People Post is a space for opinion pieces, letters to the editor and guest submissions from members of the Long Beach community. The following is an op-ed submitted by Lilia Ocampo, a Long Beach resident and community leader with the People’s Budget Proposal, and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Long Beach Post.

We are living in frightening times.

Across the nation, thousands of communities and millions of people feel threatened and disrespected. Whether we are Latino, black, Cambodian, elderly, disabled, or LGBTQ, many of us are living in constant fear—fear of deportation, fear of the police, fear of our political leaders. The list of fears goes on and on.

Against these odds, it’s easy to give up and give in. It’s easy to keep quiet, keep your head down and just try and get by. As a working mother with five children, I could choose to do this, hope everything works out and live in the shadows, but that’s never going to happen. Because I have five children and I know lots of mothers just like me, I refuse to give up. I refuse to give in. Now, more than ever, we all must raise our voices and demand change. I will live in sunshine.

Guess what? Here in Long Beach, it’s working. People are using their power and taking a stand. Over the past month, I have been part of a group of community leaders, youth, and a variety of organizations that presented the first “People’s Budget Proposal” to the Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia and City Council. We made history, but we’re not finished making progress. Our voices and advocacy are paying off.

In a recent newspaper story on the city budget, Mayor Garcia said the People’s Budget had an impact on the budget the city created. In that same news story, he said that Khmer Girls in Action, one of the groups that’s part of the People’s Budget, “did a great job in pitching me” on the Youth Fund—a key part from the People’s Budget—and convinced him that creating [the Youth Fund] “was the right thing to do.”

In addition to the Youth Fund, which has $200,000 proposed, the mayor has recommended $250,000 for a legal defense fund for immigrant residents facing deportation. The mayor has also doubled the original commitment to language access in the city to $160,000. Finally, the draft budget allocates $150,000 to the city prosecutor for housing code enforcement efforts.

These items are the backbone of the People’s Budget, and I am encouraged to see these issues receive funding, but the city can do better. Take for example the Youth Fund. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, about 25 percent of our city’s population is younger than 18, and of this group, about 30 percent live below the poverty line.

Frankly, the Youth Fund needs to be on par with the number of young people in our city. If our city doesn’t make adequate investments in our young people now, it will set the stage for a very bleak future.

In the People’s Budget, we’re also asking for an additional $210,000 for language access to cover items like multilingual signage, interpretation needs and translation of critical documents and communications to follow through on the commitment to the city-wide Language Access Policy.

We applaud the city’s effort to this point, but so much more is needed. For too long, resources flowed into wealthier neighborhoods, leaving thousands of residents behind. This budget can put an end to that practice and prioritize all people.

This is our city. Long Beach is for everyone. This budget can be a promise to all people. The city council will likely beginning voting on the budget on Sept. 4. Let your voice be heard.