BREAKING NEWS: AFT president Randi Weingarten was among a group of protesters arrested in Philadelphia this evening for engaging in civil disobedience to protest the city’s proposed public school closures.
Show your support for this courageous action. Tell Mayor Michael Nutter to fix, not close, Philadelphia’s public schools.
Mayor Nutter and the School Reform Commission want to close 29 of the city’s public schools, a reckless strategy that won’t help kids and won’t save money. These harmful closures will only destabilize neighborhoods and destroy schools. Local teachers, parents and community members are standing together to demand a moratorium on harmful closures.
Sign the petition—Tell Mayor Nutter to fix, not close, Philadelphia’s public schools.
Tell Mayor Nutter to fix, not close, Philadelphia’s public schools.
Philadelphia has become ground zero in the debate over school closings versus investment in neighborhood public schools. Local teachers, parents and community members are standing together to demand a moratorium on harmful school closures.
Stand with them. Tell Mayor Nutter to fix, not close, Philadelphia’s public schools.
Stand with them. Tell Mayor Nutter to fix, not close, Philadelphia’s public schools.
I stand with Philadelphia educators, parents and community members in support of a moratorium on school closings. We need real investment in our public schools and children, and we need an end to the relentless push by austerity mongers and privatizers to cripple and destabilize our public schools and strip teachers and students of their basic needs.
NBC10.com
March 7, 2013: Police arrested 19 people during a protest against school closings in Philadelphia.
Parents, families and students upset over the proposed closing dozens of Philadelphia schools marched on the school district headquarters on North Broad Street tonight.
SkyForce10 hovered overhead as hundreds of protesters shut down the street for hours ahead of the School Reform Commission's meeting where a final decision will be made on closing schools.
Outside the protest remained peaceful, while inside Philadelphia Police said that 19 people, mostly adults, were arrested for blocking the doors of the auditorium where the vote was set to begin at 5:30 p.m. Most of the people were arrested for disorderly conduct, police said.
One of those arrested was Randi Weingarten, preisdent of the American Federation of Teachersnational union, NBC10's Chris Cato reported. Weingarten was set to speak during the meeting.
This is the School Distirct of Philadelphia's livestream from inside the meeting:
Originally 37 schools were set to be closed or consolidated. Eight were saved and the fate of 27 of the 29 remaining schools will be voted on at the meeting.
Many of the buildings have too many empty seats, and some are in poor condition. Officials say consolidating schools will save the cash-strapped district about $24 million per year.