Does UC Davis really value social justice?

What is Sacramento Area Youth Speaks (SAYS)? 

SAYS is a social justice movement and organization dedicated to uplifting youth voices through literary arts and empowering youth to pursue higher education. It was founded in 2008 at the University of California, Davis by Dr. Vajra Watson. For the past 12 years, SAYS has provided Black and Brown youth from the Sacramento area with a space to form community with others through spoken word, poetry, and social justice. SAYS achieves this by partnering with surrounding school districts and community-based organizations connecting them to UC Davis resources, opportunities, and student mentors. SAYS has helped hundreds of students, both Sacramento-area youth and UC Davis undergraduates, redefine education and break the barriers between them and educational attainment. 

SAYS Leadership and Why It’s Important

We are living in a time where Black leadership is vital in dismantling oppressive systems that perpetuate racial and social inequalities. Patrice Hill, SAYS Director, and Denisha Bland, SAYS Coordinator, are two powerful Black women behind the success and transformational power of SAYS. Under their leadership, SAYS is able to uplift the voices of Black and Brown youth and help them break through systemic barriers. Thus, it is vital that UC Davis offers essential operational funding to ensure that they can continue this necessary work. 

What’s the issue?

This work is challenging, and SAYS values support from their partner, UC Davis, to ensure the success of their programs. Unfortunately, we were recently informed that SAYS will not be fully funded for this coming fiscal year as we had hoped. SAYS is in a leadership transition from Dr. Vajra Watson to Patrice Hill and Denisha Bland who have been essential co-creators and collaborators in the success of SAYS. The SAYS team of teaching artists, poet-mentor educators, UC Davis interns and community partners strongly believe UC Davis must demonstrate that they value SAYS by fully funding the organization’s staffing costs. By doing so, this would honor the labor of love and commitment Director Patrice Hill and Coordinator Denisha Bland have devoted to UC Davis in creating community and expanding diversity outreach over the last decade. SAYS values the partnership with UC Davis which has provided SAYS youth and the community with access to resources and opportunities that are valued in our society and educational institutions. We hope to see this partnership continue but can only do so if the university financially supports the leadership behind SAYS and invests in their dedication to educational equity for Black and Brown students.

What does signing this petition mean?

By signing this petition, you show community solidarity with SAYS and the strong leadership behind the success of the organization. Your signature serves to recognize the value of Black female leadership in these institutions that are built on white supremacy, colonialism, patriarchy, and systemic racism. By showing our community support, we can demonstrate to the university and its administration that the community values SAYS and its leaders, and we want to see the organization succeed with financial support from UC Davis. 

Our Ask:

We ask UC Davis to recognize the value of SAYS not just with rhetoric, but with base budget funds. UC Davis has the opportunity to support Black leadership and continue to grow SAYS for generations. 

For more information on SAYS and their work, please visit these resources:

https://www.says.ucdavis.edu/says-overview

https://www.ucdavis.edu/news/sacramento-area-youth-speaks

https://www.capradio.org/news/insight/2017/01/10/insight-011017d/

https://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/sacramento-area-youth-speaks-poetry/content?oid=26855059