By Sophie Benioff-White and Talia Cooper

published in the March issue of Kol Kehilla

“If you have come to help me you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine then let us work together.”

-Lila Watson

What does it mean to be an ally in creating change? In JYCA- Jewish Youth for Community Action- we have been grappling with the above quote in thinking about our work with “2020 Vision”—the campaign to end Berkeley’s health and academic achievement gap by the year 2020.

What do we mean when we say ‘achievement gap’?

The discrepancy in academic proficiency and health between racial groups in the Berkeley Unified School District and the system of societal oppression that supports this gap. In Berkeley, you can look at a child and based on their race, accurately predict their level of academic achievement.

Berkeley has one of the worst achievement gaps in the entire state. While this is sad, it’s also hopeful- it means that it’s possible for people to do really, really well in Berkeley but the system is keeping people back. It’s not about bringing the “top” down; it’s about rethinking the education system as a place where youth, parents, and families are empowered to take education into their own hands. We need well-supported teachers who help students succeed and staff who include families in important decisions. We need a system that makes youth excited to learn. We need a community that believes in intelligence of all young people (not just white-looking ones).

What effects does the achievement gap have on community? Why does JYCA care about the achievement gap?

Students are being denied opportunities that others receive in abundance. Though many JYCA youth are doing well in school, having an achievement gap is hurting all of us. There’s not a lot of interracial friendships. There’s clear racial tension at Berkeley High School (BHS). The upper-level classes are mostly white which means you don’t get diverse perspectives. It feeds the stereotype that people of color are just less smart, and we miss an opportunity to teach our community that this is not the case. Seeing this injustice causes us great pain.

The achievement gap is not produced because some people are less smart or come from worse families.

The gap is caused by subtle and clear systemic advantages given to white people from birth. In our worldview as white people, we were given tips on how to get around BHS even before we got there- how to deal with counselors, how to get out of bad classes. Some white students even hire private tutors. Our teachers trusted us. Our community believed we were going to succeed. But the community doesn’t believe in students of color in the same way. As white students, we’ve been encouraged to stand up and make our voices heard, whereas students of color have been disempowered by the system and largely mistreated by the adults who were supposed to support them.

Part of it is the curriculum- it’s not very inclusive of people of color. A lot of classes are white dominated and not comfortable spaces for students of color. There are other issues too- money, access to resources, and maybe most dire—health inequities. There’s a direct correlation between having a lower education level and experiencing a higher death rate. This is a matter of our future, of life and death.

Why should we care about this as Jews?

Because Jews have always cared about education. Because we’ve been involved in every major social change movement in the U.S and in many more throughout the world. Because although many of us are white-looking people and so receive some benefits, as Jews we understand the importance of being allies and not leaving anyone behind.

What is JYCA doing about it?

We’re working with 2020 Vision and attending meetings with other youth groups to learn more about it. We want to educate the community. We are attending school board meetings. We’re involved in changing the systems that perpetuate the achievement gap. We’re getting people to talk about it. We’re working on it because everyone else on the campaign is on the oppressed end of the achievement gap and we need everyone on board, including people with privilege, to make real change. This is an opportunity for us to be allies and use the power we have to advocate for change.

Join us!

We need people from the privileged end of the achievement gap to join us in this work. The year 2020 is fast approaching; those are our current 2nd graders. We have an exciting opportunity to make a difference for children. Please come to JYCA’s Townhall Meeting on March 22nd from 7-9pm to learn more and discuss. We’ll be at Netivot Shalom in Berkeley. Please email talia@jyca-justice.org for more information.

More info on the campaign: www.berkeleyalliance.org

Sophie is a 10th grader at Berkeley High School. She has been in JYCA for two years and is a leader on the JYCA Action Committee.

Talia is the Director of JYCA, and an alumna of both JYCA and Berkeley High School.