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NEWS & LETTERS, July 2002
Hip-hop school protest
New York—More than 20,000 public school teachers,
other school workers and students in a June 4 demonstration—the first major
labor demonstration since September 11 and since a new mayor took office Jan.
1—demanded that New York City stop using the terror attack as an excuse to cut
public spending. Thirteen people were arrested, most for pushing and shoving
after the cops penned in the demonstrators far from the stage and brought out
horses to stop attempts to circumvent the pens. The cops also arrested singer Wyclef Jean for disorderly
conduct, for trying to sing! The union’s sound permit only allowed speaking
and recorded music, and the cops provocatively enforced it. After trying several
times to sing, Jean knelt and put his hands behind his back and refused to move. The especially large turnout of students, encouraged by
the presence of hip-hop performers, added militancy to the union demonstration.
The students carried hand-made signs demanding “money for schools, not for
war” and accused the mayor of racial discrimination for defunding the schools,
with mostly minority students. Not only have teachers been working without a contract
for over 18 months, but the city was threatening to cut the school budget by
$356 million. The United Federation of Teachers finally announced they would
strike. They got a contract a few days after the demonstration. However they
settled for what they had rejected before September 11 when the city budget had
a surplus. They also gave in to the mayor’s demand to extend the time at
school an extra 20 minutes twice a week—not to teach, but just to “work”
longer. One teacher complained that was a ridiculous concession
to businessman Mayor Bloomberg’s view of education as an industry in which he
can increase production. The same teacher particularly regretted that the
contract failed to win any changes in the current cult of standardized testing
as the framework for education. —Union supporter |
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