Meet .Sade Elhawary | Movement Builder: Educator & Organizer

We had the good fortune of connecting with .Sade Elhawary and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi .Sade, let’s talk legacy – what do you want yours to be?
There are 3 quotes that have always stuck with me in terms of legacy. They are all about the impact I want to have on others as a mentor, big sis, foster mom, daughter, aunt, and all the other roles I play… that’s what matters most to me. Being an inspiration in a real way. To know that each of us are powerful beyond measure.

“The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great in whatever they want to do.” – Kobe Bryant

“I’m not saying I’m gonna rule the world or I’m gonna change the world, but I guarantee you that I will spark the brain that will change the world.” – Tupac Shakur

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. – Maya Angelou

At the end of the day, I want people to remember “how I made them feel,” like Maya Angelou says. I want young people, especially, to feel inspired, empowered, celebrated, and loved. Beyond that, I want my legacy to be about helping our communities shift power to create change by fighting for justice and liberation, dismantling structures of oppression through grassroots organizing and community movement building.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I want the world to know I am a badass. I’m brave, I take risks, and I’m fearless (most of the time lol). And I wasn’t always like this. I used to have hella imposter syndrome. It took me a long time to really learn to love myself and I still struggle sometimes, especially with balance and self-care. But I do know that I love myself in ways I never did before – in ways I never knew how to before. I took a lot of time to figure it out. To really dig deep and learn what it would take.

When I was 28, I traveled around the world by myself for an entire year. To 28 countries. TWENTY-EIGHT MF’IN COUNTRIES ON 5 CONTINENTS. I had the time of my life. And I don’t take any of it for granted.

Growing up, we couldn’t afford to travel. The farthest I had been with my family was to the border of Mexico to get all 4 of my wisdom teeth removed for the low. My mom was raising three daughters on her own and she just couldn’t afford to take us on vacations. The first time I ever stepped foot on an airplane, I was 18 years old and felt like the luckiest girl in the world. I had been sponsored for a flight from LA to Sacramento where I got to meet the governor and advocate for women’s rights.

Everything has come full circle now that I’m running to represent my community in the State Assembly. Next November, I’ll be elected to serve our constituents from South Central, Watts, Skid Row, and Downtown LA in Sacramento – the same place where I first caught the travel bug. Funny enough, I’ve been involved in politics and activism from the time I was elected Student Body President in elementary school. I was born and raised in LA as the eldest daughter of immigrants and I attended underserved public schools in LAUSD with my two sisters. It wasn’t until I got to college that I realized the systemic oppression that causes our schools to be segregated with less resources and I knew I wanted to create an impact to improve outcomes for our future generations.

I devoted myself to building Black/Brown solidarity and tackling issues of equity and access to transform communities like the one I grew up in. After receiving my bachelor’s from UCLA and master’s from Harvard, I spent time organizing high school students in South Central and moved to New York where I designed and developed new school models. I made more money than I ever had before, but I missed working directly with youth. So I took a pay cut and joined the founding faculty team that launched and shaped the curriculum—and the very first graduating class of students—of the Nelson Mandela School for Social Justice. Throughout my career, I’ve served as a mentor, college counselor, and credentialed high school history teacher in communities where investment in education and our classrooms hasn’t always been a top priority, even though it absolutely needs to be.

I am immensely proud of my organizing career at Community Coalition (CoCo), where, over the past 12+ years, I recruited, trained, and developed the next generation of leaders and organizers for the social justice movement. Also at CoCo, I helped spearhead fundraising efforts that brought in $12 million, and helped to identify the site, local architect, and worked with the community to design the Center for Community Organizing, dedicated to training activists for the social justice movement. As the Youth Engagement Campaign Manager on Karen Bass’s successful campaign to become L.A.’s first female mayor, I worked to increase the campaign’s energy and visibility, inspire civic engagement, and dramatically improve voter turnout.

Today, I’m an organizer and an educator. Just this year, I taught a political education course around the housing crisis with high school students at Los Angeles Trade Tech, curated and executed the Alliance Youth Day of Action with over 150 youth and community partners, all 12 professional sports teams in Los Angeles (from the Lakers and Kings to Angel City and the Rams) at LAFC’s stadium, worked with the Anti-Racism Diversity & Inclusion Initiative to lead outreach for the first-ever State of Black Los Angeles County report, and launched the Bold Vision Youth Council, a group of 20+ youth leaders and activists that inform the direction of initiatives, campaigns, and events, aiming to improve the lives of a generation of Los Angeles County’s Black, Brown, Indigenous, AAPI, and immigrant youth.

Recently, I decided to run for State Assembly because we need real representation from folks who are willing to fight for all of us, young and old, Black and Brown, working families — I am someone who will always put my community first, no matter what, because we deserve to thrive, not just survive.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?

I love LA! And I love trying new spots. Recently, I went to Level 8 at the top of the Moxy Hotel in DTLA and let me tell you — it was one of the dopest places I’ve EVER been to IN THE WORLD. They really created such a dope space, someone described it to me as an “Alice in Wonderland” vibe, but they have 8 different places, from a Teppanyaki spot and a speakeasy, to a rooftop bar with a pool and a South American restaurant. Decor is A1, vibes are A1, and it really felt like a diverse mix of folks too — young, old, ethnically diverse, and super welcoming. I can’t wait to take all my friends when they come visit. *Disclaimer — be ready to spend a pretty penny.

If they were coming out here in Summer, I would definitely have them join me at South LA PowerFest – South LA’s premier music and art festival – which was at the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Mall this year. It’s completely free by the way – which I love. I’m also a big fan of hitting good parties with music, so if PowerFest isn’t going on, Everyday People LA at The Beehive is the place to be! Black Market Flea which takes place there is also a great experience.

I would hit Smorgasburg at The Row on Sunday for sure. It’s so bomb trying all the different foods, drinks, desserts, and more from all over – the options are endless and the people are eclectic! And I love that I also experienced it while I was living in New York City and now I have it in my hometown. Depending on who’s coming to visit, we’re also going to church on Sunday. I was baptized at Trinity Baptist Church, so if we stop by, they can meet my Godmom, Godsister, and her baby boy! If we happen to meet up with my mom and stepdad, we’ll end up at the Alameda Swap Meet to eat some carnitas at Los Cochinitos.

During the week, we’re definitely hitting Mercado La Paloma where Holbox is so delicious and Chichen Itza hits every time. Since I mostly work from home, I’m taking them with me to hella cafes, especially BIPOC-owned ones, where we can work and chill and grab something delicious. I recently found a cute spot called the Lazy Rose Cafe. and I also love Cafe Calle, Nature’s Brew and Cafe Dolce which are in South Central right by where I live. And we LOOOVE South LA Cafe and Hilltop which both started in South LA and have multiple locations now, everywhere from Eagle Rock and Downtown LA to the Hollywood Bowl and Inglewood. Not gonna lie though, my favorite experience is always at Mingles Tea Bar, where I take everyone to meet Ms. Lara, the owner who’s such a burst of positive and loving energy no matter who I bring by.

What’s a trip to LA without tacos? I’m always down for street tacos from wherever. I have a couple that I love, but I’ll stop anywhere because we’re lucky to have street vendors on every block in the ‘hood. Teddy’s Red Tacos are incredible though. The food truck on Slauson and Central is a can’t miss. We can also grab some mango from the “frutero” and add some Tajin and chamoy to make it extra bomb.

We gotta have boba no question. There’s a cool spot here in South Central called Dana Boba that’s pretty delicious – my go-to is the Thai Tea slushy with extra boba and lychee jelly. If we met up with my sisters and cousins, we might hit up Yogurtland where my favorite topping is the mochi! And we would definitely make the drive out to Altadena to visit my mom and of course to see the light of my life – my niece Olive, who’s almost 9 months. If we’re lucky enough to get everyone together for dinner, we might do a Thursday night with mariachis at Maestro’s (gourmet Mexican cuisine) in Old Town Pasadena, but I also love Bone Kettle, Kaviar, and a cute new spot called No Comment. But if we only have time for something quick, then we’ll hit up Perry’s Joint – a great Black-owned spot down the street from my mom’s.

During the week, I’ll take a day off and we’ll do a day of museums at Expo Park, where we’ll have some fun at the ScienCenter, learn at the Natural History Museum, and honor our ancestors and creatives at the California African American Museum. We might also hike the Culver City Stairs then grab a bite nearby at the Platform or at the Citizen’s Market. We would make several stops to charge at the Tesla station, with some of the cooler ones being at the Fox Hills Mall and at the Americana in Glendale.

We would absolutely take an early morning walk one of the days on the Strand in Manhattan Beach and eat at Cafe Wild – everything there is so good. Afterward, we would lose track of time sitting at Bruce’s Beach watching the waves crash and the tide roll in. It’s my favorite place in the city where I go to relax. It’s my happy place and I feel covered by the ancestors because of all the history of that sacred space.

Lastly, I’m always down to take folks to visit my political home in South LA – Community Coalition on 81st & Vermont — a community institution that’s been around for over 30 years. And I would be most proud to bring them to see my new campaign headquarters at The Unity House at 944 W. 53rd St., right off of Vermont! We just had our commUNITY kickoff where everyone got to take tours of the newly renovated space — we completely transformed it — all powered by volunteers.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’ve always worked in service of others. It’s in my blood. Since I was a little girl, I would watch my mom, a single mother, organize young Latinas to form ¡Adelante Mujer Latina!, a women’s employment program, connecting thousands of women every year to good-paying jobs. It was so inspiring seeing how her work led to the creation of the Young African American Women’s Conference, too. I dreamed of making a difference in my community like my Mommy did, following in her footsteps. Her name is Audy Vasquez-Ramirez. She’s an immigrant from Guatemala who endured domestic violence due to my father’s emotional and verbal abuse. Growing up she always made it happen for her three daughters with no financial support. Regardless of everything she had on her plate, she made ends meet and always made time to give back. I wanted to be just like her – walking around like a boss in her stiletto pumps and bright-colored suits. And low key, I think I am just like my mom now – it’s crazy to see life come full-circle.

Website: www.sadeforassembly.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sadeelhawary/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sadeelhawary/

Twitter: Sade Elhawary

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sade4ca

Other: https://www.blacklayoungdemocrats.com/2022-blayd-board https://womenscaucus.legislature.ca.gov/woman-making-herstory https://www.facebook.com/sadeelhawary/

Image Credits
Leroy Hamilton Glauz Diego