These young people are supporting the Los Angeles teacher strike

Californians for Justice organizes high school age youth to envision and fight for racial justice in their lives. The young people have campaigned for several years for what they call "relationship centered schools." They are demanding that the schools ensure they encounter adults they can relate to. When such adults are lacking, students disengage. When they meet teachers and others who care about them, who do not cling to unequal expectations of them based on race or zip code, they can thrive.

And so CFJ youth are huge supporters of the UTLA strike. The teachers and the kids are on the same track: if the powers-that-be don't find the money to pay teachers better and to provide needed resources, they fear they'll lose the adults who can serve as their anchors:

Without the support of public officials and the additional investment of resources, teachers–especially those working in low-income schools with predominantly Black and Brown student populations–are being forced to leave their schools and communities behind to find living wages. We’ve already seen this in Bay Area communities like Oakland, where the district is struggling to retain teachers–and teachers of color in particular–due to the housing crisis and the increased cost of living.

This pattern of teacher turnover is detrimental to students and communities of color and makes it hard to build Relationship Centered Schools where all students, staff, and administrators feel safe, supported, and capable of thriving.

CFJ Student Leader Jiawen Wang who is a student at Oakland High expressed this concern recently: “When teachers come and go we lose the strong connections students need to feel safe and comfortable at school. We can struggle and fall behind in our classes. We can become overwhelmed and not know who to turn to for assistance. We can check out and go through an entire day without talking in class or connecting with an adult.”

Los Angeles and the entire state of California can do better by the young people who are the future.