Allied Students for Justice organized its Leaders of Tomorrow networking event at the Serna Center for Sacramento State students on Thursday, where students were able to discuss with one another as well as communicate with local organizations and candidates.
This is the first networking event that ASFJ hosted this semester.
First-year recreation administration major Adrianna Dart said she had enjoyed the meeting.
“I thought it was so engaging hearing people locally talk about government and things like that,” Dart said. “Talking about stuff that I care about. I identify as a queer person so seeing a trans person talk so openly about being trans and being open with their identity is so empowering for me.”
She said she would definitely recommend others to join the club even if they do not find themselves interested in advocacy.
“I’m not big on advocacy but I think it’s important to be aware of what’s going on,” Dart said “I think it’s important to know what’s going on in your community.”
First-year political science major Trenton Newman is a member of the club who is passionate about understanding what’s going on in the city where he studies. He said he believes that as students and as citizens, people should really understand what is going on in their state and government.
“I would one thousand percent recommend this club to anyone, I think it’s important information that everyone should understand,” Newman said.
ASFJ provided food and drinks for students while also providing them with speeches from candidates Emmanuel Amanfor and Evan Minton, who are running for California Assembly District 6.
District 6 covers Sacramento County and some places within the district lines, including Arden-Arcade, La Riviera, Rio Linda, Antelope, Elverta and Carmichael.
George Vang, the treasurer of ASFJ, was leading the discussions at the event. He said he felt it was a success and that they had a great turnout.
“The candidates also gave a really good speech and they really shared their values for social justice and how they can better the campus and Sacramento,” Vang said. “So overall it was a great event.”
The candidates answered questions on what social advocacy means to them and their campaigns.
“Part of what social justice means to me and my campaign is ensuring that everybody gets the services that they need, especially when it comes to healthcare,” Minton said. “Our government needs to be there for people and so often it’s not.”
Amanfor explained how the working class struggles with hardships. He explained his own struggles having immigrated from Nigeria.
He also shared his experiences with homelessness and explained how he was unhoused for up to two years. While living in a low-income household, Amanfor said education was his answer to success.
“I always want to make sure that opportunities for those who don’t have them, who are historically marginalized, get those opportunities,” Amanfor said. “That is what I plan to do.”
They also shared ways on how Sac State students can better advocate for social justice, as well as opportunities for internships and volunteering.
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At the event, there were also appearances from the Coalition of Concerned Legal Professionals, The Multicultural Center and The Sacramento Semester Program. These organizations informed students about the resources they provide and explained how students can get involved.
“I am really excited about this club,” Minton said. “I’m really excited about it being a central hub for students to congregate around issues they care about and that they’re passionate about.”
Korey Jones, a fourth-year political science major and president of ASFJ, said he and the executive board believed there are many issues on campus that need to be fought for.
He explained how the club came to be and how they came up with the idea over the summer.
“We want to unite the diverse voices of the student body. We want to connect students, the administration, in a way like no other,” Jones said. “We want to connect the students in the community. We want to build stronger connections for advocacy on campus.”
Jones said he hopes to have more networking opportunities for future events, although he does want to make more events that focus on advocacy and helping the community.
To find more information on future events you can follow Allied Students for Justice on Instagram @asfj.sacstate.
