Law School Student

Hello community,

I am reaching out because I need your help! I was recently accepted into law school, my first year is $21,000 and well I am hoping by the time you’re done reading my personal story you will be inspired to invest in my dream. Anything helps!!! 

My name is Joanna Molina, I grew up in the East Side of San Jose, off of Story and McLaughlin Ave. At 13 years old I fit perfectly into the stereotype of a youth growing up in the East Side of San Jose. I grew up in a single  family home, system impacted and gang impacted. At that age the only possibility I saw for myself was the environment around me.  Growing up I  felt like there was something wrong with me, for I didn’t feel okay with hurting people. I cared and loved too much, I still do.  As a result I started doing drugs at a young age to cope with my reality and too numb my feelings of shame and guilt. The first time I witnessed someone killed I was 14 years old, it became the norm to lose friends to the system or death. I experienced many traumatic experiences growing up and I lost myself for years. The memories of my teen years are very vague, there  isn’t much happiness there to remember mostly pain and loss. At the age of 17 I was charged with a couple of felonies and enhancements. Although it was my first time being charged with a crime, the DA insisted I  be charged as an adult. He painted this picture of a monster in the court room and demanded  I be moved to adult court and face adult charges. There wasn’t much my family could do for me, my mom was an immigrant from Mexico who barely spoke the language and didn’t know how to advocate for me. I don’t blame her, she had enough to worry about. I had attended a mentoring program a few years prior to this and was still very close to the people of this program. The director of California Community Partners for Youth, Jeff Bornefeld, and a couple of others fought for me. The reality is, if these people hadn’t advocated for me I would have grown up in prison. What happened to me is not rare, this is the story of many youth who are system impacted. I have a great number of  friends who have grown up in juvenile hall and prison. The only difference between me and them is the people who believed in me and fought for me! And I am asking you to believe in me too! At 29 years old I have accomplished things I wouldn’t have dreamed of as a kid! I am involved in policy making! At this age I am aware of my life’s purpose, I was placed on this earth to create change and to fight for those who cannot fight for themselves! Help me fulfill  this purpose! 

My personal experiences
growing up is what inspired me to be a lawyer. As a prosecutor I can decide to take a more restorative justice approach when charging someone with a crime as opposed to “throwing the book at them”. We need more system impacted people that can transform the system from within!