Let's Make A Difference for Gaby!

I write this message in support of my Kasama [comrade] and friend, Gaby Pascua, who like anyone else deserves to finish her education! Over the past several years, I have seen Gaby persevere through a multitude of unfortunate circumstances —ranging from multiple health-scares surrounding her mother’s chronic illness, to wage theft from a school employer, to food and housing insecurity, to lifelong struggles with their mental health. Despite their personal struggles, Gaby continued to organize and put their community before themselves. Even now, Gaby would rather put their education on hold than burden the community with a request for support. But, we are not going to let that happen!


Over a year ago, Gaby was forced to withdraw from the University of California, Berkeley, when their financial aid —including their work study which they relied on for employment— was severed due to “failure to meet satisfactory academic progress” —in other words, for choosing to take a reduced course load in order to work. However, they withdrew past the refund deadline, trivializing their financial aid eligibility in the coming semesters. Due to these mounting debts that has placed multiple holds on their student account, Gaby has been unable to re-enroll; meanwhile, their debt has already been forwarded to collections. While Gaby has been working diligently to pay the debt, without a degree, work has been hard to come by and the Bay Area affordability crisis has made it even harder to pay off the debt in a short amount of time, much less make a living. Since their window to re-enroll is closing, Gaby has tried every manner possible to consolidate the debt, including private loans, but they have refused to assist her. But I refuse to let Gaby’s right to education die, so I am asking all that are able to contribute towards relieving Gaby of her institutional debt so that she can re-enroll and finish her degree with dignity.


I’ve witnessed first-hand how intelligent, compassionate, and resourceful Gaby can be, and I am certain an investment in Gaby is an investment towards our community. With only a year and a half left in their academic career, I KNOW they will graduate and become a teacher dedicated to our youth’s development, but they need to be given that opportunity. Please consider donating to this amazing individual and community advocate.