Archives for category: Justice
« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

Robert Kuttner: The Case for Optimism in 2018

By dianeravitch
June 9, 2018 //
20

Okay, so we have a president who believes he is above the law, that he could murder James Comey in the Oval Office and it would be okay, that whatever he does is legal because he is THE LAW. Okay, so he knows nothing about the Divine Right of Kings, and thinks he is one. Okay, so he doesn’t know that the American Revolution came about because the colonists didn’t want to be ruled by a Mad King. True, he never read the Constitution.

But don’t give up hope!

Here is Robert Kuttner of The American Prospect. You too can share their wisdom for free by signing up here.

Kuttner on TAP

2018: The Case for Optimism. So let’s review the bidding. The investigative waters keep rising around Trump. The bill guaranteeing the safety of the special counsel won’t pass, but the support of four senior Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee sends Trump a warning—seven if Trump were to stage a Saturday Night Massacre. Too much information is now with the U.S. attorney in New York. And firing Mueller would lead directly to impeachment.

Issues that looked like winners for Trump are turning blurry at best. China is pushing back against Trump’s hard line, and efforts by even hawkish trade officials to get back on the same side with the EU (whose support we need against China) are running up against Trump’s stupidly uninformed cold shoulder to Germany and his insistence that tariffs apply to Europe. Korea, despite early euphoria, will be far from an easy win for Trump, since at best we are in for a period of protracted diplomacy and a deal is still a long shot.

Republicans continue to look worse and worse for the November midterms. Speaker Paul Ryan’s unforced error in firing the House chaplain alienates Catholic Republican voters and divides his own caucus. The pitiful mess with former White House physician and failed VA nominee Ronny Jackson creates yet another wedge between Trump and his party’s nervous supporters in Congress. Trump’s personal unpopularity spills over onto his Republican enablers.

And despite the Republican penchant for trying to rig or steal elections, please note that the six special elections for vacant House seats since Trump’s election went off more or less as normal.

A Democratic pickup of at least 50 seats in the House seems likely, and the Senate is now seriously in play as well. In Tennessee, polls show the popular Democrat, Phil Bredesen, leading the widely detested far-right Republican and likely nominee, Marsha Blackburn. Even Republican Bob Corker, who is retiring from the Senate seat, backs Bredesen.

Lots could happen between now and November, of course, but none of it is likely to be good for Trump and the GOP. Even a good economy is not translating into support for the incumbent party.

I know, I know, it’s risky to count chickens before they hatch. But with all the gloomy news, there are actually many things to celebrate—things that keep hope alive. ~ ROBERT KUTTNER

Categories Democracy, Justice, Trump

Jitu Brown: “We Call for a Moratorium on School Privatization Now!”

By dianeravitch
May 22, 2018 //
8

Watch this powerful 2-minute video, in which civil rights leader Jitu Brown tells the dramatic story of the Dyett hunger strike in Chicago, which lasted 34 days and compelled the city to keep Dyett open and invest $16 Million in the new Dyett.

Jitu Brown leads the Journey for Justice, which is leading a national campaign to stop school closings, privatization, and charter schools. They are fighting to create thousands of community schools.

This video was created by videographers Michael Elliot and Kemala Karmen. It was funded by the Network for Public Education.

Categories Charter Schools, Chicago, Civil Rights, Closing schools, Courage, Education Industry, Equity, Justice, Privatization

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Dissents Ferociously from 5-4 Decision Curbing Workers’ Rights

By dianeravitch
May 21, 2018 //
54

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dissented in strong terms from today’s Supreme Court Decision curtailing workers’ Rights.

As the oldest Justice, age 85, she has many admirers who count on her to fight for the average person, not the powerful. She is now affectionately called The Notorious RBG.

Trump’s appointee Neil Gorsuch provided the decisive vote in the 5-4 Decision. He may be the most conservative Justice on the Court.

“In Monday’s case, decided by a bitter 5-4 vote, the conservative majority ruled that employers may forbid employees from banding together to fight wage and other workplace issues covered by arbitration agreements. The court said a federal arbitration statute overrides federal labor law intended to protect workers’ bargaining power.

“Speaking for the four liberal dissenters, Ginsburg said the decision threatens to return the country to a time in the late 19th century and early 20th when workers were forced to take jobs strictly on the boss’s terms and “yellow dog” contracts, forbidding employees from joining labor unions, were common.

“The employees who had brought Monday’s case claimed they had been underpaid in violation of the Fair Labor Standards and wanted to join in a class-action lawsuit in federal court. The Supreme Court majority agreed with their employers that the arbitration contracts they had signed prohibited any collective proceedings.

“Ginsburg declared the agreements “arm-twisted, take-it-or-leave-it contracts.” She noted that the cost of a lawsuit dissuades most workers from seeking to redress a grievance on their own and emphasized the “strength in numbers.”

“She said federal laws dating to the 1930s protect workers’ rights to band together to confront employers about working conditions. “Federal labor law does not countenance such isolation of employees,” she insisted.”

We can pray that Trump does not get a second pick, or that the Democrats control the Senate after 2018 and can block him from picking someone else who wants to set the clock back 100 years and restore the Age of Robber Barons.

Categories Democracy, Equity, Justice

Journey for Justice Reports on Racial Inequities in Education Policy Today

By dianeravitch
May 14, 2018 //
11

Today, Jitu Brown and the Journey for Justice will release a report on the steps of the Supreme Court about the continuing failure to enforce the Brown vs. Board decision of 1954.

Journey for Justice Alliance Releases Myth-Shattering Report “Failing Brown v. Board” that Exposes Deep Inequities in Public Education Across Race and Class

The Report examines course offerings in 12 cities revealing inequities that have remained since the civil rights movement, inspiring call from national organizations for a “new Brown v. Board” decision.

The Journey for Justice Alliance, a national network of community-based organizations in 31 cities, released its report “Failing Brown v. Board” which illuminates just how inequitable public education remains today, largely across racial lines. Through examining course offerings at high schools in 12 cities (and one elementary in Chicago), this report, which is backed by substantial research, shows how black and brown students are denied “access to inspiration” in comparison with their white, more affluent peers. “Failing Brown v. Board” was released on the first day of the “Poor People’s Campaign.”

“In America, inequity is ignored as children in the same city have two completely different educational experiences and the dividing line in many cases is race. Every American child and their family have the right to a high-quality neighborhood public school from grades pre-k through 12. We aren’t asking for a handout in this report, we are demanding a fair return on our tax investment,” said Jitu Brown, National Director of the Journey for Justice Alliance. “Without access to great equitable public schools, we are failing an entire generation of students and their families solely based on the color of their skin and their socioeconomic status.”

This shattering myth report, its findings, and multiple statewide educator walkouts have pushed national and local organizers to call for a “new Brown v. Board” initiative for educational equity. On Monday morning at the steps of the Supreme Courts, the Journey for Justice Alliance, in partnership with the #WeChooseCampaign and the Alliance to Reclaim our Schools (AROS), will release the report and outline planks of the nationwide campaign.

“As parents this report is true to our lived experience. We must have zero tolerance for inequity and demand justice for every child now,” Zakiyah Ansari, a New York public school parent and advocacy director of the Alliance for Quality Education. “We choose equity, not the illusion of school choice”

For members of the press who can’t attend the press conference in person, please email Richard Fowler (Richard@richardmediacompany.com) to schedule a one-on-one interview with one of the participants.

WHAT: Press Conference

WHERE: U.S. Supreme Court, 1 First Avenue NE, Washington DC

WHEN: Monday, May 14th at 9am

WHO: Jitu Brown, National Director, Journey for Justice Alliance,
Randi Weingarten, American Federation of Teachers
Judith Browne Dianis, Executive Director, Advancement Project,
Lily Eskelsen Garcia, President, National Education Association
And the following organizations: NAACP, Alliance for Quality Education NY, Alliance for Education Justice, American Federation of Teachers, Camden Parent’s Union, Dignity in Schools Coalition, Badass Teacher’s Association, Save our Schools

Read the report here.

Categories Education Reform, Equity, Justice, Race

Mike Klonsky: My Favorite Paul Ryan Moment

By dianeravitch
April 12, 2018 //
8

 

Mike Klonsky is not shedding any tears for Paul Ryan.

He remembers when a Wisconsin social studies  teacher was being honored for his dedication to the humanitarian ideals of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Ryan was presenting the award. The teacher refused to accept it from him, because, he said, Ryan was “a lackey for the 1%.” He “told the audience, “I can’t in good conscience accept this award, as a humanitarian, Paul Ryan stands for everything I don’t believe in.”

Categories Courage, Justice

Journey For Justice and Its Fight Against Destructive Education “Reform”

By dianeravitch
March 25, 2018 //
7

 

The Schott Foundation is one of the few philanthropies that unabashedly supports public education and recognizes its importance in a democracy. Schott has supported the civil rights group, Journey for Justice, whose leader Jitu Brown has a powerful voice. (Jitu is a member of the board of the Network for Public Education.)

Schott underwrote the production of a video about the work of J4J. 

“Schott grantee partner Journey for Justice Alliance released a compelling short documentary chronicling the fight against education reform in the age of Trump and DeVos. Beyond the rhetoric coming from DC, for years Journey for Justice has been raising the voices of those most impacted by budget cuts and privatization. Following J4J’s cross-country trip from Detroit to Washington, D.C. to oppose Betsy DeVos’ appointment as Education Secretary in early 2017, this film not only shows the profound hurt that these policy changes cause, but the inspiring organizing done to resist them.

“As J4J National Director Jitu Brown is led away from the Senate hearing room, he says “it’s an act of cowardice to run toward privatization and away from equity. We are as far away from Brown v. Board as we were in 1957.”

“Film Description:

“Many are voicing concerns that Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is unqualified, motivated by profit, and advancing a harmful agenda.

“Over a year ago, we organized a group of parents, educators, and students to travel from Detroit to Washington to raise their voices at DeVos’ confirmation hearing. We came to advocate for a public education system based on equity and democracy. We came because we had already lived with the consequences of policies that undermine those values, policies that DeVos had advocated for in Michigan. We came to speak truth to power and we were silenced—shut out.

“Please watch and share this 30 minute documentary made by 180.”

Categories Betsy DeVos, Charter Schools, Civil Rights, Education Industry, Equity, Justice, Privatization

Idaho: Vouchers Are Dead for This Year!

By dianeravitch
March 14, 2018 //
6

According to a personal message from Idaho teacher Levi Cavener, vouchers are dead in Idaho this year.

He wrote me: “The Senate Committee pulled the bill from the agenda, which means the bill is dead for this year’s session.”

This is great news. Educators across the state, including Don Coberly, the superintendent of Boise, objected that vouchers are divisive and have failed to improve achievement in other states. The State Board of Education unanimously opposed it, as did many Republicans. It narrowly passed in the House.

 

All citizens of Idaho should carefully read the explicit language of Article IX, Section 5, of the State Constitution. If voucher advocates want to change the Constitution, they should call for a referendum to do so and put it to the public.

 

CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF IDAHO
APPROVED JULY 3, 1890

ARTICLE IX
EDUCATION AND SCHOOL LANDS

SECTION 1. LEGISLATURE TO ESTABLISH SYSTEM OF FREE SCHOOLS. The stability of a republican form of government depending mainly upon the intelligence of the people, it shall be the duty of the legislature of Idaho, to establish and maintain a general, uniform and thorough system of public, free common schools.

SECTION 2. BOARD OF EDUCATION. The general supervision of the state educational institutions and public school system of the state of Idaho, shall be vested in a state board of education, the membership, powers and duties of which shall be prescribed by law. The state superintendent of public instruction shall be ex officio member of said board.

SECTION 3. PUBLIC SCHOOL PERMANENT ENDOWMENT FUND TO REMAIN INTACT. The public school permanent endowment fund of the state shall forever remain inviolate and intact; the earnings of the public school permanent endowment fund shall be deposited into the public school earnings reserve fund and distributed in the maintenance of the schools of the state, and among the counties and school districts of the state in such manner as may be prescribed by law. No part of the public school permanent endowment fund principal shall ever be transferred to any other fund, or used or appropriated except as herein provided. Funds shall not be appropriated by the legislature from the public school earnings reserve fund except as follows: the legislature may appropriate from the public school earnings reserve fund administrative costs incurred in managing the assets of the public school endowment including, but not limited to, real property and monetary assets. The state treasurer shall be the custodian of these funds, and the same shall be securely and profitably invested as may be by law directed. As defined and prescribed by law, the state shall supply losses to the public school permanent endowment fund, excepting losses on moneys allocated from the public school earnings reserve fund.

SECTION 4. PUBLIC SCHOOL PERMANENT ENDOWMENT FUND DEFINED. The public school permanent endowment fund of the state shall consist of the proceeds from the sale of such lands as have heretofore been granted, or may hereafter be granted, to the state by the general government, known as school lands, and those granted in lieu of such; lands acquired by gift or grant from any person or corporation under any law or grant of the general government; and of all other grants of land or money made to the state from the general government for general educational purposes, or where no other special purpose is indicated in such grant; all estates or distributive shares of estates that may escheat to the state; all unclaimed shares and dividends of any corporation incorporated under the laws of the state; and all other grants, gifts, devises, or bequests made to the state for general educational purposes; and amounts allocated from the public school earnings reserve fund. Provided however, that proceeds from the sale of school lands may be deposited into a land bank fund to be used to acquire other lands within the state for the benefit of endowment beneficiaries. If those proceeds are not used to acquire other lands within a time provided by the legislature, the proceeds shall be deposited into the public school permanent endowment fund along with any earnings on the proceeds.

SECTION 5. SECTARIAN APPROPRIATIONS PROHIBITED. Neither the legislature nor any county, city, town, township, school district, or other public corporation, shall ever make any appropriation, or pay from any public fund or moneys whatever, anything in aid of any church or sectarian or religious society, or for any sectarian or religious purpose, or to help support or sustain any school, academy, seminary, college, university or other literary or scientific institution, controlled by any church, sectarian or religious denomination whatsoever; nor shall any grant or donation of land, money or other personal property ever be made by the state, or any such public corporation, to any church or for any sectarian or religious purpose; provided, however, that a health facilities authority, as specifically authorized and empowered by law, may finance or refinance any private, not for profit, health facilities owned or operated by any church or sectarian religious society, through loans, leases, or other transactions.

SECTION 6. RELIGIOUS TEST AND TEACHING IN SCHOOL PROHIBITED. No religious test or qualification shall ever be required of any person as a condition of admission into any public educational institution of the state, either as teacher or student; and no teacher or student of any such institution shall ever be required to attend or participate in any religious service whatever. No sectarian or religious tenets or doctrines shall ever be taught in the public schools, nor shall any distinction or classification of pupils be made on account of race or color. No books, papers, tracts or documents of a political, sectarian or denominational character shall be used or introduced in any schools established under the provisions of this article, nor shall any teacher or any district receive any of the public school moneys in which the schools have not been taught in accordance with the provisions of this article.

SECTION 7. STATE BOARD OF LAND COMMISSIONERS. The governor, superintendent of public instruction, secretary of state, attorney general and state controller shall constitute the state board of land commissioners, who shall have the direction, control and disposition of the public lands of the state, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law.

SECTION 8. LOCATION AND DISPOSITION OF PUBLIC LANDS. It shall be the duty of the state board of land commissioners to provide for the location, protection, sale or rental of all the lands heretofore, or which may hereafter be granted to or acquired by the state by or from the general government, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law, and in such manner as will secure the maximum long term financial return to the institution to which granted or to the state if not specifically granted; provided, that no state lands shall be sold for less than the appraised price. No law shall ever be passed by the legislature granting any privileges to persons who may have settled upon any such public lands, subsequent to the survey thereof by the general government, by which the amount to be derived by the sale, or other disposition of such lands, shall be diminished, directly or indirectly. The legislature shall, at the earliest practicable period, provide by law that the general grants of land made by congress to the state shall be judiciously located and carefully preserved and held in trust, subject to disposal at public auction for the use and benefit of the respective object for which said grants of land were made, and the legislature shall provide for the sale of said lands from time to time and for the sale of timber on all state lands and for the faithful application of the proceeds thereof in accordance with the terms of said grants; provided, that not to exceed one hundred sections of state lands shall be sold in any one year, and to be sold in subdivisions of not to exceed three hundred and twenty acres of land to any one individual, company or corporation. The legislature shall have power to authorize the state board of land commissioners to exchange granted or acquired lands of the state on an equal value basis for other lands under agreement with the United States, local units of government, corporations, companies, individuals, or combinations thereof.

SECTION 9. COMPULSORY ATTENDANCE AT SCHOOLS. The legislature may require by law that every child shall attend the public schools of the state, throughout the period between the ages of six and eighteen years, unless educated by other means, as provided by law.

SECTION 10. STATE UNIVERSITY – LOCATION, REGENTS, TUTITION, FEES AND LANDS. The location of the University of Idaho, as established by existing laws, is hereby confirmed. All the rights, immunities, franchises, and endowments, heretofore granted thereto by the territory of Idaho are hereby perpetuated unto the said university. The regents shall have the general supervision of the university, and the control and direction of all the funds of, and appropriations to, the university, under such regulations as may be prescribed by law. The regents may impose rates of tuition and fees on all students enrolled in the university as authorized by law. No university lands shall be sold for less than ten dollars per acre, and in subdivisions not to exceed one hundred and sixty acres, to any one person, company or corporation.

SECTION 11. INVESTING PERMANENT ENDOWMENT FUNDS. The permanent endowment funds other than funds arising from the disposition of university lands belonging to the state, may be invested in United States, state, county, city, village, or school district bonds or state warrants or other investments in which a trustee is authorized to invest pursuant to state law.

 

Categories Justice

The Kerner Commission Report, 50 Years Later: An Agenda for theFuture

By dianeravitch
March 1, 2018 //
52

 

On Tuesday, I went to D.C. for a meeting to discuss the state of civil rights in the half-century since the release of the Kerner Commission Report. The nation was rocked by civil disorders and riots in the early 1960: cities like Detroit and Newark experienced devastating clashes between angry black people and police, and many of our cities were in flames. President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed a commission to analyze the causes of the riots and report back. The commission acted expeditiously and released a devastating indictment of American society, memorably warning that unless we acted to reverse and remedy the root causes, America would be two societies, separate and unequal.

The root causes of the violence, the commission concluded, were racism, poverty, segregation, and police brutality. President Johnson was not pleased with the report and did not endorse its conclusions, but the report was on target.

The sole survivor of the Commission, Senator Fred Harris, and his ally, Alan Curtis, now president of the Milton Eisenhower Foundation (founded by the public-spirited brother of President Dwight D. Eisenhower), organized a fifty-year retrospective devoted to the Kerner Commission Report. I was invited to write a chapter about what has changed in education over the past 50 years. Others wrote about jobs, the economy, mass incarceration and policing, housing, and the other issues raised by the report. You can read the essays in a book just out called “Healing Our Divided Society.” It is an agenda for a better future.

Senator Harris, by the way, ran for president in 1972 and 1976. His campaign slogan was “The issue is privilege.” He didn’t win, obviously, but the issue is still privilege.

The theme of the meeting Tuesday was, we are all in this together. Whatever our race or religion, we must work together for a better society where everyone—everyone—has a decent standard of living, good housing, good medical care, good education, and just treatment.

Harris and Curtis wrote an article in the New York Times summarizing the findings of the 50-year retrospective. It may be behind a pay wall. I hope not. The graphics tell the story. Progress, then backsliding.

The story in education is well documented: a sharp decline in segregation, then the courts release school districts from court orders to desegregate, followed by a reversion to segregated schools. The problem is national, not limited to the south. When court orders end, segregation resumes. States never under court order have intense segregation. Right now, the most segregated schools in the nation are in California, followed by Texas, New York, Maryland, Nevada, and Connecticut. When you consider that only 13% of the population is black, the concentration of black students in majority black schools is shocking.

Over the past fifty years, inequality has deepened:

“The disheartening percentage of Americans living in extreme poverty — that is, living on less than half the poverty threshold — has increased since the 1970s. The overall poverty rate remains about the same today as it was 50 years ago; the total number of poor people has increased from over 25 million to well over 40 million, more than the population of California.

“Meanwhile, the rich have profited at the expense of most working Americans. Today, the top 1 percent receive 52 percent of all new income. Rich people are healthier and live longer. They get a better education, which produces greater gains in income. And their greater economic power translates into greater political power.”

Mass incarceration of poor black and brown people has become a new normal:

”At the time of the Kerner Commission, there were about 200,000 people behind bars. Today, there are about 1.4 million. “Zero tolerance” policing aimed at African-Americans and Latinos has failed, while our sentencing policies (for example, on crack versus powder cocaine) continue to racially discriminate. Mass incarceration has become a kind of housing policy for the poor.”

What have we learned in fifty years? We know what works, and our government doesn’t do it.

“Policies based on ideology instead of evidence. Privatization and funding cuts instead of expanding effective programs.

“We’re living with the human costs of these failed approaches. The Kerner ethos — “Everyone does better when everyone does better” — has been, for many decades, supplanted by its opposite: “You’re on your own.”

“Today more people oppose the immorality of poverty and rising inequality, including middle-class Americans who realize their interests are much closer to Kerner priorities than to those of the very rich.

“We have the experience and knowledge to scale up what works. Now we need the “new will” that the Kerner Commission concluded was equally important.”

The article then contrasts what doesn’t work with what does work.

In education, what doesn’t work: Racial segregation, vouchers, charters, and school choice.

What does work: Racial integration, investments in public school equity, quality teachers, early childhood education, community schools and other proven models

This report updates an epochal one. The Trump administration won’t read it or act on it. If we want a better future, a better society, a real commitment to equality of opportunity and the realization of the American dream for all, this new report is a great starting point.

 

 

Categories Education Reform, Equity, Justice, Poverty, Segregation

The Richest People in America Should Pay Higher Taxes

By dianeravitch
November 21, 2017 //
52

Here is a list of the Richest people in America, compiled by Forbes.

Note that the Koch brothers, Charles and David, together have more money than Bill Gates ($84 Billion.)

Here is Forbes list of America’s richest families.

The two lists are confusing when seen together because the Gates family and the Bezos family are not on the second list but families with far less billions are.

Oh, well.

During the Eisenhower administration—the 1950s—the highest marginal tax rate was 91% for those at the very top. There was less income inequality then than now. The average CEO made about 20 Times more than the average worker. Today, the average CEO makes 270 times more than the average worker.

Here is a valuable article showing the decline in the progressivity of income tax rates from 1960-to 2004. In 1960, there were many more tax brackets, and those at the top paid a rate of 71.4%. Today they pay about 35%, not including loopholes and deductions.

Income inequality underlies much of the social and economic misery in our society.

Read “The Spirit Level,” by Richard Wilkinson, et al, which makes the case that greater equality creates happier, healthier societies.

Obviously the Republicans are not going to make a turn towards increasing the progressivity of taxes.

But it is a goal we should work towards.

Categories Billionaires, Inequality, Justice

At the NPE Conference, Dr. Charles Foster Johnson Explains How Pastors for Texas Kids Fought Against Vouchers and for Funding Public Schools

By dianeravitch
November 17, 2017 //
2

I forgot to include the link on this post, so I am reposting.

This was one of the best keynote speeches from the fourth annual conference of the Network for Public Education in Oakland. They were moving, inspiring, powerful.

Please watch Dr. Charles Foster Johnson of Pastors for Texas Kids explain how he got involved in the fight for public education and why men and women of faith communities must support public schools and protect separation of church and state.

Charlie Johnson is a wonderful speaker. He is working with his peers in other states, including Oklahoma, Arkansas, Arizona, and Indiana. When he finished talking, he was swarmed by people from the South and Midwest, seeking his help and advice.

You will enjoy and learn from his presentation.

Categories Accountability, Budget Cuts, Citizenship, Civil Rights, Democracy, Funding, Justice, Religion, Separation of church and state, Supporting public schools, Texas
« Older Entries
Newer Entries »