Fourteen arrested protesting massive cuts to University of California system, defending public education
San Francisco, September 16 -- Two hundred University of California workers and students staged a protest against the 32 percent tuition increase (raising tuition for California residents to over $10,000 / year), hundreds of layoffs, and sweeping cuts to academic and research programs being imposed by the UC Board of Regents (led by billionaire Regent Richard Blum, husband of Senator Diane Feinstein) and executed by UC President Mark Yudof.
Fourteen protesters were handcuffed and arrested for the crime of holding a banner that read "People's Board of Regents". The protesters chanted "Whose university; Our university"; and "Layoff Yudof". At their rally outside the meeting, several of the protesters called for defending public education at all levels against privatization. The Regents demonstration is just one indicator of the momentum that's building for the September 24 day of action. Eight hundred UC faculty have now pledged to walk out and bring their classes to the picket lines. The University of California Student Association — the largest student organization in the UC system — voted overwhelmingly to participate in the walkout, and more student groups are coming on board every day.
UPTE / CWA has called a one-day strike of nine thousand UC research and technical workers for 9/24, and CUE — representing 12,000 UC clerical workers — will honor UPTE's lines. Staff, faculty and students are working cooperatively in the developing movement. This is a fight for quality public education and against privatization. It is shaping up to be the largest and most visible blow yet struck against the privatizers. We may well look back on September 24 as the day the tide turned in our favor. This fight is our fight. Links: http://ucfacultywalkout.com/ (UC faculty open call for a walkout, including list of signatories) http://berkeleycuts.org (Provides the real facts about UC's supposed budget crisis) http://upte.org (UPTE / CWA web site, with links to September 24 picket line locations and times) Photo of one of the fourteen UC workers who were handcuffed and arrested for holding up a banner at the UC Regents meeting
Comments:
By: zeta
Take it to the streets
Thank God that educators are standing up for their rights and for the profession of education.I am so glad to see them "taking it to the streets". I only wish that we would have fought in Chicago when they restructured Harper High School (I think it was 1998) then in 2002 When Mayor Daley closed Williams, Terrell and Dodge.
It was the beginning of a nightmare. Now teachers all over are being displaced, reassigned, and charged with anything they can be charged with to remove them from their jobs. If we had fought back in 2002, maybe we wouldn't have thousands of veteran teachers losing their jobs. Maybe we'll get the courage to "take it to the streets" before this attack on the teaching profession spreads like wildfire throughout the country. Maybe we can stop Arne Duncan from taking his Chicago Styled reform program to the rest of the country (Mainly Urban cities).
By: Unity Is Necessary
We Are Only the Tip of the Iceberg
There are a lot of cozy relationships existing currently between Washington and Chicago. Real grassroots organization is going to be necessary to combat the destruction that is occurring in Chicago Public Schools. CTU is not going to provide it.
New Leaders for New Schools, co-founded by Jon Schnur, is part of the Center for American Progress which is a democratic think tank in Washington run by John Podesta, and financed in part by George Soros money.
Jon Schnur was a Senior Advisor on Education for Vice President Gore. John D. Podesta was the former chief of staff to President Clinton. George Soros is a well-known democratic ideologue.
Erikson Institute was co-founded by Valerie Jarrett's mother. Valerie Jarrett was Chief of Staff to Mayor Richard Daley and is now senior aide to President Obama
Prescott principal, Erin Roche, is a New Leaders for New Schools’ product and has built his educational plan around the weak materials of Erikson Institute.
Is it any wonder that the hostile work environment that Roche created at Prescott during the last year was overlooked by his highly placed mentors? When an agenda exists to control public schools so as to be able to implement ideological thinking, any means to the end is considered acceptable.
This is dangerous stuff to let slide, but since Substance is the only publication sounding the alarm about CPS, it looks like Roche continues to get a pass.
By: Nothing like it in Chicago
Where's the outrage?
The stories coming out of California for those who can find them on the Web are amazing. But don't think the Chicago newspapers and TV are going to publish them. Is it true that there will be protests across California on September 24 -- and possibly strikes in many places -- because of the cuts in schools, colleges, universities, and other social service programs?