CCEJ
California Conference for Equality and Justice
The California Conference for Equality and Justice (CCEJ) is a nonprofit organization originally founded as the Long Beach chapter of the National Conference for Christians and Jews (NCCJ) in 1963. After the closure of NCCJ’s national office in 2005, CCEJ became an independent nonprofit organization and updated our name to “California Conference for Equality and Justice.”
CCEJ moved our office to Bixby Knolls in 2015 and we’ve been here ever since. We chose Bixby Knolls because it’s accessible for the people that we serve from all over Long Beach and the other areas of LA County (close to the 405/710), has delicious restaurants for our staff to sample, and has much better parking than downtown Long Beach! We also have a large office space that can host trainings and gatherings, which is important for us in building connections between people of all backgrounds and identities.
CCEJ believes that everyone has a role to play in transforming our schools, workplaces and communities to be more just and equitable. Each year, we support more than 1,500 youth and young adults to develop self-awareness and leadership skills and provide experiential, interactive education, training and coaching on inclusion, equity and Restorative Justice for more than 3,000 adults.
Our programs include:
BUILDING BRIDGES CAMP: a 3-day retreat for high school students to explore identity, stereotypes, prejudice, and build skills to promote inclusion in their schools and communities.
CONSCIOUS CLASSROOMS: an in-school program for middle and high school students to build awareness, knowledge and skills youth can use to make their schools more inclusive and equitable.
RESTORATIVE YOUTH DIVERSION: an alternative to the juvenile criminal legal system for youth to build self-awareness, understand the impact of their actions, and practice accountability to people who they have harmed.
ADULT TRAINING & COACHING: experiential, interactive training and coaching on inclusion, equity and Restorative Justice, offered both in partnership with schools, nonprofits, and businesses, and in open trainings for community members.
Our goal is to provide the tools and space for youth and adults to learn, grow, and live free of oppression and thrive. At CCEJ, we lead people of all backgrounds in deep examinations of power and privilege at the personal and societal levels, inspiring them to build community across differences and work together to advance equity, inclusion and justice. We create “brave” spaces for participants to discuss vulnerable topics such as the harmful impacts of racism and discrimination, and to create plans for action and change.
Our community views us as leading experts and practitioners in racial and gender equity, inclusion, and Restorative Justice. We create safe and healing spaces for everyone to engage in transformative conversations. We’re especially recognized for our youth work, which creates safe spaces for youth to develop leadership and advocacy skills. Our trainings are high quality, meaningful, relevant, and action-oriented. Our programs serve a wide age span: from youth to adulthood. We begin restorative justice and racial equity work with younger generations that can influence their communities, while working with adults who can work to change the systems in which they operate.
Many people in Long Beach know CCEJ from our longstanding programs like Building Bridges Camps for youth and our annual Interfaith Intercultural Breakfast, which this year we expanded to an all-day convening on racial and gender justice. We want people to know that we have different opportunities throughout the year for community members to participate in trainings and events. Check out our website; follow us on Instagram and Facebook or sign up for our e-newsletter to stay in the loop!
CCEJ’s office, located at 3605 Long Beach Blvd on the ground floor has meeting space for rent, and for anyone with a small business seeking long-term office space, we also have three small offices available for sub-lease on our mezzanine level. Visit https://www.cacej.org/rental-space or email jneedham@cacej.org for more details.
