Some Good News

It's been awhile since we've sent out an update and hopefully we'll be better at sharing our good news in the new year.  But in the meanwhile, here's a short summary of what's been going on in Chinatown:

• The Rise Up! arts program just held their retreat at Pomona College last weekend. 9 students went and had such a great time immediately made all the other students who weren't able to attend jealous. Lots of funny stories and team building
• 20 students went door to door to outreach for our campaign to build stronger, healthier communities.
• 7 Youth Organizers participated in a public hearing on the environmental impact of the CASP redevelopment proposal. Among issues they brought up: concern about the possibility that the plan may push out low-income families and the building of parks next to freeways
• We just got accepted to poster at the Active Living Research Conference in San Diego in February and will be bringing some of the Youth Organizers with us to the Conference and to submit an article for a special paper on Health Disparities in the AAPI community that will be published by the Kellogg Foundation and the Asian Pacific Islander American Health Forum.

And lastly, we're holding our Holiday Party on Dec. 4, 2010, 5-8pm @ the Church of the Epiphany in Lincoln Heights. Everyone's welcome but please RSVP so that we don't run out of food!

New School Year, New Planting Season

So this week marked the start of a new academic year. This week we also began a new planting cycle and our latest series of gardening workshops, which brought out 15 people of various ages, languages, and backgrounds. Folks began planting basil, dill, kohlrabi, sugar snap peas that will hopefully survive in time to be transplanted on our next garden workday:  

Sat. Sept. 25th,  9am @ 
the Lincoln Heights Community Garden
2449 Sichel Street
Los Angeles, CA 90031


In addition to the usual SEACA folks, there will also be volunteers from USC on hand to help clean up the garden, fill in the beds, and of course transplant the seedlings.  Tam & I also started some lettuce, radishes, and carrots seedlings as well. I think we're going to eat well in two months! In the meanwhile, let us know if you want to join us on Sept. 25th.

I also wanted to share with you this story that was aired on KCRW about a month ago on Evan Kleiman's Good Food. One of her guests was Dr. Thomas Robinson of the Stanford School of Medicine who talked about how students are more likely to improve their diets when you raised their awareness of social justice issues than if you just talked about individual health benefits. Examples given were people who became vegetarian because of animal welfare issues or others wanting to eat locally to reduce their carbon footprint.  Interesting, huh? It also confirms what we've known all along: people want to be a part of something bigger and to feel that their personal choices can make a difference.

http://www.kcrw.com/etc/programs/gf/gf100821buffalo_wings_moonsh

Summer Programs 2010!

We have a packed summer! Come  join us for fun and informative workshops on cooking and other skills.


Cooking, Mondays 4-6pm


Heads Up! Workshops, Wednesdays 3-5pm
Have questions about money, relationships, and your body? Join SEACA this summer to build on your knowledge of these topics and more!

How To Be Smarter With Your Money, 7/15
Communications & Conflict Resolution 7/22
Healthy Relationships & Sexuality 7/29
Family/Relationship Violence & Legal Advice 8/5
Self Care & Harm Reduction 8/12

All workshops take place at the SEACA office. Everyone is welcome!
970 N. Broadway, Suite 209
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 628-8667

SEACA Celebrates!

SEACA ended the academic year with many accomplishments and a few celebrations! This past year, we completed a community health assessment by door-knocking in our communities, collected oral histories of community members, and built the first Lincoln Heights Community Garden --- just to name a few of our accomplishments. Watch the video to recap our year.

Congratulations to all our members, volunteers, and partners for all your hard work! We look forward to seeing everyone back in August.

If you already miss us, join us this summer for some fun and informative life skills workshops. Details coming soon...

May Day Rally!

On May 1st, 2010 SEACA members marched in solidarity around the Garment District with workers at the Garment Worker Center. Then, we joined the march on Broadway in the biggest immigrant and workers' rights rally in the country.

SEACA and UCLA Releases Education Report

SEACA’s communities face numerous educational challenges. Belmont and Lincoln High have some of the lowest academic outcomes in the city. Through firsthand interviews by students in the schools, In the Majority: Challenges, Resources, and Strategies for Educating Immigrant Students and Students of Color in LAUSD provides a critical analysis of education within schools and highlights strategies for schools, community organizations and parents to work together for effective change for positive student outcomes. Read the entire report here.

SEACA Members Speak Out Against DASH Cuts

SEACA members spoke out at a public hearing on the cuts to the DASH bus service. Everyone from the elderly residents of Chinatown, to the high school students at Lincoln High School to the residents of the William Mead Housing Projects will be impacted. More information about the proposed cuts can be found at the LA Department of Transportation web site. Listen to SEACA's member stories and how they hope to impact the process in the video.