Civic Agency in Politically Dangerous Times

Real grassroots reform happens when small groups of people get together to think about how to become involved in the change they want to see. That thinking together, that critical dialogue then emerges into organic praxis. Reform happens best when it bubbles out of the cafes and living rooms out into the streets. What we need now is a model of civic agency in these politically dangerous times that forefronts the localized collective. This model needs to include the reclaiming of public space; it needs to have a critical political education, opportunities for dialogue and leadership development, and, most importantly, opportunities for real and active involvement in the immediacy of civil life.

What We Really Want

I haven't forgotten the Bush years; the two-termed nightmare with its lies, its invasion, its economy at a grounded halt; the scorn of the world. How can we compare our problems now to our worst fears at the end of 2007? There's no way that we can go back there again. The only direction is forward, and we have the president to lead us. I am not daunted, I have no second thoughts, and my hope burns just as bright as the night we all cried when we made history. Change is painful, but the status quo is just plain lethal.

We must continue in our collective struggle. Hope is not short of will. We’ve only begun to fight. Our cause is just; a better world filled with more peace, more freedom and more light; healthier children with better opportunities to learn and grow; decent and plentiful jobs with livable wages; clean air, civil liberties. Human dignity and justice are not political terms, or at least they shouldn’t be. What we want is what everyone wants; only we want it for everyone.

The Qualities of Youth

"This world demands the qualities of youth: not a time of life but a state of mind, a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over the love of ease."- RFK



When I think about the change we need, what I think about most is the changes we must demand from ourselves. Radical and substantive changes that allow us to retain these qualities of the young. It will be our courage, our imagination, and our relentless pursuit of dignity and justice for all that will bring about the changes we want to see in others, in our schools, in our government and political institutions, and in the world at large.

In Solidarity

What does it mean to stand in solidarity with others? What does it mean to act in solidarity with them? How close is too close? Too overwhelming, too controlling? How far away is too distant, too removed, too out of touch? How do we balance between our isolationist and our interventionist tendencies? These are the questions I ponder when a text message seems too little and a plane ride maybe too much. I hope that we stay in this struggle for the long haul and we do everything in our power to help the most people possible to live lives of decency, dignity, and hope without doing too much or inserting our agenda. In the end though, I’d rather do too much and be asked to step aside than do too little and wonder who was asking when I was too far away to hear or too unconcerned to listen. Real transformation takes sustained engagement; it requires a consistent and unwavering solidarity, with a goal to develop sustainability. But if we leave when the cameras leave, we’ve done neither.

My Track Record is My Life!

Yes I am an outsider! All of these years I have been with you; in classrooms, in the streets, in community centers working for social justice. I've been teaching, writing, listening, marching, advocating, strategizing for ways to make this world a better place. My track record is a lifetime dedicated to change, not politics. This work, this struggle is all I have known, it is all I have ever wanted to do. I've no desire to become a politician. What I want is to be a representative of the people, with the people, for the people.

Time to Take a Stand

There comes a time in everyone’s life when you must take a stand. When you look around and you know that, if you don’t act, you may never get another chance. For me, for all of us Californians, I believe that time is now.

I was born and raised in California. My grandparents first migrated here from Louisiana in 1941 in search of a better life.

And California has been good to us. All nine of my grandmother’s children received high school diplomas and my mother and father both became schoolteachers via bachelor’s and credential programs in the California public universities. As a youth I was able to benefit from public schools in Oakland and San Jose where I completed my K-12 education. Upon graduation from high school I enrolled at the University of California Santa Barbara where I received my B.A. I then enrolled in a credential program at UC Berkeley and began teaching in the Oakland Public Schools. Ultimately I returned to UC Berkeley to earn a Masters and then a Ph.D. in Education. I am now a tenured professor, Division Head, Director of the Education Studies Minor, and Associate Director of the Institute for Democracy, Education, and Access in the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies at UCLA. My research and teaching at the university are focused on improving academic achievement and reforming underperforming schools. As you can see, my entire life and the history of my family have been tied to the educational systems of California. At their peak, they were the envy of the world and they have quite literally been our pathway to success and service.

Now I see these institutions that have meant so much to so many threatened by our recent economic crisis and our inability to invest properly in the future of the state. Schools that once served as models for the nation are now sorely lacking in resources. Here in the 37th Assembly District and throughout the state students are feeling the impacts of the lack of resources, teachers are threatened with losing their jobs, and our youth are at a disadvantage when compared to other states and other nations where there has been a more serious investment in education.

I couldn’t stand by in the halls of academia and let this happen to my own children and to the other children of hardworking Californians so I decided I had better do something about this. That is why I have decided to run for the California State Assembly; to fight for education, to fight for our children, for our future, and to restore our legacy as great and beautiful state, filled with sunshine, with diversity, with human and natural resources, and, most of all, with possibility.

I believe that with the right leadership we can restore the greatness of our educational institutions; we can protect the environment while creating jobs to assist in our ascent as a leader in the new green economy. And we can provide affordable and quality healthcare to all of our citizens. We can do these things and more together; our time is now and as my grandparents predicted, greatness is once again in our future.

Let Us Make This A Time To Be Thankful For

Today I am thankful for the progress we've made, as a society, as a nation, as a people, and as a family. I am also thankful for the progress I've made in my own life. Thanks to the love and support of so many throughout the years I am now able to do things I would have never dreamed possible during my childhood days in Oakland and San Jose. And, though I know the road is long and many challenges lay ahead, I am reminded by my ancestors of just how far we have come. Onward, forward, together my friends. I am thankful for the time, for life, for a cause, and most of all, for all of you. Together, let us make this a season to be truly thankful for. After all, we are the change that we've been waiting for.