Ethnic Studies is Power

Ethnic studies has been absolutely fundamental to who I am as a person today–not just academically, but it is part of my intrinsic core & morals. I carry what I have learned in Ethnic Studies in everything I do–from my legal studies and public policy classes, to all the jobs & internships I have done. At the start of high school, all I really knew what I wanted to do was something related to law. It wasn’t until I learned more about what ethnic studies is that I realized I wanted to create a career pathway where I could utilize what I’ve learned. Now I want to keep learning more about Ethnic Studies and center community organizing into it.  

Ethnic studies has looked different here at Berkeley than it did at my high school. It is no longer an umbrella class that covers the brief history of all ethnicities, it is now individual classes so that I can truly dissect the histories of people. It has allowed me to learn more and more about how different cultures and ethnicities have political backgrounds and marginalization in the US, and the impact it still has today. I have had the opportunity to be a part of some of the coolest classes I’ve ever taken, from Revolutions in the Arab and Muslim World, to learning how modern day policing is rooted in slavery. I have truly learned beyond what I ever expected.

Both my high school and Berkeley, have had student movements centered around ethnic students and the inclusion & equity of our students. These movements vary across time from the 1960s, with Berkeley’s Third World Liberation Front and my high school participating/organizing the 1968 East Los Angeles Walkouts or Chicano Blowouts, to today in Berkeley having one of the largest Ethnic Studies programs in the country, and the 2019 teacher walkout in Los Angeles that still centered around equity in our public school system. 

I’ve learned about the importance of Ethnic studies and how everything is centered in it. Learning about it and having this type of education in public school systems is essential for all students. Unfortunately Ethnic Studies is being attacked both federally and on a state level, saying there is not enough funding and resources to support making ethnic studies accessible in all public high schools. Ethnic studies is a priority and should be treated as such. Reforming Prop 13 is essential in bringing back resources into our public schools to help and support programs like ethnic studies. It is important to remember education is power, and ethnic studies is power.