Apple, Roku, Amazon and Google Play platforms.
BET also placed billboards promoting the film in New York, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and Chicago.
Media Coverage
National and local press coverage generated buzz
Kemba Smith and Kelley Kali spoke and sat down with outlets across the country to get the word out to diverse audiences. Coverage received more than 85 placements in publications with a cumulative audience reach of over 11 million visitors per month and counting, as Kemba and Kelley continue to make appearances wherever they travel for events. The following is a selection of press coverage.
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New York Times
(Paywall) President Biden pardoned five activists and public servants, including commuting the sentence of Michelle West. She is serving a sentence for crimes committed in the 1990s that would keep her behind bars for the rest of her life.
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The Root
President Biden’s latest round of pardons, including clemency for criminal justice advocate Kemba Smith, underscores his record-breaking efforts to address sentencing disparities and systemic injustices.
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The Grio
This article reports that in December 2024, the Biden White House was preparing to issue historic preemptive pardons—a never-before-seen move—including high-profile individuals like Jan 6 investigators and pandemic figures—before President Biden’s term endedtion goes here.
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NPR Weekend Edition Sunday
This NPR feature presents NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe interviewing Kemba Smith Pradia and director Kelley Kali about the film Kemba, which explores Smith Pradia’s experience with race, mandatory minimum sentencing, and her transformation into a passionate advocate.
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CBS News Detroit
A powerful conversation between Kemba Smith and MSNBC’s Symone Sanders-Townsend about Kemba’s harrowing experience with the federal justice system, her fight for clemency, and the new film that tells her story.
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Fox 5 Atlanta
Kemba Smith was sentenced to more than 24 years in prison for a crime she didn't commit and now fights to help release others. Her story of resilience is now a movie, and Smith and Legal Defense Fund advocate Tona Boyd joined Alex Whittler to talk about her experience.
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FOX 5 DC
FOX 5 DC features Kemba Smith sharing her powerful story of redemption and advocacy after receiving clemency, as portrayed in a new film about her life.
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ABC 8 Tulsa
Kemba Smith shares her powerful journey from being sentenced to 24.5 years in prison to becoming a national advocate for criminal justice reform, highlighting the injustices faced by women entangled in the war on drugs.
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BET's America in Black
Ed Gordon in conversation with Kemba Smith, whose story of surviving a 24.5-year prison sentence is now a BET+ film—spotlighting her ongoing fight for justice and sentencing reform.
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Los Angeles Sentinel
In this Los Angeles Sentinel article, readers will learn how Kemba Smith challenges the criminal justice system by sharing her personal story of incarceration and advocating for policy reforms that protect women and communities of color.
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The Reid Out
Director Kelley Kali and protagonist Kemba Smith appear on MSNBC’s The ReidOut to discuss Kemba, the movie.
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The Grio's Marc Lamont-Hill
This TheGrio video features director Kelley Kali and activist Kemba Smith joining Marc Lamont Hill to discuss the film Kemba, which explores Smith’s journey from unjust incarceration to powerful advocacy
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PIX11 News New York City
A compelling PIX11 interview where director Kelley Kali and criminal-justice advocate Kemba Smith discuss the deeply personal, true story behind the BET+ film Kemba, exploring Smith’s journey from a HBCU student to wrongful incarceration and her subsequent fight for reform.
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Laura Coates Live
This Instagram Reel features a clip from Laura Coates Live, where Kemba Smith Pradia and director Kelley Kali join CNN’s Laura Coates to discuss the film Kemba and the real-life story behind it.
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Deadline
You'll find Deadline’s exclusive announcement that actor Nesta Cooper has been cast to star in the MPI/BET original film Kemba, directed by Kelley Kali and based on the true-life journey of criminal justice advocate Kemba Smith.
Early Events
Film festivals and a Capitol Hill pre-release screening generated early momentum
Kemba played in over 10 film festivals nationally and internationally, winning awards at the Rome Independent Film Festival, St. Louis International Film Festival, Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival, and Windrider Film Showcase.
Kemba Smith and MPI worked with the 400 Years of African American History Commission and Congressman Bobby Scott to convene a pre-release screening on Capitol Hill for legislators, staffers, movement leaders and community organizations, speaking to the power of federal legislation to protect young people who have survived domestic violence or abuse from being unjustly caught up in the legal system.
Screenings like this one play a key role in engaging in top-down political or legislative change that will directly affect future policy outcomes and shift the current structure of the legal system into one that is fair and dignified.
Impact Campaign
Represent Justice coordinated a national tour of impact events
Shifting Narratives & Culture
In alignment with our mission to build narrative power within system-impacted communities, Represent Justice worked with Kemba Smith to raise awareness about the connection between intimate partner violence and the extreme sentencing of women. We facilitated impact screenings across the country to reach young people, Black women leaders and their organizations, and system-impacted audiences.
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At universities, we built on Kemba’s experience speaking with students at class-wide freshman orientations and worked to reach student unions and different departments. The film’s focus on Kemba’s experience beginning as a freshman at Hampton University highlights that young women of color are disproportionately caught in the criminal legal system as a consequence of surviving intimate partner violence, and offers a platform for Kemba and other experts to speak candidly and directly to students about prevention.
The film powerfully depicts how the Legal Defense Fund, led by Elaine Jones at the time, worked with Kemba’s parents and national Black women’s organizations, including the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, the Links, the NCNW, and more, to lead a national movement to secure Kemba’s freedom. 18 student and alumnae chapters of the Deltas hosted their own screenings, and Kemba spoke at the Delta Days in the Nation's Capital, as well as webinars and conferences for Deltas throughout the campaign.
We also worked to share the film and discussions with Kemba at over a dozen national conferences, addressing second-look sentencing, reentry, social work, healthcare and preventing violence against women.
121
Impact screenings hosted by 100+ organizations
80%
Of impact events included talkbacks or workshops
12,500
Attendees to screenings and events
Hope & Inspiration
Screenings for people who are currently incarcerated focused on sharing Kemba Smith’s message of healing and inspiration, with an emphasis on reaching women, parents, and people serving long sentences. Whenever possible, Kemba appeared in person to speak with people, pairing the film with discussions focused on resilience and growth.
2,200
Viewers who are currently incarcerated
20
Screenings and events inside prisons and jails
Digital Storytelling
Represent Justice worked closely with Kemba Smith to create a digital storytelling strategy that shared Kemba’s work and moved online audiences to action. Kemba led the campaign’s online storytelling, using her point of view to educate and move audiences on key issues like ending mandatory minimum sentences, gender-based violence and the effect of intimate partner violence on sentencing. Throughout, she focused on engaging her network and ours in the fight to #FreeMichelleWest.
“With regard to my experience with social media and the impact campaign, I’ve become more comfortable with posting. The social media training provided by Represent Justice was definitely helpful. I’m not someone who posts every day… I’ve learned and experienced that being strategic and authentic has allowed me to be more confident in recognizing my own voice as a social media influencer. Today, it is more important than ever to have formerly incarcerated people on the ground sharing their stories, to help change the narrative and to show others who are on our same journey that they too can be a success story.”
– Kemba Smith
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In supporting and collaborating on Kemba’s digital storytelling, we also helped Kemba build a trusted online community, and her online presence grew exponentially since the beginning of the campaign. We used a series of videos about her work to date, her plans for the future, and why she uses her story to help drive attendees to marches on Washington alongside key partners, solicit tens of thousands petition signatures, and over 1,700 actions taken in support of Michelle West’s clemency.
All in all, we were able to reach over 890,000 people, garnering over 25,000 digital engagements with content from the Kemba campaign. As a part of the campaign, Kemba partook in a digital training that bolstered her comfortability with social media as a tool for change, specifically video content. Throughout the campaign, Kemba’s following grew by 271%, her posting rate increased by 400% and she garnered over 200,000 video views on her campaign-related content and the Kemba webpage was visited over 7,500 times.
271%
Increase in Kemba’s social media following during the campaign
1,700
Legislative actions taken in support of Michelle West’s clemency
890,000
People reached with KEMBA content
#FREEMICHELLEWEST
Michelle West
“I hope this message finds you well. I am sending this last email filled with gratitude for all the love and support I received from you and Represent Justice. I have one more day left until my release.... Again, I thank you and your colleagues for your major contribution to #FreeMichelleWest movement. The Impact Campaign definitely had an IMPACT on my life. I will forever be grateful for all those who supported me during my darkest moment.”
Michelle West, a survivor of intimate partner violence with no prior offenses who was sentenced to life without parole under mandatory minimum laws, was granted clemency by President Biden on January 19, 2025, following a 23-year advocacy campaign led by Kemba Smith (who received a full pardon the same day) and support from civil rights organizations.
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Michelle was sentenced to life without parole because of mandatory minimum sentencing laws, despite having no prior offenses and being a survivor of intimate partner violence. Michelle’s story is highlighted in the film, and Kemba has advocated for Michelle's freedom for over 23 years.
In collaboration with Kemba, Miquelle West (Michelle’s daughter), Amanda Bashi (Michelle’s lawyer), the National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls, the Legal Defense Fund, and countless other organizations, our campaign was part of the last-mile coalition efforts to free Michelle from prison.
We leveraged the film and Kemba’s storytelling to contribute to a national movement calling for the President to grant Michelle clemency and for federal clemency to be used more broadly to provide second chances to women serving long sentences.
Through the screening and speaking events across the country, we worked to keep Michelle’s story in the public narrative and to bring awareness to the injustice of arbitrary mandatory minimum sentencing policies and their disproportionate impact on women of color. We worked with Michelle, Miquelle and Amanda to plan strategic events in Detroit and Grand Rapids because Michelle’s case was based in Michigan. We also held a screening co-hosted by the Black Music Action Coalition and Amazon Music to generate support for Michelle within the music industry and write letters of support.
During the time of the campaign, over 25,000 people signed an existing petition calling on the President to grant her clemency, over 700 people wrote emails to the President and their elected officials in support of Michelle, and 100 people submitted messages we mailed to Michelle in prison. 35 movement leaders and organizations joined a sign-on letter to the President calling on support for the president.
On Sunday, January 19, 2025, President Biden pardoned Kemba Smith and granted Michelle West clemency, citing as part of the justification for Michelle’s clemency the fact that “Ms. West’s clemency petition has received overwhelming support from the civil rights community, women’s rights advocates, former fellow inmates, and lawmakers” – the very things we worked to cultivate and amplify throughout our impact campaign. That same day, President Biden granted Kemba Smith a full pardon.
Testimonials
Audience Impact
How Did Kemba Impact Audiences?
We asked viewers to share what resonated with them from the film, and what actions they plan to take after seeing Kemba’s story. We heard from nearly 350 Kemba viewers.
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Viewers responded to Kemba’s story. After watching the film, 92% of audience members were concerned about the connection between intimate partner violence and lengthy prison sentences for survivors. 91% were ready to support laws and policies that reduce sentences for drug-related charges.
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83% of viewers indicated they plan to take action after seeing the film. We asked viewers to tell us in their own words what action or actions they planned to take after seeing the film, and more than 70% of viewers shared specific actions.
Nearly all viewers expressed interest in supporting legal reforms related to mandatory minimum sentencing laws, clemency, first and second chances for survivors of intimate partner violence, and voting for officials who prioritize criminal justice reform.
One viewer shared: “I plan to share Kemba’s story with everyone who will listen and support legislation to eliminate mandatory minimum sentences.”
The majority of viewers taking action also expressed a desire to share Kemba’s story, discuss the film’s themes and educate others on issues related to intimate partner violence and the criminal legal system. Some plan to screen the film in their communities or incorporate it into mentorship programs. For example, one viewer shared: “I am already planning to do a viewing of Kemba and have a discussion with a group of young ladies that I mentor who are currently 10th graders.” Another shared: “I will definitely be signing the petition for Michelle West to be released, and talking more to young people about self-esteem and how that directly affects decision-making, self-love, knowing the signs of abuse, control.”
Many responses also highlight a deeply personal reaction to Kemba’s story. Viewers reflected on their own experiences and expressed a desire to encourage self-worth and self-awareness in young women, mentor younger generations, and recognize red flags in their own relationships. For example, one viewer shared: “I see so many similarities in this movie with relationships my friends are a part of. I would never think it could go this far, but I’m so happy I received the information I did. It also definitely changed my perspective of incarcerated people.”
Others planned to volunteer with organizations supporting survivors of intimate partner violence, or incarcerated women; provide legal aid and resources to returning citizens; and support the Legal Defense Fund and other organizations. One viewer shared: “I will continue supporting organizations that work to end mass incarceration and organizations like A New Way of Life and Essie Justice Group who work directly with women.” Another shared a commitment to “donate more to LDF.” A third shared they plan to “become even more involved in the work my Delta chapter’s Domestic Violence Task Force is doing in my community.”
How did the film impact Kemba Smith and Michelle West?
“Quote from Kemba”
For Kemba Smith, the wide release of her film and the impact campaign surrounding it provided an opportunity to continue her dedicated work as a movement leader, inspirational speaker, and sought-after expert.
For Michelle West, the impact campaign was part of a last-mile effort to secure clemency from the President, a result of more than 30 years fighting for her freedom.
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Represent Justice also worked with Kemba to facilitate over 30 paid speaking appearances during the course of the campaign, which helped support her leadership and livelihood during the campaign.
We worked with Kemba and partner organization the Raben Group on Kemba’s development of a strategic plan for the Kemba Smith Foundation, to support the growth of the foundation’s programs and Kemba’s leadership of the organization and its sustainability long beyond the six-month window of the impact campaign.
Michelle West is free today after fighting for her freedom for over 30 years. In her struggle, she had the support of her family and friends, a dedicated lawyer, an incredible coalition of organizations led by Black and system-impacted women, elected officials, and individual supporters across the country. Kemba campaigned for Michelle’s clemency since she herself was granted clemency.
Kemba’s portrayal of Michelle in the film, the film’s wide release and our impact events brought attention and more supporters to Michelle’s case, part of the last-mile efforts to secure her freedom through clemency from President Biden.
Looking Ahead
Kemba’s film showcases the importance of stories centered on and told by women of color about the injustices of the growing rates of incarceration of women, and the disproportionate impact of intimate partner violence on women’s sentencing in the legal system. There is much work to be done to prevent intimate partner violence and abuse, to give women a first chance; to address the mandatory minimum sentences; to consider the experiences of survivors of intimate partner violence in sentencing; and to give women second chances through clemency and second-look sentencing practices.
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Kemba will continue her work to support women and girls with the Kemba Smith Foundation. Follow the Foundation to stay engaged with their programming.
In our commitment to growing authentic narrative power by building an ecosystem of storytellers, we have launched the Represent Justice Speakers Bureau, through which we are honored to have the chance to continue working with Kemba to change the way people understand the legal system. Reach out to book Kemba to speak in your community or to your group.
Michelle West returned home to her daughter on February 18, 2025. We hope to have the chance to continue working with Michelle as well through our programming.
About Represent Justice’s Film and Series Work
The Represent Justice Film & Series program leads impact campaigns to independent films helmed by system-impacted individuals. Kemba was awarded Represent Justice’s first-ever Open Call Impact Campaign, designed to provide in-kind support to film or television series addressing mass incarceration.
