Take it back...TAKE IT ALL BACK

Read All About It! The Connecticut Legislature endorsed and supported by both teacher unions just let the bill that would have stopped using test scores to evaluate teachers die. Trust me people, Connecticut will not be the only state to drop such proposed laws to end VAM measures, or high-stakes testing in our schools. In the end we should judge the elected officials we endorse by the laws they actually pass. Thousands of bills are introduced across our nation every year, but only a handful are actually passed. Politicians love to propose bills, and love letting them die even more. It is time our unions start judging elected officials by the bills they actually passed.  Which brings me to all those leaders who danced in the streets celebrating the passage of ESSA last summer.  

ESSA changes nothing, empowering governors that led Education Reforms to privatized our public schools are the last people teachers would empower.  Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) puts the power of high stakes testing in the hands of governors. Something every Civil Rights Activist group should have opposed, because state governors gave birth to Jim Crow, and they continue to grow new Jim Crow voter suppression laws. In other words the School to Prison Pipeline has always been deeply rooted in state governor led education policies.   

Currently we have 13 states with underfunding cases for Black, Brown and poor schools in their courts: AZ, CA, CT, Fl, KAN, NJ, NM, NY, Penn, SC, Tenn, TEX & WA. With governors in each state fighting to dismiss those law suits. Connecticut Governor Malloy as a mayor supported Connecticut CCJEF v Rell case. He supported the Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding case until he became governor. He has tried to dismiss the case at every level in the courts ever since. According to Education Week Quality Counts 2015 report 49 states spend more money on their wealthy schools than their poor schools. ESSA empowers each of those 49 governors whose states continuously underfund Black, Brown, and poor schools in their states. It lets those governors off for equity and justice in their schools.

In 2010 everyone began defining Arne Duncan's Race To The Top, (RTTT) as NCLB on steroids. Trust me ESSA is RTTT on steroids of inequity and injustice in our public schools. NCLB spent a trillion dollars on test and punish high stakes testing policies. ESSA leaves annual testing in place. Nothing changes people, and our nation's governors were empowered by ESSA to ensure nothing changes. The next trillion dollars goes to the exact same thieves that reduced our children to test scores, and demoralized our nation's teachers. Those Education Reform campaign contributions are going through the roof. Our governors are already dancing in those privatized it all streets. Meanwhile the the Era of Test and Punish plans on destroying public education for generations of children. Silence and apathy are the enemies of justice, and any American not fighting back is standing on the side of injustice. I am calling everyone out. Which side are you on? 

Which is why just about every anti high stakes testing groups is march this July in Washington DC. http://saveourschoolsmarch.org/2016/03/sos-coalition-event-Lincoln-memorial/   We'll need every BAT, every SOSer, Every UOO teacher and parent to march with us on 7/8. 

BATs were in the marching house from the very beginning. This march was born at the BATs March on Washington last July. While everyone else was celebrating the passage of ESSA...SOSers BATS, and UOO put NLCB on trail there. The verdict guilty as hell. Both BATs and SOSers left Washington already planning the march to take back our public schools. 

The time to trust politicians, political parties, and governors is over. As my brother in the struggle to save our public schools Gus Morales says "Take It Back...TAKE IT ALL BACK.

Ready to march, 

Jesse The Walking Man Turner 

If you like to listen to the song that inspired my walk this marching...its Rachel Platten's "Fight" song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo1VInw-SKc

There is a time for everything. This is the time to march!

Barry Lane interviewed a few years back at the New England Reading Assocaition Conference in Massachusetts for a movie he is working on called "Why Do Schools Matter" Barry asked me does poverty matter. This is the link to that interview. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71O0ChPFzAI

Why poverty Matters, and why marching to end poverty matters

When my neighbors and colleagues say Jesse why are you always marching?
I say 1.2 trillion dollars for NCLB the most massive education reform policy in the history of American Public Education.
Why aren't you marching with me?
Next I say 49 states spend more money on their wealthy schools than their poor schools.
Why aren't you marching with me?
Then I say, after 15 years of NCLB/RTTT Test and Punish policies our 12th graders are now scoring lower on reading than they did in 1988. So what did our politicians do? They gave us ESSA. It does more of the same, but puts governors in charge. You know those 49 governors who spend more on their wealthy schools than their poor schools.
Why are aren't you marching with me?
Finally I say for the first time in 50 years 50% of our American children coming to public schools are living in poverty. Poverty matters.
Why aren't you marching with me?
There is a time for everything.
This is the time march.
When Walking Man July 8, 2016.
Where Walking Man the Lincoln Memorial in DC.
What time Walking Man is 12 noon.
Who is marching Walking Man all those with love in their hearts for our children, teachers and public schools.
How can I find out about the march Walking Man
http://saveourschoolsmarch.org/2016/03/sos-coalition-event-lincoln-memorial/
Come march with us,
Jesse The Walking Man Turner
Want to listen to the tune this Walking Man is listening to today....its Poor Righteous Teachers "Rock dis funky joint" . > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R70cfZM0t0w

Are you a rebel for children, their teachers, and public schools?

The real question for every student, parent, teacher, or administrator demoralized, bullied, and humiliated during this era of " Test and Punish" is are you marching?

In Dante Alighieri's Inferno we find these lines to describe the did not rebelled against injustice:

“And I — my head oppressed by horror — said:

"Master, what is it that I hear? Who are

those people so defeated by their pain?"

      And he to me: "This miserable way

is taken by the sorry souls of those

who lived without disgrace and without praise.

      They now commingle with the coward angels,

the company of those who were not rebels

nor faithful to their God, but stood apart.

      The heavens, that their beauty not be lessened,

have cast them out, nor will deep Hell receive them —

even the wicked cannot glory in them.” 

The time has come for students, parents, teachers, and administrators to become rebels against high-stakes testing, inequity and injustice in our public schools.
When children cease to be children, because the wealthy, the powerful, and the connected want rush adulthood on them?
Parents must become rebels!
When the measure of a child becomes their test scores?
It is every human being's moral duty to become rebels speaking up, standing up, and marching to restore their childhood.
When data becomes more important them empathy, humanity, and love in teaching?
Teachers must become rebels!
When 49 states spend more money on their wealthy schools than their poor schools?
It is time the citizens of those states become rebels for poor children!
When a powerful case is made to label America's Public School System, "The School to Prison Pipeline"
It is time for every American to rebel!
When 1.2 trillion dollars is spent on NCLB/RTTT policies that placed testing and standards without compassion as the corner stone of 15 years of education failed reform policies?
It is time for every American to become a rebel demanding a refund!
When both political parties and the President say we know our polices of test and punish have failed, but  this time we'll call is ESSA, and keep testing in place, but put those 49 governors spending less on their poor schools than their wealthy schools in Charge?  
We rebels everywhere have to start marching, and shouting SHUT IT DOWN!
When Detroit teachers are told you will not be paid for the last two months of your contract? Teachers everywhere have to rebel!
When states spend billions of dollars on testing contracts, and close schools and services in Black, Brown and poor communities?
It becomes the duty of every American to rebel against politicians and policy makers who put testing consortiums before children, parents, teachers and local public schools!
When Private Charter Schools are allowed to break the rules, given every advantage, and given billions of dollars from Wall Street investors and hedge fund managers, while Black, Brown and poor public schools are being closed?
We rebels must shout and march the whole system is corrupt!

When every rebel has decided to show up at the Lincoln Memorial on July 8, 2016 in Washngton DC for the Peoples March for Public Education and Social Justice?
Then everyone must show up!

Now who is in the People's March for Public Education and Social Justice Walking Man?
Get some rest first, and pour a large cup of coffee, because the list of Educational Activist going to the Peoples March is a who's who of activism.

In that Rebel house for public education and Justice

1. Our Moral leader the Mighty Mighty Rev William Barber of Moral Mondays North Carolina
 

 2. Our First Lady of the anti-testing Rebellion Diane Ravitch.

3. Our Tireless Warrior for equity in our public schools Jonathan Kozol. 

4. Our most trust defender of labor and social justice from Chicago the beautiful Karen Lewis.

5. That power house of Black Education and Liberation Dr. Sam Anderson 

6. The fearless Journey 4 Justice rock of justice Brother Jitu

7. The Constitutional Warrior Scholar for justice and Civil Rights Yohuru Williams  

8. Those don't call us children, we are in your face education advocates for equity and justice in Newark's Public Schools the Newark Students Union
 

9. Connecticut's Bishop of Turn Up Social Justice Bishop John Selders 

Are you tired yet, get another cup of coffee, because ain't nobody gonna turn us around...we have more!

10. That Massachusetts Hero of Labor from Holyoke Gus Morales 

11. Chicago's Courageous Hunger Strikers for Public Education

12 Seattle Washington "Hell No We Won't Give your Test Teacher Leaders Jesse Hagopian

13 MTA President Never gonna Keep Me Down Barbara Madeloni

   14 The Rebels of all "We don't compromise our children" Testing Resistance UNITED OPT OUT 

Need more Coffee, because we'll not done

15 Our Badass Teacher Queen herself the Mighty Dr. Denisha Jones

16 Two rebels of See our Children Not Test Scores. Jamaal Bowman and Lisa Rudley

17 You can't defer our dreams The Youth Dreamers

17 Just a sampling of our Dynamic Entertainers 

\ 

Put your coffee cup down. There are many more rebels to come, but I'm too tire to list any more today. 

Finally every band of marching rebels needs their TURN UP Marshals CTU, DFT, WTU, Jesse The Walking Man Turner, and those beautiful children who are so much more than test scores.

Elie Wiesel said: "The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference."
Friends the only question remaining is will you come to DC with the Rebels of love to stand for Public Education and Social Justice or stand on the side of death to our public schools?
If you want to know the song I listened to on my walk over the Avon mountain in the rain this morning...its Tracy Chapman's "Talking About A Revolution"
 > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2wneBVssPc <