Pardon czar Alice Johnson praised President Donald Trump during a Black History Month event at the White House Wednesday, stating that she was a "testament" to how the president feels about black people in the country.

Trump commuted Johnson's prison sentence during his first term after she was sentenced to life in prison in the 1990s for nonviolent drug crimes. She served 21 years in prison before her sentence was commuted by Trump in 2018.

"This president right here, President Donald Trump, brought me from the prison pit to the White House," Johnson said during the White House event. "Only in America could there be a story like my story. And President Trump is the only president who would have had the courage to bring someone like me, someone who received a second chance."

"I did not get comfortable in my own freedom, but I went back as Harriet Tubman said she did," she continued. "She went back to draw many others into freedom. And President Trump has listened to those recommendations."

Johnson highlighted that the bipartisan First Step Act, which Trump signed into law in 2018, has resulted in the early release of over 40,000 imprisoned Americans, including many black people who "had no hope."

"This president cares for you," Johnson told attendees. "Don't let anyone tell you that this president right here, Donald Trump, is not for black America, because he is. I'm standing here today. I'm standing here today ... as a testament to how he feels about black Americans."

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Scott Turner and black business leaders also spoke at the event.