Families in Action for Justice

Candidate Forum for Oakland District School Board and City of Oakland Mayor Elections: In 2022, our families co-hosted the largest candidate forum in the city of Oakland for candidates running for the Oakland District School Board and candidates running for City of Oakland Mayor. By hosting this forum, Oakland community members were able to learn where candidates for Mayor and School Board stood on education issues and their policy priorities in public education. The large-scale forum hosted over 250 audience members, was educational in purpose and enabled Oakland voters to make more informed decisions on election day and showcased our commitment to empowering parents and youth to be more civically engaged. Voter Outreach through Phone Banking and Neighborhood Canvassing: Recognizing the reality of low voter turnout in local races, we organized voter outreach efforts with our Oakland parents and youth. Through educational phone banking initiatives and door-to-door canvassing in various neighborhoods, our volunteers engaged community members, urging them to register to vote and sharing education data and asking them about education issues that mattered to them. These efforts increased voter registration and also increased awareness of the importance of voting in local school board elections individuals with the knowledge. These outreach efforts took place through 3 Saturday canvassing events and X phone banks.Research Action Meetings Led by Families: In addition to voter outreach, our parents and youth leaders coordinated and conducted nine research action meetings with candidates running for school board and city of Oakland mayor's office. The purpose of these meetings was to bring together parents and youth with candidates to go deeper into understanding the candidates and their platforms. These meetings provided a platform for dialogue, allowing families to ask questions, express concerns, and gain insights into the candidates' positions on key issues.Candidate Endorsement Recommendations by Empowering Families: Family leaders met to made recommendations on candidates to endorse for Mayor and school board. Candidate Endorsement Voter Outreach through Phone Banking and Emails: Through 6 phone banking sessions, our family fellows volunteers engaged local voters, urging them to register to vote and sharing the FIA4J recommendation about the candidates running for office. These efforts increased awareness of the importance of voting in local school board elections and empowered voters with the knowledge of the FIA4J endorsements.