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Wednesday, July 15, 2015

No Justice! No Votes, calling a 100,000 to DC in 2016



In 2010 I walked to DC to protest high-stakes testing. In 2011 we formed Save Our Schools March, no one knew us, we had no money, we were all members of some other groups like Parents Across America, Teacher Letters to Obama, higher Education faculty members from Towson University, University of Maryland, American University, and Central Connecticut University, teachers, activists and parents. We might have had 12 people at the most. All we had was an idea, we wanted to host an anti high-stakes testing conference, rally and march in DC in July. We were told we needed to raise 150,000 dollars to pull it off. We were told it couldn't be done. Diane Ravitch said she speak, Johnaton Kozol said he speak, Nancy Carlson-Paige said she speak, and our list of speaker grew and grew. Each new speaker push one of us off speakers list, but we were fine, because it was not about us. It was about a just cause, it was about our children, our teachers, and our public schools. 8,000 to 10,000 people came. Our conference spots sold out quickly. Somehow we pulled it off. Plus it gave birth to new resistance groups, new ideas, and new leadership.

It's 2015 I am walking to DC again, and I say we can do it bigger, better, and turn 10,000 into a 100,000. A 100,000 right before the final push for the 2016 elections. A 100,000 that sign "No Justice No Votes pledges. I say this kind of event would scare both political parties. We might just wake up a nation to the injustice our children, teachers and our local schools are facing everyday. We can invite Rev Barber Moral Mondays to speak, education is a key component of the Moral movement. I think Rev Barber would come, and if he did then we will be talking about 200,000 people!
In Washington DC they are in the process of reauthorizing ESEA, (NCLB). I say no one in DC is listening, they are set to continue with their master plan to sell of our schools into testing factories, and to the highest bidders. Rather than reauthorizing NCLB, we should first be investigating and charging people with crimes against America's children, their teachers and public schools.
We can do this people.
We can reclaim our public schools,
We can bring play back into our elementary schools,
We can save recess,
We can bring joy back into learning,
We can give childhood back to our children,
We can make learning relevant to our young people,
We can reject silence,
We can reject apathy,
We can all walk,

We can all speak up,
We can all carry a sign,
We can all vote
We can help a nation become aware,
We make a difference in 2016,
NO JUSTICE! NO VOTES!
Jesse

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