Dandelion Rising Leadership Institute: Youth on the Rise

The Dandelion Rising Leadership Institute (DRLI) is close to my heart because of two main reasons:

1. At the age of 19 I was arrested for a murder I did not commit.
2. The way I introduce myself and the program to our students each year.

As an introduction I ask the new students their names and their ages. After I tell them my story I go right back to that first introduction and let them know why I asked: to show them that I was close to their age when I was sent away to do a life sentence for a murder I didn’t commit. I show the DRLI students that I am just now able to speak to them in person at 52 years old. This introduction tends to get their attention.

Once I have their attention I share that I now understand the way I became so subjected to the system. I didn’t know the laws or the depths of the neglect in my community and surrounding areas, and at the same time I became known to the police as a gang member. Nevertheless, I didn’t murder anyone. So I tie the 7-week DRLI curriculum into my personal life story and the personal stories of DRLI students, which include subjects like mass incarceration, police violence, and even fellow students being choked in classrooms by law enforcement officials.

As part of the institute students get a chance to learn through our Know Your Rights training, and to use the skills learned whether it be on campus or at home. These are some smart students! They even have a few campaigns of their own including Students Not Suspects and Students Deserve – fights that strive for decreased policing at schools across Los Angeles.

That’s why I enjoy working with the youth. A lot of them want to know better so they can do better, in particular by understanding their rights. The police profile people when they are looking for a suspect and the person who is arrested and charged might be them even if they did not commit the crime, as was true in my case. When young people are impacted by major stressors such as racism and poverty they can sometimes end up participating in harmful behavior. While DPN believes we must be accountable for harm caused we also believe that the system also needs to be accountable for the environments it creates.

Youth want to understand how campaign work for justice is done. In addition to in-classroom learning, our DRLI students receive the opportunity to intern with DPN staff and participate in LA County Board of Supervisors meetings, Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission meetings, Freedom Harvest wellness events, and supporting our Reform L.A. Jails ballot initiative.

Are you a teacher interested in hosting or a student interested in participating in DRLI? Contact me!

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Civilian Oversight Nominees

For over three years our Coalition to End Sheriff Violence has fought for civilian oversight of the sheriff’s department. While we won civilian oversight, the fight for it to be effective and have power is not over. Across Los Angeles Black and Brown communities have voiced strong opposition to the supervisors’ decision to allow former law enforcement to sit on the commission. The Coalition to End Sheriff Violence stands with incarcerated people and their loved ones as we launch our slate of highly qualified nominees who have been active participants in the movement to end civil and human rights violations inside the county jail system. Check them out below!

AKILI

45 years experience as a community and labor organizer, Akili has dedicated his work to building a just and equitable society for marginalized people, including the successful campaign to change the Los Angeles Police Department’s use of force practices in the wake the 2005 shooting of Devon Brown.

Patrisse Cullors

Founder of Dignity and Power Now and Co-founder of the #BlackLivesMatter National Network, Patrisse has long history of building mass movements and leading successful campaigns that prioritize the leadership of communities directly impacted by law enforcement violence and mass incarceration.

Rabbi Heather Miller

Part of the world’s first LGBT founded Jewish congregation, Beth Chayim Chadashim, Heather is committed to justice at the intersections of race, gender, sexual orientation, ability, and economic status.

Priscilla Ocen

Associate Professor of Law at Loyola Law School where she teaches criminal law, family law, and a seminar on race, gender and the law, her work examines the relationship between race, gender identities and punishment.

Samuel Paz

Vice President of the National Police Accountability Project (NPAP) providing broad support for grassroots and victims’ organizations combating police misconduct.

Steve Rogers

Civilian Oversight Campaign Lead with Dignity and Power Now, Steve Rogers uses his experience as a formerly incarcerated person to end law enforcement violence by advocating on the local and state level.

Lloyd Wilkey

25 years of community work to prevent violence and improve community and police relations, Lloyd directs a youth leadership program, trains law enforcement at the Museum of Tolerance, and engages in activism to push for accountability, transparency, and constitutional policing.

Dayvon Williams

A young organizer with the Youth Justice Coalition, Dayvon directs his experience as a formerly incarcerated person into campaigns that counter the criminalization and incarceration of young people.

Michele Ynfante

Co-Lead of the Dignity and Power Now Civilian Oversight Campaign, she has used her experience being incarcerated in the women’s jail to advocate for an end to medical negligence and abuse.

Although all nine civilian oversight commissioners will ultimately be chosen by the Los Angeles County Supervisors, there is an open application process for four of the positions. If you want dignity and power for all incarcerated people, their families, and communities we encourage you to support our nominees!

TAKE ACTION! Call on your county supervisor and demand that these nominees be appointed.

TAKE ACTION HERE!

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St. Anne’s Interns Review Working Group Meeting

The women from St Anne’s have been relentlessly making phone calls and attending working group meetings in support of a civilian review board with power. Here they offer their reviews on what it felt like to participate in the working group process.

“My experience was very nervous today because I chose to speak about my oldest brother and why he is doing time. I feel great that they felt my story was a great story and decided not to keep the vote going on with having the nine-member board. What I also liked is that this time they actually seem to be interested in what we were talking about and just listened and didn’t have any bad feedback. Then what I didn’t like is that it was really frustrating that they were on the same vote for an hour and still weren’t satisfied with what they decided on. I also thought that was very confusing.” – Tonisha Jackson

“I just feel that they didn’t care about the community. The community has to be there because they are the ones watching deaths, shootings, and abuse from the sheriff’s department. They are never going to understand the community because they re not in the community’s shoes. On a civilian review board, some people on the working group didn’t pay attention to the title of the discussion today.” – Ana Angeles

“There was a lot of discussion back and forth over two words, ‘and’ and ‘or.’ I also spoke for the first time and I was nervous. My hands were cold after I spoke. There are a lot of options about the nine-member board. It is hard to pay attention because most of the time they ignore what the people say. The community is what matters. The public should be heard because we are affected, not the people up on the board. Because why? White people almost get away with everything. The black and brown community is the one getting affected. The right thing is to stop sheriff violence. Get your voice heard to make sure the violence is stopped.” – Diana Villeda

“I feel they are not really trying to give us what we want as far as the nine-member board. I feel that they’re not trying to let us be involved as far as having to say to pick four members that have been directly impacted. I feel they want all kinds of law enforcement and lawyers. That they all know and keep everything private and away from the people that care. I feel like they spent our time talking about choosing words and fixing grammar when they need to get straight to the point.” – Shaerice Brooks

“Why did they take up so much time deciding on one little word such as ‘and’ or ‘or’? It shouldn’t take rocket science to figure that out. They also want to get the sheriff department involved, why? It’s not about them and what they want shouldn’t matter. I matter. The people that have witnessed and experienced for themselves matter. It’s so stressful to try and make them understand. If it takes to go up there, to call, and to show up to their doorstep, then so be it. I’m a person who knows what I want. We know what we want. We want change. Because at the end of the day, we matter.” – Jasmine Brandon

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New Year, New Youth!

This 2015 make your resolution to help build leadership skills and resilience among the youth in communities most vulnerable to incarceration!

Help us raise 5k in 15 days!

THE DANDELION RISING LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE is a 6 month program that develops students’ (age 16-24) skills in effective organizing and public leadership. It is also intended to help develop their political consciousness so they can find their voice in the larger movement for social change. We have worked with over 200 YouthBuildstudents since November 2012 to organize within their communities, run campaigns, and give testimony at the county Board of Supervisors meetings.

Your donation will support our 2015 goals to:

Work closely with 20 students over the course of two 6-month programs
Ensure that each student attends a political education class each week
Help each student be successful in organizing with formerly incarcerated people and their loved ones
Have each student organize 5 new members into Dignity and Power Now by the end of their program
Make sure each student understands and particpates in two major campaigns: stopping the two billion dollar jail plan and the implementation of a comprehensive mental health diversion plan for Los Angeles County
Have each student deliver testimony to the county Board of Supervisors
Provide resources so at the end of the program the students can put together an event to showcase what they’ve learned and how they plan to further the fight of abolition in Los Angeles County

Make 2015 the year of education, action, and abolition!

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