Celebrating 25 Years of SYLA Across California
Each year, Californians for Justice offices across the state transform into the Summer Youth Leadership Academy (SYLA). This intensive 5-week program focuses on political education, public speaking, organizing tactics, and campaign work. What started as neighborhood canvassing and local word-of-mouth recruitment in our Bay Area regions has expanded greatly. Today, SYLA spans four regions across…
Student Spotlight: The Legacy and Future of CFJ Core Intern Ariel
After three and a half years with Californians for Justice, core intern Ariel is ready for the next phase of her life. Raised by her grandparents, the values of community strength were instilled in Ariel at a young age. Her grandparents, her grandma from Arkansas and her grandpa from Mississippi, brought with them southern values,…
Fresno team organizes to address students’ mental health crisis
The Californians for Justice team in Fresno organized a Student Wellness Fair on May 15th at Farber Educational Campus. The event, sponsored by local community organizations Chicano Youth Center and Maarte, focused on fostering connection and ensuring our students and communities have access to wellness resources offered in Fresno. The Fresno team, including youth, organizers,…
CFJ Youth Leaders Secure Major Wins in Long Beach & Fresno Unified
We’re so excited to share even more incredible wins from our youth organizers! Our student leaders won major initiatives and secured millions in funding for new policies in Fresno and Long Beach Unified. Fresno Expanding Ethnic Studies & Paying Students for Expertise and Labor That’s right! This summer and fall, Fresno Unified will expand the…
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…
Use Social Media to Change Culture
For many of us, a significant portion of our lives takes place on social media. We use it for entertainment, community and building our very own businesses. But it can be hard to know how to bring some of our real life values into the online space. How do we share what we…
Blackface incident is just the latest moment of anti-blackness & racism in Fresno Unified
The recent news of a Bullard High School student donning blackface and using the n-word on social media has hurt our community deeply. While the student’s actions are disappointing, the student’s ability to make that choice exists in an America where there is a long and toxic history of systemic racism and anti-blackness. Incidents like…
CFJ Fresno Open House Celebrates Community, Art, and Relationship Building in Schools!
Earlier this month, Californians for Justice celebrated community, art, and student voice as part of Art Hop in Downtown Fresno. The event doubled as an open house for our new offices within Common Space and allowed our youth leaders the chance to engage community members in relationship building and conversations about the importance of racial…
Time for Radical Revision of what Public Education Can Look Like for Black Students & Families
Black History Month offers an important time to examine issues of racial justice in communities and our education system. When public education was dreamed up by its founders, Horace Mann and Thomas Jefferson, neither person envisioned Black students attending integrated schools. That much is evident when we look at the history of schooling in America…