23 Oct Fellowship Friday Spotlight 10/23
Ian Taylor
Ian Taylor was born and raised in Pasadena, California and attended Blair High School where he became involved with several non-profit organizations, and was soon admitted to the University of California, Los Angeles. As a college peer counselor, coordinator for a mentoring program, quantitative and qualitative researcher, and liaison for high school students, Ian aspired to create change and develop networks in a variety of places.
“My passion for change lies within my research, which questions how restructuring internal and external societal factors impact Black individuals.”
Ian recently graduated from UCLA with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology, with minors in African American Studies and Public Affairs, and served as the Mentorship Coordinator of UCLA’s Academic Supports Program. The organization works to increase retention rates and improve holistic development of Black undergraduate students. He feels it is a great privilege to be in a position to be a source of support and knowledge for students, just like he had growing up. He wants to obtain his Master’s degree in Public Policy so he can influence local, state, and federal mandates in an effort to dismantle policies that oppress Black and other marginalized communities.
“I can identify with ‘Untitled 02’ by Kendrick Lamar in terms of my passions and identity. It speaks of the duality and navigation between constants that are both beautiful and horrifying. It speaks perspective from South LA that wants wealth and wants peace. I wish to work to create communities that can grant these visions in spite of a history of oppression and inaccessibility.”
Mariluz Tejeda Leon
Mariluz Tejeda Leon (they/them) is a native of East Salinas, CA, where they have been in organization with their community since high school. Growing up, they developed a passion for organizing because the political and community education they obtained from organizing spaces gave them answers for the socioeconomic divides they saw in their city. The lessons they learned in Salinas helped them develop an organizing philosophy that centers trauma-informed healing and explores the decolonial imagination, as well as a methodology that is based on standpoint epistemology.
Now a junior at Yale University, they have engaged in multiple student campaigns and activist groups, taking the lessons learned from their hometown and synthesizing them to build new approaches. Academically, they are pursuing a double major in Ethnicity, Race, and Migration and Ethics, Politics, and Economics. They like to critically analyze the interactions between elite academia and minority communities, particularly in regard to the idea of knowledge. Mariluz also enjoys studying the historical, and present, organizing experience in conjunction with political theory.
A fun fact about Mariluz is that they spend their free time compiling Spotify playlists and wants to learn how to mix music.
Jeffrey Hines
Jeffrey Hines grew up in the Crenshaw District of Los Angeles. He was raised in a Belizean American household with a single mother who worked hard to provide him a better life. He went to private school until he entered middle school and he also attended Hamilton High from 9th through 11th grade. Jeffrey graduated from Los Angeles High School and then briefly attended West LA college for a semester before going into the workforce.
“After several years of working entry-level jobs at places like Express, Abercrombie, Foot Locker, etc., I worked as an insurance claims processor. But the company went under, and I went back to working dead-end jobs until a very close friend got me into Public Allies where I learned about community work and fell in love with it.”
Public Allies, national movement committed to advancing social justice and equity by activating the leadership of young people. opened an avenue to the Brotherhood Crusade for Jeffery and he dedicated himself to community organizing for two years. His dedication resulted in him being brought on board full-time. Brotherhood Crusade is a 50-year old grassroots organization with a vision of improving quality of life and meeting the unmet needs of low-income, under-served, under-represented and disenfranchised individuals.
“I believe I have an impact on the youth I work with and they will either be the ones to change the world or inspire others to. That is why I connect with Tupac Shakur’s message: “I’m not saying I’m gonna change the world, but I guarantee that I will spark the brain that will change the world.”
Saraia Driver
Saraia Driver hails from Little Rock, Arkansas. She dreamed of a more culturally rich life outside of the South. “All my life I’ve been told that I say the things people are thinking, but too afraid to say.”
While attending UCLA, Saraia became hyper aware of the educational disparities that plague African American youth. She noticed the invalidation of histories and the omitted truths that intentionally left out important achievements of people of color and/or skipped over historical facts of Africans and Native Americans. This became her driving force in her commitment towards educating minority youth about their untold history. As a Fellow at Community Coalition, Saraia is committed to empowering and organizing young people.
“I think this quote from The Nap Ministry speaks for itself: “We don’t want a seat at the table. … The table is full of oppressors. We want a blanket and pillow down by the ocean. We want rest.”
A fun fact about Saraia is that she loves reading and learning about new philosophies.
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