ICUCPICO

Author: Frank Garcia

Students and parents urge CVUSD to take immediate action on establishing mental health wellness centers Copy

Posted on by Frank Garcia

Mecca, Calif. – Students and parents affiliated with Inland Congregations United for Change (ICUC) held an action Friday to call on Coachella Valley Unified School District officials to set a date to open long-awaited mental health wellness centers for students at middle and high school sites. 

CVUSD committed $4.5 million in May 2021 to establish mental health wellness centers at schools district wide to help address alarming issues related to depression and anxiety among students in K-12 schools. After almost a full school year later, only one wellness center has been opened at Desert Mirage High School – with no immediate action or indication by school district officials of opening centers at other schools. Students and parents during the action asked questions related to the opening of future centers, staffing levels and funding support. 

“We want our school district leaders to keep their word about the establishment of wellness centers because students deserve mental health support,” reads a statement from the Coachella Valley Youth group that is composed of Local Organizing Committees (LOCs) across the Coachella Valley. “Students cannot continue to afford to wait any longer to have these important mental health support spaces opened.”

The need for student mental health support has been further elevated by the economic and health impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. Hunger remains at record levels in the area due to COVID-19 and suicide and depression rates statewide have severely impacted thousands of students who been forced to navigate existing stressors with the realities of the pandemic. 

“Parents are already juggling the stressors of having to make rent or put food on the table. And our children are also suffering from those impacts,” says Maria “Conchita” Pozar, parent leader. “We appreciate the initial steps the district has made to prioritize mental health, but our children need immediate action now.” 

ICUC students and parents expect a follow up meeting with CVUSD board president Blanca Hall within the next 60 days to discuss future funding and expansion of wellness centers. 

Students and parents urge CVUSD to take immediate action on establishing mental health wellness centers

Posted on by Frank Garcia

Mecca, Calif. – Students and parents affiliated with Inland Congregations United for Change (ICUC) held an action Friday to call on Coachella Valley Unified School District officials to set a date to open long-awaited mental health wellness centers for students at middle and high school sites. 

CVUSD committed $4.5 million in May 2021 to establish mental health wellness centers at schools district wide to help address alarming issues related to depression and anxiety among students in K-12 schools. After almost a full school year later, only one wellness center has been opened at Desert Mirage High School – with no immediate action or indication by school district officials of opening centers at other schools. Students and parents during the action asked questions related to the opening of future centers, staffing levels and funding support. 

“We want our school district leaders to keep their word about the establishment of wellness centers because students deserve mental health support,” reads a statement from the Coachella Valley Youth group that is composed of Local Organizing Committees (LOCs) across the Coachella Valley. “Students cannot continue to afford to wait any longer to have these important mental health support spaces opened.”

The need for student mental health support has been further elevated by the economic and health impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. Hunger remains at record levels in the area due to COVID-19 and suicide and depression rates statewide have severely impacted thousands of students who been forced to navigate existing stressors with the realities of the pandemic. 

“Parents are already juggling the stressors of having to make rent or put food on the table. And our children are also suffering from those impacts,” says Maria “Conchita” Pozar, parent leader. “We appreciate the initial steps the district has made to prioritize mental health, but our children need immediate action now.” 

ICUC students and parents expect a follow up meeting with CVUSD board president Blanca Hall within the next 60 days to discuss future funding and expansion of wellness centers. 

#ProtectBlackImmigrants: Join us to demand an end to Title 42

Posted on by Frank Garcia

 

It’s time to stand with Haitian and Black immigrants against injustice

We stand in solidarity with the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) and Haitian Bridge Alliance to call on federal leaders to create and establish more protections for Haitian and Black immigrants seeking better lives. 

For months, thousands of Haitian immigrants have come to our borders in need of refuge from social and political unrest and climate catastrophe. Many Haitian refugees are being deported to uncertain fates and subjected to human rights abuses from federal agencies such as Customs and Border Patrol (CBP). In fact, the Biden Administration continues to use Title 42 – a Trump mandated policy that justifies stopping immigrants diagnosed with Covid-19 from entering the United States – as a public health order, despite many health experts arguing there is no scientific benefit that occurs from this process. 

Together with the Black community and immigration allies, we are holding an action in San Bernardino Tomorrow, October 14 to demand Congressman Pete Aguilar (D-San Bernardino) to continue to challenge our federal leaders to fix our nation’s broken, anti-Black, and racist immigration system. 

As a part of this call to action, Inland Congregations United for Change is asking our members and supporters to call Congressional leaders to demand the following:

  • The halting of deportation flights 
  • Providing Haitians with humanitarian parole
  • Holding Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) accountable for their long history of racism and abuse against migrants of color
  • The end of Title 42

Donate to the Black Immigrants Bail Fund

Make a donation to support Black immigrants currently in detention.
Click the link or scan the QR Code below: 
https://www.blackimmigrantsbailfund.com/

New ‘Center for Community Organizing’ to provide training, education for future Inland Empire leaders

Posted on by Frank Garcia

The Inland Congregations United for Change has helped transform an old, dilapidated building into a “positive space” for people looking to bring social change

 

The Inland Congregations United for Change (ICUC) is proud to announce the official Grand Opening of the Inland Empire Center for Community Organizing (IECCO) on Saturday October 2. The IECCO will house various community service organizations who will focus on providing education and leadership training for Inland Empire residents dedicated to community organizing.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, ICUC has used the IECCO as a central base of operations to distribute over 250,000 pounds of food and 200,000 face masks to residents in low-income communities while conducting voter registration drives and directing people to housing services. Organizers say that the IECCO will be used by ICUC and partner organizations to continue providing services, host community events, and train future leaders.

 

“In the last year, youth and parent leaders have helped transform the Inland Empire Center for Community Organizing from a neglected space to a much more positive place for social interaction and political education,” says Miguel Rivera, Events Coordinator for ICUC. “This will be a place where aspiring organizers can help ignite the change they want to see.” 

In the three decades since its founding in 1991, ICUC has dedicated its mission to helping encourage people of faith to transform their lives through civic engagement and community organizing. As a result of the organization’s long-term dedication of serving Riverside and San Bernardino County residents, ICUC was awarded $6 million by the State of California to support civic engagement efforts regionwide. The organization is also a part of various community-led coalitions that focus on sustainable development and economic justice. 

 

“ICUC’s growth is the product of years of labor and commitment from clergy, parent, and youth leaders who have worked to address key social issues through civic engagement and community organizing,” said Tom Dolan, Executive Director of ICUC. “We are confident that the Inland Empire Center for Community Organizing will serve as an important space for emerging grassroots community leaders to further increase civic engagement in this important region of the state.”

The event will take place from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m and feature performances and cultural vendors. The IECCO is located at 1411 North ‘D’ Street in San Bernardino. For more information, contact Miguel Rivera at miguel@icucpico.com. 

ICUC holds actions in Coachella Valley and San Bernardino to call on Congress to deliver on immigration reform

Posted on by Frank Garcia

Residents in Coachella Valley and San Bernardino see the federal Budget Reconciliation process as a great opportunity for a pathway to citizenship

San Bernardino—Dozens of clergy and community leaders gathered outside Congressional offices in the Coachella Valley and San Bernardino on Monday to urge federal leaders to continue their efforts to include a comprehensive immigration reform bill as part of their budget reconciliation process.

The Inland Congregations United for Change (ICUC) – together with Comite Latino, the United Farm Workers, and the clergy community – held actions outside the district offices of Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Palm Desert) and Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-San Bernardino) to express the need to create a legal pathway for the 11 million undocumented immigrants that have been promised residency and citizenship for generations. 

The process known as budget reconciliation could allow Congress to create a citizenship pathway for undocumented youth, migrant essential workers, and those with temporary protected status who have been in the U.S. since at least January 1, 2020 and those who can prove consistent income. 

With many banners and signs in hand, chanting “si se puede”, many hope that Congress will finally help deliver on their promise to the immigrant community. 

“We continue to raise our calls and fight for the immigrants who work everyday and provide so much to our country, especially during this pandemic,” said Reyes Lopez, ICUC Organizer based in the Coachella Valley. “They deserve to have legal status in this country and it is time for us to be united to achieve this purpose.”

According to clergy leaders, many undocumented immigrants live with uncertainty and fear. By helping the undocumented community through this immigration reform bill, Congress can uphold human dignity and lead through faith, clergy leaders say. 

“This is a justice issue where you have people still living in the shadows.” said Father Manuel Cardoza of the Our Lady of Hope Church in San Bernardino. “As people of faith, we are doing God’s work by calling on Congress to support a pathway to citizenship for families.”
The Senate Parliamentarian heard arguments from both Democrats and Republicans on whether immigration reform should be included in the budget reconciliation process last Friday, and the House Judiciary Committee yesterday approved the language for the proposed immigration reform bill.