A new year and a new office in San Jose!
More than 15 years ago we moved to our office on Las Plumas Avenue. Since then we haven’t stopped fighting for justice and building youth power in Eastside San Jose. Luckily over the years our work, staff and base has grown leading us to search for a new home. We didn’t have to look far…
Read More
The Magic of 2019: Top 4 CFJ Highlights
Public schools are the heart of our communities. That’s the core belief that led us through the good, the bad and the everyday moments of 2019. From lessons learned to shared victories, we couldn’t have done it without our students, staff and community leading together to build a brighter future for California. To celebrate that…
Read More
Text Thread W/ Deshae Lee: Featuring the Students of CFJ
This week, we spoke with Deshae Lee, a student activist in Fresno, CA. Deshae joined Californians For Justice 1 year ago as an incoming high school senior, and is already a central leader within our organization. Every week Deshae is in our Fresno office, setting up meetings with school officials, preparing to speak on behalf…
Read More
Celebrating 5 Years of The Incredible Journey of The Student Voice Campaign
A legacy in the making turns 5 today— the Student Voice Campaign. Five years ago, the Student Voice Campaign transformed the perception and role of students as “essential” stakeholders in local decision-making processes in California’s public schools giving a voice to 4.5 million students. Today Californians for Justice celebrates an incredible historic victory in the…
Read More
Youth Are Ready For A Radically New Future
Above: CFJ’s Angel Palencia and Nhada Ahmed kick off the State of the Youth event in San Jose last month. Young people are leading and taking action on a national and global scale, challenging systems of power that endanger their ability to thrive and live with dignity. In California, we have the 5th largest economy…
Read More
From the Archives: Lupe Navarro & How Students Can “Reach New Heights”
Above: Lupe Navarro (back row, third from left) with her fellow statewide student leaders in Californians for Justice. Last year, Lupe Navarro stood before the East Side Union High School District Board of Trustees and called on decision-makers to continue their commitment to East San Jose’s students and families. Her public comments came at a…
Read More
Why we need Integration for Liberation
Last month student leaders, elected officials, researchers, educators and community organizers from California and beyond gathered in San Jose to discuss “Integration for Liberation.” While our conversation was rooted in our schools, we quickly saw that transformation and liberation must also ripple out to our communities. Schools today in New York and California are more…
Read More
Next Step in Diversity Training: Teachers Learn to Face Their Unconscious Biases
(As published in EdWeek, by Sarah Schwartz on May 14, 2019) Diversity training asks teachers to understand students’ different backgrounds. Implicit-bias training goes further, and asks teachers to look at themselves Teachers—and their implicit biases—can directly impact the opportunities afforded to students of color. Teachers make the first decisions about behavioral consequences that lead to referrals…
Read More
CFJ Youth Leading Together with LBUSD to Interrupt Bias in the Classroom
This weekend CFJ youth leaders and staff led a powerful bias training for Long Beach Unified School District teachers and administrators. The session was a unique twist to traditional trainings that center conversations on adults rather than students. CFJ youth leaders led the space and trained LBUSD staff participants on the ways implicit biases show…
Read More