LABOR BEAT: 'This not about children's education, this is more about a political game...' The Military Coup against Ames Middle School is reported in a video showing community organizing and from the December 18 Board of Education meeting
A new Labor Beat Video, "Military Coup at Ames School, is now available on You Tube. The raids against public neighborhood schools in Chicago continue...beyond the 50 closings announced last spring. The URL for the video, for those who can't link to it with the link above, is: http://youtu.be/5uFNC9wPWI8
Delia Bonilla of Ames presented the case against the claims made by Alderman Roberto Maldonado and his unusual group of supporters during the December 18, 2013 meeting of the Chicago Board of Education. The families of Ames and the majority of the members of the community around Ames promised after the Board voted to destroy their school to continue their fights in a variety of ways, some to be announced after the New Year. Substance photo by George N. Schmidt. On December 18, 2013 Chicago Public Schools voted to convert Ames Middle School into a Marine military high school, a decision already made months before through a process hidden from the Ames parents and community, who were frozen out of important meetings and consultations. Although the charade of last year's "hearings" on school closings was entirely cynical, CPS has now darkened this travesty with new forms of contempt for democracy.
Despite this, the Ames school community (and the Logan Square Neighborhood Association which played an important role in mobilizing the fightback) carried out a protracted campaign to try to derail CPS's, Mayor Emanuel's, and one Alderman Maldonado's 'military coup' plot. The pro-neighborhood school coalition even conducted a scientific survey in the school community which showed that 87% did not want the school to go military.
LSNA Education Organizer Leticia Barrera said, "We really don't know what is behind their plans, but we are thinking more and more since they are not paying attention to the results of the surveys and those meetings that they didn't attend � we think that it is more like a favor that Alderman Maldonado owns something on the Mayor or vice versa. This not about children's education, this is more about a political game."
After stacking (often secret) meetings and leaning heavily on the dictatorial power of Mayor Rahm Emanuel, 26th Ward Alderman Roberto Maldonado read carefully from his prepared comments during the December 28, 2013 meeting of the Chicago Board of Education. One of the parts of his text that Maldonado labored over was the claim that an "independent research group" had done a poll showing there was support for the militarization of Ames. Within a few minutes, the Ames people demonstrated that Maldonado was lying when the parents played a recording of the "poll" -- which began with questions about how bad the "gangs" were at Ames. Substance photo by George N. Schmidt. Critical lessons have been learned about how CPS cannot be trusted as it continues its aggression against public education (here in the form of school militarization). Many of those active in the campaign have also been involved in efforts to bring about an elected school board for Chicago (now appointed by the Mayor).
As usual, the members of the Chicago Board of Education allowed the speakers on behalf of the militarization policies great leeway. After allowing the "Reverend" Walter Coleman to sermonizing on behalf of Ames for nearly five minutes, Board President David Vitale ignored the fact that the next speaker, "Emma Lozano," was not the real Emma Lozano. Substance photo by George N. Schmidt.Speeches and interviews in the video are also from Anna Espinosa, parent mentor at Ames School; Christina Torres, President of Logan Square Schools Facilities Council; Jesse Sharkey, Vice President of Chicago Teachers Union; Emma Segura, Ames School parent; and Jennifer Velazquez, recent Kelvyn Park HS graduate.
The community residents, parents, and students on the video all spoke in detail about the ways in which 26th Ward Alderman Roberto Maldonado manipulated meetings, excluded the people of Ames, and even got CPS security to block access to a by-inviatation-only meeting (at the Military Academy) which included Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
The video also includes a press conference that was held prior to the December 18 Board meeting at which people from the schools that will be impacted by the destruction of Ames spoke.
Donned in his clerical apparel for the holiday season, 'Slim' Coleman, who spoke on behalf of his Division St. church and the destruction of Ames, devoted a five-minute sermon to the Board on behalf of how bad the regular high schools on the north side were and why CPS had to devote its resources to ousting the Ames Middle School and putting into the building the reincarnated "Marine Leadership Academy" (the erstwhile "Marine Military Academy"). Substance photo by George N. Schmidt. Despite the massive opposition to the militarization of Ames and the disruption of at least four other schools in that part of Chicago, the Board of Education voted on the proposed change following its closed session.
Length - 11:51
