Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula Students Visit State Capitol

Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula (BGCP) recently led high school students from East Palo Alto and Redwood City on a field trip to Sacramento as part of Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s national Days of Advocacy program. There, the students joined peers from throughout California for such activities as:

• Meeting legislators and aides
  
  
• Touring the State Capitol
  
  
• Networking and workshopping sessions about addressing community issues
  
  
• Joining a Career Roundtable session with professionals who looked like them, including Ana Taukolo, Associate Executive Director at Alliance for Education Solutions; Michael Lucien, Chief of Staff to California Assemblymember Reggie Jones Sawyer; Simone Braithwaite, Communications Director for California Assemblymember Kevin McCarty; Cochise Silva, Artist and Engineer at UC Berkeley; and Taylor Cole, Model/Actress.

In their own words, here is what students experienced and learned.

Sarahi, senior at Sequoia High School:
“I liked meeting (elected officials). It was a good way to make connections and learn about the people who represent us, who are for us. We met Marc Berman (State Assemblymember), Lizette Mata (Senior Advisor to U.S. Senator Alex Padilla), and we took a picture with Josh Becker (California State Senator).

“You learn so much from them, especially hearing about their experience and knowing what motivates them. They really care about their job and doing for their people. They don’t even think about it like a job. It’s just something they want to do and push forward with.

“That moved me, especially because being raised in a low-income household, it doesn’t seem like much is done for the community, but behind the scenes, there’s a lot done. I feel like they’re doing the best they can to advocate for their community. I’m grateful to them for trying.

“We communicated a lot with the other teens to learn about their clubhouses. In those groups, we addressed rent increase, which is a big thing in Redwood City. It’s why families are moving out, and it’s so sad to see that because some of them are in their childhood homes.”

Talaya, Menlo-Atherton High School, transferring to Middle College
“I experienced a lot of minorities in power speaking up on the adversity they faced and how they got to where they are. I feel like that’s relatable, because it means the rest of the people in minority races can do it, as well.

“In the career session, Ana was very big on letting her Tongan culture be known. I liked her passion to want to get her culture out more, because that’s something I want to do as an African-American person. And I felt I could relate to Michael as an African-American. Both of them had a passion to strive and to achieve.

“I clicked with the other Black kids there as well as other minorities. We make up a big part of the population, and respecting each other’s races will help build a stronger society. That struck me when Ana said something about being doubted and being deemed inferior and how she persevered after being looked down on.”

Zoe, sophomore at Menlo-Atherton:
“My community has a lot of problems and things that need to be fixed, and I saw this as an opportunity to speak out and make changes. Just by gathering our knowledge about the situations and making a plan, I feel like that’s helping us get more people involved in the community.

“We had a worksheet we had to fill out about what the problems in the community were. Some people had the opportunity to get up in front of the whole group and speak about what they wrote. I liked hearing a lot of perspectives about what other people were going through and then finding a solution, not just saying the problem.

“The Career panel motivated me because they talked about how they got into college, and I learned there is not just one clear path in life. It’s just working hard to get there, and it’s OK to be confused.

“This trip is about wanting to help your community, making changes, and improving your own skills. I got better at speaking up.”

Evelin, freshman at Oxford Day Academy:
“We had a session where we pitched in ideas on how to fix things in our community: gentrification, landlord mistreatment, homelessness, and underage substance abuse. We would talk that issue out and see if there was anything we could do about it. At the end, we would present our ideas to people from the other BGCs in front of about 50 or 60 people in the room.”

Emili, sophomore at Menlo-Atherton:
“It was interesting to hear what different communities were going through. Our group talked about gentrification. I’ve been here most of my life, but I went away for a while, and when I came back, I noticed it changed. Now when I go to Cardenas, I see a lot of non-Hispanics, and it’s shocking because I remember when I was little, there would be a lot of Mexicans.

“Also, in one session, it was touching to me to hear from this little girl, maybe sixth grade, who mentioned how she wanted there to be more lights put up where she lives, because she didn’t know if she was being followed. I experienced that, too, and I know a lot of people in EPA who feel the same way.”

Gicelle, senior at Woodside High School:
“Overall, I just liked being in community with people from all over California, coming together to talk about the issues going on in our cities. I also really liked visiting the Capitol. It was really amazing seeing all these people coming together to advocate. The Capitol was beautiful even though it was under construction.

“I liked talking to the other teens. We got connected a lot by talking through these topics. I talked about the low-paying jobs for teachers. Teachers are the ones who most affect the children and give them positivity, and they’re getting low wages for doing a lot. They should get more money.

“I was inspired by Lizette Mata. She was a first-generation student, and I’m a first-generation student. We talked about a lot of topics, and one of them was citizenship. I felt like I really connected with her. I’m going to email her soon to thank her and connect with her more.

“Even though I was shy, I liked talking to people in group settings, knowing that they come together for a good cause, and I want to come together for good causes because this world and people deserve better.”