California activist group paying teens $1,400 in taxpayer money to undergo "social justice" training

By avagrace // 2024-03-12

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An activist group in California is reportedly paying $1,400 each in taxpayer money to teenagers who undergo "social justice" training. According to the Free Press, the group Californians for Justice (CFJ) inked contracts with the Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) between 2019 and 2023 for this endeavor. These contracts, which the outlet obtained, showed that the LBUSD used taxpayer funds to pay CFJ almost $2 million to facilitate equity and leadership development training for students and teachers. Aside from this, the contracts also allotted a total of $20,200 to 13 parents for their participation in the group's programs. The outlet added that from December 2019 until the present, the LBUSD has paid at least 78 students a total of nearly $100,000 for participating in CFJ's programs. The programs are led by the group's staff instead of officials from the school district. The most recent contract runs until June. (Related: Not just public schools: Ohio PRIVATE school reports mothers to FBI for questioning leftist curriculum.) "You get paid good," one student answered when asked why others should join CFJ. While it's unclear which students are eligible for the stipends, CFJ's website states that its "leadership development" programs operate with a focus on youths from low-income, minority, LGBT, foster home and immigrant backgrounds. But four teachers who talked to the Free Press consider the payments to students and their families a "horrible propaganda strategy." One teacher said she was "shocked and horrified" at such a fact. Another teacher who asked not to be named for fear of losing her job said the CFJ's leadership trainings have transformed into a space for kids to air their grievances about school. She recalled one student saying that "they would come to class on time if we built relationships with them." "It's helpful to hear their voice and know what they think would help them learn better, but I feel like you can do that with a focus group. Plus, they're obviously reading scripts that have words that they don't know how to say," the teacher remarked. "The way that [CFJ is] handing scripts to students, even the words coming out of the students' mouths, it just feels like indoctrination and not information."

CFJ giving students "a scripted voice that isn't their own"

LBUSD high school history teacher Jay Goldfisher agreed with the anonymous educator. "One of the reasons that [CFJ was] hired is to help our students find their voice and be able to express it," he said. "But in reality, CFJ is not helping students find their own voices. It's giving them a scripted voice that's not their own. They're teaching them parroting, which is the exact opposite of how you empower children." The Free Press gave one example of this parroting. Back in 2021, CFJ implemented three "student-led professional development" training sessions in LBUSD high schools. According to the contracts, this cost the school district $25,000. Students were encouraged to educate their teachers on topics like implicit bias, "student voice" and anti-Black racism during these trainings, instead of the other way around. CFJ, which was founded back in 1996, began as a policy advocacy organization before pivoting into working in schools in the mid-2000s. The registered nonprofit has nearly $16 million in total assets, according to its most recent tax filing. "Our agenda is not hidden and is simple: We want the LBUSD to be a place where every student is represented honestly in classrooms and curricula, and where they are safe to be in critical dialogue supportive of democratic participation across differences,” said a CFJ spokesman. But a Jewish high school teacher who spoke on condition of anonymity expressed worry that their concern "is becoming a reality." The teacher noted that the partnership between the activist group and the school district is solidifying misinformation in young kids. "That's something that they’re going to hold on to forever, because they learned it at school," the teacher said.

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CFJ giving students "a scripted voice that isn't their own"

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