Celebrating Social Justice

Cal State East Bay will host Alicia Garza, activist, writer and co-creator of the #BlackLivesMatter movement on Jan. 28 as part of Social Justice Awareness Month. 

Following the acquittal of George Zimmerman in 2013, Garza took to Facebook to write what she called "a love letter to Black people." She ended the message with "Black people. I love you. I love us. Our lives matter," which soon became a rallying cry for activists worldwide. 

Prior to #BlackLivesMatter, Garza spent 20 years organizing activists. Her thought leadership on issues including politics, race, gender, sexual orientation and gender identity has been featured in publications including "TIME," "MSNBC," "The Washington Post," and "The New York Times." 

She's also received numerous awards and accolades, including the Sydney Peace Prize, Glamour's Women of the Year award, and was honored as the Community Change Agent at BET's Black Girls Rock Awards. 

Her first book, "The Purpose of Power: How We Come Together When We Fall Apart," was released last fall, and Garza regularly offers commentary on politics and pop culture on her podcast "Lady Don't Take No."

According to the introduction in "The Purpose of Power," the book is "the story of an organizer who comes apart and is put back together many, many times…. It is not the story of Black Lives Matter, but it is a story that includes it, that attempts to help make sense of not only where it came from, but also the possibilities that it and movements like it hold for our collective future."

The Jan. 28 event with Alicia Garza is scheduled for 12:15-1:15 on Zoom, and registration is available through the Diversity and Inclusion Student Center website.