WHAT AN OUTRAGE! “Reform” strikes again. Literally.
PRESS STATEMENT & PRESS AVAILABILITY
October 24, 2019
Contact: OEA 2nd Vice President, Chaz Garcia, 510-414-3593
Statement from OEA 2nd Vice President Chaz Garcia on Behalf of the OEA Officers on OUSD’s Use of Violence at School Board Meeting
“Last night, OUSD police pushed, choked and clubbed peaceful elementary school parents and educators who were protesting school closures. We hold the OUSD Board of Directors and Superintendent Johnson-Trammell responsible for setting the stage for this violence by erecting barricades, and for the actions of their police force. The Oakland Education Association condemns these acts of policing and violence in the strongest possible way, as we have opposed (and went on strike against) the harm done to our students by school closures, the harm done when a Board member choked a teacher in March, and OUSD’s continued spending of over $6.5 million on OUSD police while underspending on counselors, nurses, and school psychologists that our students need.”
“Oakland students, parents and educators deserve better than what the OUSD Board and Superintendent Johnson-Trammell are giving us. Oakland educators demand that OUSD immediately:
-
Enact a moratorium on all planned and future school closures;
-
Issue a public apology to our students, parents and educators for the use of police barricades, over-policing, and violence at last night’s board meeting;
-
Defund the OUSD police force, and redirect those funds toward the counselors, nurses and other supports our students need; and immediately suspend, investigate and discipline officers for their behavior last night.”
PRESS AVAILABILITY: OEA 2nd Vice President Chaz Garcia, Noon to 2pm today (October 24th); OEA office (272 E. 12th Street, Oakland, 94606)
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Walkout, do more than rhetorical outrage–withdraw your essential labor from OUSD, show them teachers cannot be brutalized. Disgraceful, don’t allow it or else it will continue.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Here’s video. This is disgraceful.
LikeLike
The video shows police beating up the people who pay their salaries. Shameful.
LikeLike
They did what?!? An armed force violently attacking peaceful protesters on our shores? No way. No way! Actions like those cannot be allowed to stand. Leaders like that need to be ousted, and if necessary, downright overthrown.
LikeLike
They did more than that. They also held the rest of the Board meeting behind closed doors. Allowed sporadic comment with the ability to cut mikes off that were coming from the main room. The police injured a parent and trapped her to a gurney, while insulting her the entire way to hospital…and above all they voted on items on the agenda – isn’t that against the Brown act?
LikeLiked by 1 person
“behind closed doors” — so much public pay now going for non-public action
LikeLike
Here is the best account yet of it all…
https://oaklandnorth.net/2019/10/24/police-arrest-protestors-at-oakland-school-board-meeting/?fbclid=IwAR34glpp_x9DEKsVGZQFdGifINeJJVPNf4FtrSHDl5BhC__Q76lqX4kSmHM
LikeLike
When will we the people be angry enough to heed Thomas Jefferson’s advice about tyrants?
LikeLike
The following is an account of what a parent witnessed after being detained. For reference, John Sasaki is the former weatherman from local news station KTVU and apparently was directing the activities of the Oakland Unified School District Police at the event.
“When they cuffed us they initially held us in the corridor outside. There were a couple of … district employees gloating at the front of the corridor but the cops were nervous and spooked. I think they knew they’d gone too far. The captain ranted at us, said they were going to take us to Santa Rita, put us in with the general population etc. But he was spooked too.
But the man in charge back there was John Sasaki. They all took instructions from him. All of them. Even the captain. Sassaki has no right telling the media what happened last night. He was directing the show. He needs to resign today.
And the media should not give Sasaki the opportunity to spin this. I mean. They have to see that Sassaki can’t be trusted to give them an honest version of events on this, right?”
LikeLike