PUSH GOVERNOR BROWN TO SIGN AB2276. Please read Eddie Flores’ letter to the Governor in support of AB2276 which will reduce discrimination against system-involved youth accessing school when they return home from lock-ups. AND THEN WRITE YOUR OWN LETTER TO GOVERNOR BROWN AND FAX IT TO (916) 558-3177. Thank you if your letter is already in!
Dear Governor Brown:
My name is Edilberto “Eddie” Flores, and I just graduated from high school at the Youth Justice Coalition. Please sign AB 2276 to make sure that youth coming home from juvenile halls, camps and ranches are enrolled in the best school possible as soon as they are released. I was one of those youth that was thrown out on the streets without any education plan. That’s why I am working so hard to pass AB 2276 into law.
I was first detained at Eastlake Juvenile Hall in Los Angeles at the age of 16. The unit I was in was on lock-down most of the time. The only time we had outside our cell was for two hours recreation. We ate breakfast, lunch and dinner in our cell. We had some packets thrown at us for school, but most of the time, we didn’t have paper or pencil to write our families. They would take the pencils away from us if we had one. We had no books to read – nothing to distract my mind. I had no one to talk to all day long – just a 5’ by 7’ room and a tiny little window to look out of.
So, when I was released from juvenile hall, I was far behind in school, and no longer used to studying. I needed to get into school as soon as possible. But, I was released without a connection to another school, without transcripts and without a birth certificate or California ID. Still, not being enrolled also made me look bad in front of my judge, and the judge and my Probation officer told me I had to enroll fast or I would get violated and sent to camp. But my judge and Probation gave me no help to find a school – not even a list of options.
I went to my home school, and they said I couldn’t enroll, because I had been expelled the year before and because I was coming from juvenile hall. I searched for a school for months, and finally found a continuation school that would take me. But by that time, it was already second semester. I was told I had to do twice as much work to catch up if I wanted to stay enrolled. During my first month, there was some tagging in the school, and even though I didn’t do it, the school suspected me because of my record. So I was suspended for two days, and when I returned, the school was being shit down for low enrollment. Once again, the school and my Probation officer did not connect me to another school. But my PO did say I would get violated if I didn’t get enrolled.
I found out about the Youth Justice Coalition from an intervention worker I met in the community. Ever since I have been at the YJC, it feels that I found a school that understands me, and they push me to do well and offer a lot of help to improve my skills.
Finding an education shouldn’t be luck – it should be a right. Youth in the system should get more support to find and attend school. Instead, we are discriminated against – left on the street or thrown into schools that have no resources to teach us. It’s not surprising to me that 80% of the people in prisons across the United States have no high school diploma.
Please sign AB2276 and protect the rights of all youth – whether we have been arrested or incarcerated – to graduate and to prepare for college and a job. Education is the only hope we have to escape California’s streets and prisons.
Thank you for your time,
Edilberto Flores
