SOUL School of Unity & Liberation :: 1904 Franklin Street : Suite 904 : Oakland, CA 94612510. 451. 5466 phone :: 510. 451. 5866 fax :: www.schoolofunityandliberation.org

I love that SOUL offered me a space to put my work in perspective as a new organizer who is also a part of a larger movement. SOUL sharpened my political analysis, and armed me with practical tools to fight for a more just society in my daily work.

: Lucia KimbleLead Organizer, Causa Justa/Just Cause SOUL alumna, Training for Trainers 2009 & Sum-mer School 2010

This year SOUL is 15! From the very first summer school to our current work as a year-round training cen-ter, we are proud of our many years devoted to devel-oping a new generation of leaders for our movement. Nearly thirty-five years ago in South Africa, in June 1976, students in Soweto township rose up against the apartheid school system, beginning a new mo-ment in the South African liberation struggle. Mo-bilizing tens of thousands of people, their courage and action inspired a new wave of confrontation against the regime, among people of all ages, which ultimately brought it down. We know the sparks that young people ignite; we see them ev-erywhere. In Tunisia and Egypt decades-old dicta-torships have fallen, and movements for democratic

rights and dignity are sweeping the entire region.

Here in the US young people are on the front lines of fights in Arizona and elsewhere to de-fend immigrant communities under attack, and youth voices are among the loudest calling for educational justice in our schools and opposing budget cuts aimed directly at our communities. Through programs like the National Youth Organiz-ing Training Institute and SOUL Summer School, we work hard to support these emerging orga-nizers as they step up to lead. Meanwhile, SOUL Sunday Schools, and collaborations like the re-cent In It to Win It Strategy School, intentionally cultivate space for the kind of multi-generational, cross-sectoral solidarity that we need to build a strong movement across many regions that wins.

In our fifteen years SOUL has trained over 6000 individuals and built new capacity in hundreds of grassroots organizations. Our alumni are organiz-ers, educators, directors, and lead members; they are fighting for decent housing and living wage jobs, for educational equity and environmental justice. We are honored to work alongside them, and the many others who have helped build our school to build a movement. We look forward to many more years and many many many new leaders! ¡Pa’lante siempre!

I remember seeing young people on all the bullhorns and a wave of young people coming down the street as far as I could see, I couldn’t even see the end of it. It was in that moment that I realized a collective power does exist, that there are enough people that want to fight for justice.

: Malachi Garza

In October SOUL convened the fourth biennial National Youth Organizing Training Institute, welcoming young orga-nizers from communities across the US here to Oakland for three days of skills trainings. While the basics of base-building and campaign work are at the heart of NYOTI, we also take time to explore the work beyond our own orga-nizations, to envision uniting our many fights across sec-tors and regions into a powerful movement that wins. As part of this conversation, we hosted a multi-generational dialogue with movement veterans who had come up them-selves as youth organizers, and asked them to share their

a collective power does existstories with us. Pam Tau Lee, who participated in the 1969 Ethnic Studies Strikes, spoke about seeing the potential contributions of the people we organize, and about build-ing our organizations by calling upon that potential again and again. She recalled being recruited herself by an or-ganizer in a student meeting, She talked about things that were happening on the campuses around Ethnic Studies and the Vietnam War, and she tapped into my experience growing up in Chinatown and her message was, there was a movement going on, not just in San Francisco but around the world. She talked about acts of resistance and the Civil Rights Movement ... And we need you! ... For me that was the moment. Pam went on to become a leader in the historic I-Hotel struggle, and a co-founder the Chi-nese Progressive Association, dedicating herself to fighting alongside workers and tenants for their rights. As organiz-ers, she explained, this is our work; this is the immense po-tential we have to unleash in ourselves and throughout our communities if we are going to truly build our movement.

We are Guåhan is an island-based organization fighting a US military base expansion that threatens widespread displacement and destruction there. Led by a new gen-eration of young activists and organizers, We Are Guåhan has mobilized unprecedented numbers of residents in defense of their beloved homeland. Alicia Garza, SOUL alumna, board member and trainer, spent a week with We Are Guåhan, leading workshops on base-building and campaigns, and learning about the movement for self-determination in the Pacific. Alicia is a co-Director at POWER/People Organized to Win Employment Rights, which organizes young people and adults in the Bayview-Hunter’s Point neighborhood of San Francisco for eco-nomic and environmental rights. Here she reflects on her time in Guåhan and her work at POWER, in the oldest and last surviving Black neighborhood in San Francisco.

As in other military communities, the local govern-ment strategy of using military presence for infra-structure-building and economic development, has the opposite effect. Nearly 1/3 of Guåhan’s popula-tion receives food stamps. 25% live below the federal poverty line. Young Chamorros, who are indigenous to Guåhan, lead all US demographic groups in their rate of military recruitment and in their number killed in service per capita. Guåhan has also been home to over 100 toxic sites and multiple Superfund sites, a

direct result of the US military presence there. And now the military wants to increase its presence by nearly 40%, largely a result of moving combat troops and training installations from Okinawa, another lo-cation where the scars of the US military past and present run deep. While in Guåhan, I learned that during World War II, the US bases on the Mariana Is-lands were used to assemble and launch the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki which killed and permanently injured hundreds of thou-sands of civilians in those cities. I shared with our comrades that Bayview-Hunter’s Point, as the only dry dock facility on the West Coast, was where the ships that carried those atomic bombs were taken for decontamination after the bombing, and the resulting contamination affects the people who live, work, and play in the neighborhood to this day. Rates of asthma in Bayview-Hunter’s Point are the highest in the city, and cancer is very prevalent. Being in Guåhan was illuminating because it exposed the concrete relation-ships between the organizing work We Are Guåhan is doing there and the work that POWER is doing here. In places like these we see our destinies are inextrica-bly intertwined. Two communities that are 5,803 miles away from one another are intricately connected. We share histories of survival and resistance, and fu-tures of resilience. : Alicia Garza

In 2010 SOUL responded to many requests for techni-cal assistance, big and small. As part of our commitment to building stronger organizers and organizations, and-stronger movements, we sent trainers to support urgent organizing efforts on the ground in Tucson, Phoenix, and Guåhan (Guam, US Mariana Islands).

our destinies are inextricably intertwined

To be added to our email list please send a note to info@schoolofunityandliberation.org. You can also find us at facebook.com/schoolofunityandliberation & delicious.com/soulschool.

www.schoolofunityandliberation.org

H order super cute soul tshirts in teal, olive, chocolate & blackH find training tools & resources, and order soul curriculum manuals

H access applications for upcoming trainings & workshopsH learn more about our programs & events

soul manualsBuilding Power, Sharpening Minds

introductory political education curriculum

Youth Organizing for Community Power youth organizing curriculum

Global Justice Training Manual intermediate political education curriculum

Training for Trainers Manual popular education curriculum

Support & Accountability organizational development tools

SOUL Training for Trainers is a 3-day training on popular education theory & practice, of-fered twice a year, in spring & fall sessions.

SOUL’s impact on my work has been very deep and inspirational. It has changed the way I think about constructing and facilitating workshops, and helped me structure the way I plan, teach, and even learn.

Sikander Iqbal, Youth Uprising (Oakland)Training for Trainers, Fall 2010

training for trainers

Going through this learning process with peo-ple from all over, equally invested in popular education, builds genuine leadership. One thing that I think is so special about SOUL is that you all bring a lot of love to the work. Emerson Brisbon, FIERCE (New York City)Training for Trainers, Spring 2010

SOUL manuals are available on a sliding scale based on organizational budget. Find them at

www.schoolofunityandliberation.org

Aaron Buchbinder H ACLU-Northern California H Adam Gold H Adrienne Hirt & Jefferey Rodman H AK Press H Akonadi Foundation H Alan Mar David H Alex T. Tom H Alia Trindle H Alicia Garza H Allen Weinrub H Alysha Aziz H Amanda Wake H Amy Truong H Ana Orozco H Andrea Salinas H Angelica Bruno H Angelique Gonzáles H Anita Kline H Anna Florendo H Anthony Beierly H Arab Resource & Organizing Center H Araceli Centeno H Arizmendi Bakery Cooperative H Arturo Tolenttino H Aspen Branch-Moore H Aurora Castellanos H Ayoka Turner H Barbara L. Albert H Barbara Moran H Ben & Elaine Cayabyab H Brian Argas H Brooke Anderson

H Carol Blackard H Causa Justa::Just Cause H Center for Political Education H Champa Garden H Charles Ramilo H Chinese Progressive Association H Chris Barnett H Christina Herd H Christina Johnson H Cinthya Muñoz H Common Counsel Foundation H Communities for a Better Environment H Connie Huang H Crosby & Kaneda CPA H CTWO Center for Third World Organizing H Curtys Taylor H Daffodil Altán H Daniel Carrillo H Danielle Mahones H David Ethridge H David Jenkins H David Lopez H DeAvery Irons H Dennis Monico H Diane Middleton Foundation H Dignidad Rebelde H Dina Omar H Dolphin Foundation H Edmond Tang H Elaine Villasper H Emerson Brisbon H Emily Chen H Eric Ng H Eric Shih H Erica Bruce H Erik Schnabel H Erika Céspedes Kent H Eunice Lam H Ezak Perez H Famoksaiyan H Fernando Martí H Filipino Advocates for Justice H Filipino Community Center H Frank Djeng H Freddy Gutierrez H Freedom Allah Siyam H Gabriela Monico H Genevieve Negrón-Gonzáles H George Lipsitz H Greg Hom H Haruki Eda H Hazen Foundation H Heba Gamal H Hill-Snowdon Foundation H Holly Lim H Horizons Foundation/girls just want to have funD H Jan Hoshida H Jason Negrón-Gonzáles H Jen Victoria H Jessica Olivares H Joanna Robledo-Maderazo H John Rodriguez H Josna E. Rege H Kaleka Brewster H Katherine Fajardo H Kevin Bokai Cheng H Keziah David H Khalil Bendib H Kiilu Nyasha H Kim Geron H Kimi Lee H Kinneret Alexander H Kristen Sajonas H Kristine Ritualo H Lawrence Swaim H Le Tim Ly H Liwanag Kultural Center H Liz Hall H Local Flavor Catering H Lora Magno H Lucia Kimble H Luís Herrera H Luz Calvo H Mageb Hussain H Malachi Garza H Manny Mallari H Marc Mascarenhas-Swan H Maria Poblet H Mariana Bruno H Mariana Viturro H Marilou Ople H Mario Lugay H Marisol Arriola H Mark Weirick H Mary & Henry Gonzales H Max Elbaum H Meaghan McMahon H Melanie Bush H Melvin & Cynthia Quindoy H Michael Lok H Michel Shehadeh H Michelle Fortunado H Michelle Foy H Michelle Mascarenhas-Swan H Miho Kim H Mission Comics & Art H Mitchell Kapor Foundation H Mohammad Talat H Molly McClure H Moñeka de Oro H Myriam Zamora H Nadeen Elshorafa H Nadia Babella H Nancy Dalwin & Geoffrey Dalwin H Natalie Gee H Nupur Modi H Ovsanna Khachikian H Pam Tau Lee H Paul Kivel H Penelope Anne Hughes H Pierre Labossiere H POWER People Organized to Win Employment Rights H Rey Amon H Reyelisa Umali & Josh Reyes H Riza Alvarez H Robbie Clark H Roberto & Consuelo David H Rockefeller Brothers Foundation H Sabiha Basrai H Salvador Barcena H Sartaz Aziz H Sasha Hammad H Sergio Fermin H Sergio Robledo-Maderazo H SF Print Collective H Shaw San Liu H Sikander Iqbal H Sofia Close H Sparkplug Foundation H Stacy Kono H Stephanie Ullrich H Stephen & Maria Hoffman H Steve Williams H Sunaina Maira H Sue Chan H Surdna Foundation H Susana M. Cáceres H Susana Sosa H Tai Geiger H Teresa Molina H Tereso Luna H The California Endowment/Oakland Conference Center H Tiffany Bautista H Tina Bartolome H Tina Carlay H Trader Joe’s (Lakeshore) H Tshaka Barrows H Valerie Jameson H Viranjini P. Munasinghe & David Ethridge H Warren Mar & Susan McDonough H Wendy Funiestas H Yaminah Lunar H Yucselina Nuñez H Yvonne Tran H Ziad Abbas H Zoila Altán

Your contribution can find SOUL via the enclosed envelope or online at: schoolofunityandliberation.org.

many thanks to our community! your generous support & solidarity make our work possible!

Timothy HolmesNYOTI, Class of 2010

Surrounded by other brothers & sisters of the struggle, I was able to learn from their experiences, victories and losses. Tim is the Education Organizer at Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice in the South Bronx. He came to YMPJ at age 15, and has been organizing for educa-tional justice ever since. Currently he is fighting alongside other young people for school-based restorative justice programs and alternatives to criminalization via tradi-tional school discipline codes.

Eunice LamSOUL Summer School, Class of 2010

My favorite thing about SOUL is they assign us to or-ganizations to get hands on experience…and really try out and use what we learn. The practice of outreach will help me be a better organizer. Eunice is a lead member of Youth Build Immigrant Power, the youth wing of AIWA, Asian Immigrant Women Advocates. As a high school student, she organizes alongside other young women in her community for educational equity & language access in Alameda County public schools.

Lubna Morrar NYOTI, Class of 2010

I came to NYOTI and was revolutionized, changed and impacted...it was powerful for me to know I wasn’t alone in the struggle, and to truly realize that every-body’s struggle is your struggle. Lulu is a Palestinian poet and a member of the Palestinian Youth Network and AYO! Arab Youth Organization. She credits her political consciousness to the women in her family, and came to NYOTI seeking to build on that foundation and to bring organizing skills back to PYN and AYO.

Mariana BrunoSOUL Summer School, Class of 2010

I am paying close attention to the SOUL trainings and taking detailed notes. I feel they are asking the ques-tions that need to be asked. Mariana was born and raised in Santa Ana, where she helped start a youth or-ganizing collective, Un Mundo en Resistencia, as a force against gentrification, police brutality, and criminaliza-tion in her community. Presently she continues her work in Los Angeles with the South Central Farm Community Centro and the Youth Justice Coalition.

everybody’s struggle is your struggle

SOUL is a school to build a movement! Last year we proudly trained 91 emerging leaders in organizing training intensives, including Summer School and the National Youth Organizing Training Institute, building the capacity of new organizers and their organizations, and strengthening movements to win justice for our communities and freedom for our people. Meet Timothy, Lubna, Eunice, and Mariana, new SOUL alumni from the Class of 2010!

SOULSchool of Unity & Liberation1904 Franklin Street, Suite 904Oakland, CA 94612

NON-PROFIT ORG.US POSTAGE PAIDOAKLAND CAPERMIT 465

1996 - 2011Hfifteen years ofeducation for liberationH