What Do They Want? School Funding! When Do They Want It? Now!

by Rachel Mulroy · 2010-03-04 10:55:00 UTC
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Students, educators and concerned citizens are standing united in protest today against public education cuts in California. There are more than 35 local and regional rallies taking place state-wide, according to the organizers of the National Day of Action to Defend Education.

Locations range from the University of California, Berkeley, a hotbed of activism, right down to the elementary schools, hotbeds of kickball. Since October 2009, activists have been gearing up for March 4th by organizing demonstrations such as study-ins and walk-outs, and by reaching out to local churches, unions and hospitals to educate their communities about the negative effects budget cuts have on public education. Schools from other states across the nation are joining in, to create a movement that they hope will be impossible to ignore.

Last year the University of California and California State University were hit hard by a 20 percent cut in state funds resulting in layoffs, class cancellations and a 32 percent increase in student fees. (One in a string of damaging cuts for struggling families.) Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger responded to the consequent protests by proposing a budget that increased funding to those schools. In doing so, he succeeded in drawing attention from other educational systems within the public sector, like community colleges and K-12 schools, that had their budgets slashed by $6 billion.

In the past, politicians would simply force institutions to compete against each other for funding. This time around, activists have helped everyone stay on the same page by focusing on the importance of a cohesive effort to reinstate funds for and halt the privatization of California's public education systems. Social networking sites (see the pages on MySpace and Facebook) are being used to spread information about the March 4th rallies, and more than 20 independent organizations, such as the American Association of University Professors, are calling for action today. (Student groups are also using today as a platform for other social issues on the agenda, such as empowering racial and sexual minorities.)

The government's divide-and-conquer tactics won't work anymore. The citizens of California won't allow their government to rob young people of the right to a quality public education.

Photo credit: billaday

Rachel Mulroy has worked for more than seven years with impoverished children in Maine and Massachusetts. She currently volunteers for the Greater New Bedford Boys' & Girls' Club.

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