Students for Fair Consideration

RIFA speech

Cj28 — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 03:39:29 +0000

RIFA held a rally-event in Saint Helena on Feb. 18th where I was asked to tell my story, my story as an undocumented student. I had three minutes to tell my story, something I thought would be impossible to do. Seeing that at other events, within a time period of two hours, I haven’t been able to say everything I wanted to say. But regardless, I did it anyway knowing that one of Mike Thompson’s representatives was going to be present at the event to say what Mike Thompson thought about the immigration reform issue. I did my speech and was very happy with the results! I definitely got my point across and was extremely nervous to hear what the representative was going to say about the issue. Turns out, Mike Thompson supports the immigration reform, he just needs to hear it from the community that we support him in his decision. He wants to make a decision based on what the community wants. We need to call in everyday and let him know we want this to pass!!!!

marcoflores — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:44:22 +0000

Empowering Women of Color this weekend. I’m looking forward to the AB540 Conference put together by the Rising Immigrant Scholars through Education at UC Berkeley. Just last night I was reminded of the event and I got a tingling sensation of what a significant conference this is for students who are going through similar struggles. I am thinking of what workshops they will be having this time. I’m considering presenting my most current work with AB540 students. I think it might come in handy and it can also give students a more personal relevance of what is currently being experienced by our AB540 students here on campus.

I am Undocumented, are You? Time to Come Out!

kathygin — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 16:10:45 +0000

In the words of Harvey Milk:

“Brothers and Sisters, you must come out! Come out to your parents, come out to your friends, if indeed they are your friends, come out to your neighbors, come out to your fellow workers. Once and for all, let’s break down the myth and destroy the lies and distortions. For your sake, for their sake. For the sake of all the youngsters who’ve been scared.” – Harvey Milk

The day is almost here. On March 10th, undocumented youth all over this country will finally come out the shadows and lay claim to their own futures launching us into our week of action, the National Coming out of the Shadows week (March 15th to the 21st). No longer will we let ourselves be intimidated, scared and ashamed. We have worked long and hard, we have risen to meet every challenge and we have made this country a better place for all. And yet, we are relegated to live in fear. So let us come out and end this fear.

Yes, we are undocumented. We do not have those nine magic numbers. We are without papers. But we are not and have never been without identities, without dreams, without hope for the future. The time is NOW to claim our identities, our country, our rights, and our dreams.

And it begins with YOU. It is your time to come out as an undocumented youth. But you are not alone. Hundreds of thousands of promising young people, just like yourself, are making the decision to come out with you. Together, we are coming out of the shadows, leaving behind the fear and the broken promise of the American Dream. We are empowering ourselves to seek a better future, a future in which we are respected, in which our families live with dignity, in which our American Dream is possible.

We know that coming out as undocumented is a terrifying thought for many of us. But we also know that the experience is empowering and liberating for each of us, as well as for all of us as a community. We have created a guide to coming out to help you work through your fears and come up with coming out plan that is right for you. You can find that guide here. Additionally, you can contact us for help in planning your coming out. We are here to support each other through this process!

We have prepared a guide to help you get going, in addition to different levels of coming out, check it out here: Coming out, A How to Guide = http://www.dreamactivist.org/comeout/

Will you come out with me?

Mohammad Abdollahi
Co-founder DreamActivist.org
Online and Youth Organizer | Manager

Need 1 to 1 support? Call us at 1.800.596.7498 or
Email: mo@dreamactivist.org

P.S. If you are an ally and not undocumented work with your undocumented connections and help them come out.

New American Scholars Program applications due this Friday 3/5

kathygin — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 22:35:53 +0000

Reminder: Applications must be received (not postmarked) by this Friday, March 5th.

More info here:

http://e4fc.org/scholarsprogram.html

“UC Dream Act”: AB-540 Financial Aid!

knavila — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 20:07:21 +0000

Hey all,

I am just attaching some information on a resolution that is currently being proposed in the UC system that can potentially allow AB-540 students to receive financial aid via the school campuses. Read the actual resolutions and bills that are being proposed if your interested!

Dear Student Leader and Defender of Public Education,

Earlier this month, the University of California Student Association [UCSA]
passed a motion to support a proposal that will be presented to the UC Regents
by UCLA Chancellor Block and Student Regent Jesse Bernal at the next UC
Regents meeting which would, if passed, open up access for
undocumented AB 540 students to institutional financial aid at the University
of California.

This is exactly the type of measure that the DREAM Act calls for.
Getting the Regents to pass this would be a great step toward getting
the state and national DREAM Acts passed. Winning a UC-wide DREAM
Scholarship would be a very important victory for our movement—a step in
the direction toward opening the gates of the UC far and wide for everyone
in the state.

Attached to this email you will find the actual motion passed by UCSA
on February 6th as well as the minutes from that February 6th meeting
showing that the motion carried [see page 16 of attachment].

Everyone who stands for equality, integration and expanding access to
higher education should spend the time between today and the
March Regents meeting fighting to make sure that the Regents pass the
Block/Bernal resolution. Making sure that the Regents pass this
resolution will not be simple or easy.

An important step you can take immediately is to have your organization
vote to endorse the resolution.
http://www.bamn.com/doc/2010/100216-UCSA-Resolution.doc

Make the passage of this resolution a prominent part of all your group’s days of action
leading up to the UC Regents Meeting on March 23-25, including events related to the
DREAM Act or March 4th, the day we shut down California. Building the power of our
independent student movement is the best way to ensure that the DREAM Scholarship becomes a reality.
The HIGH SCHOOL flyer to build for March 4th and fight to pass the UC Dream Act is
ATTACHED.

For more information and flyers for the upcoming events, visit:
http://www.bamn.com/doc/2010/100213-uc-dreamact.asp

Spread the word! Forward this email out to EVERYONE, so people
know what’s at stake over the next 6 weeks.

Academic or Artist?

Monica — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:33:28 +0000

The more I read Anzaldua the more I can identify and connect with what she is saying. What got my attention the most was her decision to not be an academic and write as she wanted. “After teaching in Texas public school system, I decided (years before) that I was not going to be a professional academic” (189). Anzaldua also explains, “ as a dyke of color, I have to take pretty big risks in my teaching, speaking engagements, and writing. I push against the boundaries of what’s acceptable and traditional in these three lines of work” (189). Personally, I am going through the same dilemma of being an academic or doing my own thing. I want to pursue higher education levels, but I know that the higher I go the higher are the risks and limits that I will encounter. I know I am going to do a master’s degree but have doubted getting a Ph.D. I want the Ph.D. only because as a Mexican woman I want to be fully prepared to be independent and I also want to be a role model. The doubts I have about getting a Ph.D. are due to the idea that the only path is to be a professor and do research. I want to work with students and the community and not be stuck doing research and teaching. I have more power going into the communities and interacting with them rather than writing books that they may never get access to. Another reason that makes me not want to do the research as part of having a Ph.D. is the academic writing. Like Anzaldua, I don’t want to use “the master’s tools” (189). I want to be able to express myself in simple in Spanglish and with no grammar and spelling rules. That is why I don’t want to earn a Ph. D.
The only place I have felt like I can express myself without any rules is in art. Everything I make is related to my life, culture and things that are somehow connected to my crazy ideas. However, my works make me feel marginalized because I am one of the only minorities creating something that yells “Mexican, woman, childhood, etc.” As Anzaldua mentions, “art and literature are exclusive” (189). I am expected to paint like a white artist and not a woman of color. I violate this idea just as Anzalsua ignored the rules for writing. I take advantage of the freedoms creating an art piece gives me because I can make it and be criticized later.
I realized art is the way I like to fully express myself. Now, I am wondering what degree I will pursue. If I was to go into art, will I run into the same issue of the white artist majority wanting to force me to follow their artistic paths? Also, by the time I graduate and go through the identity changes to come, how will I identify myself in my works?

Just a free thought

Dragonfly09 — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 09:51:42 +0000

Umm my school work has been very busy but here’s just a thought I had now….

The end makes me think about the beginning. But then I like the end because I’ve grown from my beginning. Neither have I become a better nor a worse person but I’ve grown more into the person I am. Life is a gift, treasure it. Believe.Hug. Laugh.Love.

…………………………

Also, I would like to invite everyone to the Hmong Cultural Night on March 13th. The Hmong Student Association, known as HSA, which I am a member and an officer as Historian of, are hosting the cultural night in UC Merced, my school. If you would like to come, please let me know. Email me at christabellenaw@gmail.com. The cultural night includes music, skits, who are the Hmongs, free snacks, Hmong clothing fashion show, and many more. I will be one of the ushers and helping out with the Hmong clothing fashion show committee so it has been fun. It is free admissions. Please join us if you are interested.=D

“Embrace your roots. They are the strength to your identity.”

Take care now.=)

Good News from a Scholar & Activist

marcoflores — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 10:48:06 +0000

PPIA Junior Summer Institute at Princeton University

“Dear Marco,

Congratulations! I am pleased to inform you that you have been admitted to the 2010 PPIA Junior Summer Institute (JSI) at Princeton University. Please be advised that you have been admitted on a provisional basis pending receipt of your official college transcripts.”

Now the interesting thing about this is – I’m scared of the flight. I hate the stupid ’search’ I have to go through. I’m scared already, it’s not even funny how scared I get. Either way, I’m beyond excited. Princeton, here I come.

events looking forward to that are coming up:

President Bill Clinton

president bill clinton speaking on global citizenship. tickets are out, no more. BUT luckily I was able to get up at 7:00am in the morning to reserve a spot. I think this might be interesting, it might even come in handy for my thesis.

Empowering Women of Color 2010

Now what is there not to love about EWOC? I love this event, love it love it LOVE IT. I’m looking forward to the art work that women have submitted, the free t-shirt, and the posters that will be going up soon. The conference is March 13 -14, 2010, you can still register.

Decolonizing the University: Fulfilling the Dream of the Third World College

Now this should be a treat! A series of panelists speaking of ‘decolonizing the university.’ Rising Immigrant Scholars through Education and Immigrant Student Issues Coalition are putting on two separate workshops on AB540/undocumented students. RISE will have more of a student perspective, and ISIC will provide more of a staff perspective of how to navigate the system. You can still register, and you should because it’s bound to get packed. February 26-27, 2010.

Anzaldua, an entrance to my own self-discovery

Monica — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:25:20 +0000

The first thing that impacted me from The Gloria Anzaldua Reader was the cover of the book, “Haciendo caras, una entrada” (making faces, an entrance). The stoic posture and her eyes seem to be yelling out at me things that I can’t seem to understand. The glare in her eyes catches, and pulls me in. They make me want to know what she was seeing and feeling at the moment she took this picture. My heart starts pumping tons of blood faster and faster each time I look at the cover, inciting many emotions that I can’t seem to describe. The title of the cover seems to make me feel better because the cover is the entrance to the many faces, identities and worlds Anzaldua was.
Every time she writes about one of her personal stories I emerge myself into it and see how relevant those same stories are to mine. What caught my attention the most about the chapter of “La Prieta” were the fears she had. “One of my biggest fears is that of betraying myself, of consuming myself with self-castigation, of not being able to unseat the guilt that has ridden on my back for years” (39). I also feel this way very often when I think of my past, present, and future decisions. Sometimes the decisions I make can feel as if I betrayed myself, especially when I do them for or against my family. One that is really haunting me is marriage. I am battling between doing it for my family or for myself. My aunts already hint that I am getting old and should start looking around for the lucky one. As for my parents, it’s not an option, it’s expected. Their wedding was done thinking of setting an example for their children to follow.
Like Anzaldua, my biggest fear if disappointing my mother. “But above all, I am terrified of making my mother the villain in my life rather then showing how she has been a victim” (39). My mother can be very traditional especially when it comes to how a woman should behave and marry a virgin. Like Anzaldua, I am the only female out of 3 males. I also feel the “resentment” not just for that physical love they share, but for the sexual, behavioral freedom my brothers are “entitled” to have that I don’t. I have seen my mother as the villain for the longest time for those reasons. I have felt betrayed but after learning about the aspects of history and society that made her this way; I’m learning to accept she is a victim just as I have been a victim to those traditions instilled in her. I try to liberate her mind by telling her what I learn but those beliefs are too engraved in her mind. She does not want to live out of the norm and be the odd ball.
I’m learning and exploring those ideals searching for a loophole or hoping to be accepted for every decision going against tradition.

Update on Tutoring/Mentoring Program

Cj28 — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 23:48:04 +0000

I finally got my afterschool mentoring/tutoring program running! I met the students that I am going to work with for the rest of the year and I am so excited to be doing this for them! All of the students that I am working with are minority students who really want to attend the ‘outdoor ed’ program, but just don’t have the money. They are also heavily struggling in their academics, most of them are struggling in math. For the past 3 meetings we have had, all we have worked on is their homework. We have been working hard to have them understand their homework a lot better. It is really hard to say how much we have improved, but we are definitely helping them out as much as we can. :] I can feel the impact we are going to have on their lives… I’m very anxious to see what the rest of the year brings for us.