CCEJ Roots of Justice Breakfast & Convening

March 8, 2024 | 8am - 4pm | The Grand Long Beach

CCEJ’s Breakfast and Convening will bring hundreds of people together for a day of learning, dialogue and reflection in service of making our community more just and equitable. The all-day event is an evolution of CCEJ’s annual community Breakfast (known as the “Interfaith Breakfast” and “Interfaith Intercultural Breakfast”), bringing people of different identities together to share in the vision of a truly inclusive community. The schedule below outlines our activities - stay for the whole day or as much as your schedule allows.

Registration is now fully closed so we can focus on preparing a great event for our community.

Questions about the event? Contact Executive Director Reena Hajat Carroll at rhcarroll@cacej.org.

MORNING

8:00am - 8:30am - Doors Open & Community Coffee

8:30am - 10:00am - Annual Breakfast featuring Keynote Speaker Dr. Anthony Ocampo

10:00am - 10:15am - Break

10:15am - 11:45am - Affinity Group Dialogues

To deepen learning and reflection after Dr. Ocampo’s remarks, CCEJ facilitators will host dialogues in affinity groups for all guests. Affinity groups are critical tools for building trust and connection between people who share a specific social identity, such as racial identity or sexual orientation. In affinity groups, you’ll explore:

  • commonalities and differences your group has around a shared identity

  • the specific ways systemic inequities impact communication, trust, and relationships for people of different identities in our communities

  • ways of working together across identity toward greater trust, inclusion, and equity

AFTERNOON

11:45 - 12:45pm - Lunch, Resource Fair & Book Signing with Dr. Ocampo

12:45pm - 2:00pm - Afternoon Keynote Speaker - Sterling De Sutter Summerville in conversation with Reena Hajat Carroll

2:00pm - 3:30pm - Workshops

  • Leading Teams Towards Equity and Justice

  • Noticing and Naming Racial Microaggressions

  • Affinity Groups in the Workplace

  • Embracing Fluidity: Supporting Transgender, Nonbinary and Gender Expansive Youth

  • Using Restorative Questions with Young People

  • Making LA County Safer: Addressing and Preventing Hate in Our Communities

3:30pm - 4:00pm - Closing

Breakfast Keynote Speaker: Dr. Anthony Ocampo

Anthony Christian Ocampo, Ph.D. is Professor of Sociology at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. He is the author of Brown and Gay in LA: The Lives of Immigrant Sons and The Latinos of Asia: How Filipino Americans Break the Rules of Race, which has been featured on NPR, NBC News, Literary Hub, and in the Los Angeles Times. He is an Academic Director of the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity and the co-host of the podcast Professor-ing. His writing has appeared in GQ, Catapult, BuzzFeed, Los Angeles Review of Books, Colorlines, Gravy, Life & Thyme, and the Chronicle of Higher Education, among others. He has received fellowships from the Ford Foundation, Jack Jones Literary Arts, Tin House, and the VONA/Voices of Our Nations Arts Foundation. He was recently featured in the Netflix documentary “White Hot: The Rise and Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch,” as he was one of the employees involved in suing the company for racial discriminatory hiring practices. Raised in Northeast Los Angeles, he earned his BA in comparative studies in race and ethnicity and MA in modern thought and literature from Stanford University and his MA and PhD in sociology from UCLA.

Afternoon Keynote Speaker: Sterling De Sutter Summerville

Sterling, a seasoned professional with an extensive background in Africa, Asia, and Europe, distinguished as a Fulbright Scholar, currently serves as the Founding Director and Lead Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategist at De Sutter Summerville Consulting (DSSC). As the head of this premier Inclusion Strategy consulting firm, Sterling excels in assisting individuals and brands in formulating and articulating positions on culturally sensitive topics. Prior to establishing DSSC, Sterling dedicated over a decade to the education, technology, and nonprofit sectors, aligning his efforts with organizations committed to Human Rights advocacy. He earned his Masters in Education from the University of Cincinnati and holds a bachelor's degree from Valparaiso University. Beyond his formal consulting endeavors, Sterling actively contributes to the professional landscape. Noteworthy achievements include the creation of a LinkedIn Learning Course titled 'Creating Safe Spaces for Tough Conversations,' which has garnered participation from over 30,000 learners. In addition to his instructional work, Sterling finds fulfillment in mentorship, writing, and engaging with student groups.