On Friday, March 6, students gathered on Walker Beach for the Mutual Aid Bash, featuring vendors raising funds for local community-based organizations. This event was co-hosted by a variety of different 5C organizations: the Pomona Events Committee; First Generation and Low-Income Students Scholars (FLI Scholars); Improving Dreams, Equality, Access, and Success at the Claremont Colleges (IDEAS); Kasama Filipinx American Student Association and the FLI Mentor Program.
Many organizers spoke to the value of bringing together this coalition of organizations, united in their commitment to provide opportunities to 5C students to participate in mutual aid efforts.
“You think you are in a bubble, suburban fantasy, but in reality, there are ICE kidnappings everywhere,” event co-organizer and Kasama co-president Zeean Firmeza PO ’26 said. “As affinity groups, we get a lot of funding, and the 5Cs have a lot of money … How can we ensure students can access and donate money for aid?”
“You think you are in a bubble, suburban fantasy, but in reality, there are ICE kidnappings everywhere,” event co-organizer and Kasama co-president Zeean Firmeza PO ’26 said. “As affinity groups, we get a lot of funding, and the 5Cs have a lot of money … How can we ensure students can access and donate money for aid?”
These student clubs pooled the money from the bash to donate a portion of their profits to organizations such as the Pomona Economic Opportunity Center (PEOC), 909 Mutual Aid, We Keep Us Safe Rancho Cucamonga and many more. In addition to raising funds, many of the vendors provided resources to raise awareness about prominent issues.
“What makes us unique as a vendor is that we not only can donate whatever funds are raised from this bash, but also connect students to resources, along with encouraging them to volunteer,” PEOC volunteer Rose Rivero said. “We sold ‘FUCK ICE’ merchandise and keychains with funds going towards those directly affected by ICE. More than that, we were an educational resource, handing out flyers concerning risk training on how to identify ICE vehicles, knowing your rights and more.”
Alongside these external organizations, students were able to donate to fundraisers supporting deportees, providing legal fees for families and many other uses. Students flooded onto the lawn to browse through the vendors’ tables, greeted by stands offering tacos, aguas frescas and trinkets.
The idea for the Bash initially came to Firmeza when she noticed that, although many 5C students cared deeply about these causes, donating often becomes an afterthought while managing busy schedules.
“I thought it would be cool to bring in community vendors and be that source of direct aid,” Firmeza said. “The organizations we picked are local to the Inland Empire. A lot of us came in here thinking about Claremont’s positionality and where we are situated locally … With this Mutual Aid Bash, money goes directly to families and individuals.”
The bash organizers recognized how much money circulates between their respective clubs and the schools, and how it could be repurposed for events such as these. Every step of the planning process was designed to connect the shared interests and talents of 5C students to these causes.
“For us, we want to redirect and distribute funds, especially [when] a lot of us want to encourage students to understand that they can play an impactful role,” Firmeza said.
In addition to raising awareness and funds, the Bash sought to create a day of fun with an exciting lineup of vendors. Co-organizer Hanna de la Rosa Rosales PO ’26, the head mentor of IDEAS, emphasized the importance of combining skills.
“Along with local bakeries contributing, there were treasured family recipes that were brought to us, which was such an honor to showcase in our event specifically,” de la Rosa Rosales said. “Lots of friends said, ‘Hey, I want to do art shops too,’ or even art major seniors wanted to showcase their art. What made me really happy was that everyone was interested in aid.”
Evidently, the Bash demonstrated how eager students are to contribute to community organizing efforts when they’re given the opportunity. Due to the day’s success, the organizers stressed that this was not a one-time event. De la Rosa Rosales feels that she, alongside all 5C students, bears a responsibility to research the mutual aid organizations and educate herself about what is happening beyond our insulated college bubble.
“It feels overwhelming to hear such horrendous acts,” de la Rosa Rosales said. “Our students deserve to feel like they can help. All of our friends in different organizations ultimately pooled our energy together to collaborate. This collaboration was the result of a lot of hard work, but it was extremely rewarding, showing that anyone can do it.”