Mass protests last week against school funding cuts and tuition hikes spoke powerfully about California’s misplaced priorities. As occurred with campus protests last fall, the media gave overwhelmingly sympathetic coverage (other than to the self-indulgent group who blocked an Oakland freeway, diverting television coverage away from legitimate protests). But activists’ strategy for achieving their goals is far from clear. There is no measure on the November 2010 ballot that raises significant new money for education. Activists can use mass action to pressure legislators and the Governor to redirect excessive spending on prisons and other wasteful programs to education, but there is no chance this year of getting enough Republicans to win the necessary 2/3 legislative votes. It appears activists need a three-part strategy; pass a November ballot measure i ending the 2/3 vote requirement, continue building a movement that can force a new Governor and Legislature to hike the vehicular license fee in 2011, and at the same time prepare a game-changing ballot measure for the 2012 ballot that ensures adequate education funding once and for all.

The students, teachers, school employees, labor unions and parents who organized the tremendously successful March 4 statewide education protests achieved what they set out to do: bring the education crisis to newspaper front pages, and the lead stories on television, radio and online news. I cannot recall ever previously seeing such a broad one-day event around education in California, as event organizers brought together an extraordinarily diverse coalition.