Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/32596
¿Por Qué No? ¡Sí Se Puede! B Y C TA P RESIDENT D A VID A. S ANCHEZ say “Thank you” to those of you who planned events and took to the streets in your commu- nities to let your friends and neighbors know how state budget cuts have been negatively im- pacting your students. At the end of a busy school year, you rallied together with parents and other education, community and labor partners to raise awareness about the need for lawmakers to approve temporary tax exten- sions and prevent further cuts to schools, col- leges and essential public services. And your efforts didn’t go unnoticed. More S than 1,200 articles ran in newspapers through- out California. Reports of our collective action played in millions of homes every day as part of TV news coverage — including a package on the CBS nightly news with Katie Couric. The State of Emergency website informed more than 10,000 visitors of what was happen- ing. And thousands of Facebook and Twitter followers were active throughout the week. We changed the conversation that week, making sure that the impact of state budget cuts to schools, colleges and our communities was front and center in people’s minds. As many of you were engaging in local ac- tivities, a group of nearly 500 CTA member volunteers made their way to Sacramento to participate in a week of action at the state Cap- itol designed to keep our concerns on the minds of our lawmakers. The “Capitol Insid- ers,” as they came to be known, took over the statehouse. I was honored to be part of this group. We held press conferences, teach-ins and grade-ins; we met with legislators and tes- tified before the Senate Education Committee, killing three destructive bills; we took our message to the streets with leafleting; we ral- lied in the rotunda and held daily sit-ins in the Capitol; and we placed 400 empty chairs at the base of the Capitol steps, each one represent- ing 100 educators who have been laid off in the past three years. In an act of civil disobedience, some educa- tors and students refused to abandon their de- mands for temporary tax extensions and stayed beyond the Capitol’s official closing time on Monday and on Thursday. I was part of the group that refused to leave on Thursday. ¿Por Qué No? ¡Sí Se Puede! [Yes we can! Why not?], words inspired by César Chávez, encourage us to remember that, together, we can achieve great things. 4 California Educator | MAY 2011 ometimes when you take a stand it means standing your ground. I revisit- ed this lesson during CTA’s State of Emergency week of action. First, let me Earlier that day, Republican leaders had re- leased a budget proposal, claiming it protected funding for public education. It was an insult- ing proposal because it was crafted using the same budget gimmicks that got our state into the financial mess it is in. In addition, it gutted the funding for the Quality Education Invest- ment Act — the very program that is proven to help at-risk schools improve student achieve- ment. This wasn’t protecting public education. So I went to see Senate Republican leader Bob Dutton and Assembly Republican leader Connie Conway that evening to let them know this proposal wasn’t good enough for the stu- dents of California. And when the time came for the Capitol to close for the evening and I was asked to leave, I decided to stand my ground. It was a very personal and emotional moment for me. I wasn’t quite sure what would happen, but I felt strongly that the time had come to take bolder action. I was not alone when I refused to leave Dutton’s office — 13 educators stood with me, and 14 others stood their ground outside of Conway’s office. Each of us was arrested and led out in a peaceful protest. We spent that night in a Sacramento jail. I found myself thinking about my students and what would happen to them if we didn’t do all we could to make a change in their future. I hoped that my action, as well as all of our local advocacy efforts, would be enough to awaken lawmakers and compel them to put California students and our state’s future before selfish partisan politics. In the weeks following our week of action, we’ve seen increased support for passing the tax extensions throughout the state, but we’ve yet to see legislators take a vote on them. That means our work isn’t over. We need two addi- tional Republican votes in the Senate and two votes in the Assembly to pass the extensions and keep deeper cuts away from schools and colleges. Please join me in keeping the pres- sure on California legislators to do the right thing, finish their jobs, and pass the tax exten- sions our state so desperately needs. They owe it to our students and the future of our state. EDITOR IN CHIEF Malaika Costello-Dougherty STAFF WRITER Sherry Posnick-Goodwin CTA WEB EDITOR Karyn Ferrera Donhoff CTA WEB EDITOR Tiffany Hasker EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Craig Hamilton CTA ELECTED OFFICERS PRESIDENT David A. Sanchez VICE PRESIDENT Dean E. Vogel SECRETARY-TREASURER Gail M. Mendes BOARD OF DIRECTORS Larry Allen, E. Toby Boyd, Donald L. Bridge, Tyrone V. Cabell, Mikki Cichocki, Elana Davidson, Don Dawson, Dana Dillon, David Goldberg, Jim Groth, Eric C. Heins, Marty G. Meeden, George Melendez, Theresa Montaño, Mary Rose Ortega, Cynthia Peña, Jim Rogers, Bonnie Shatun, Marc Sternberger, Michael Stone, Curtis Washington EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Carolyn Doggett ASSOCIATE EXEC. DIRECTOR Rebecca Zoglman COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER Jonathan Goldman CONTRIBUTORS Brad Barnes, Scott Buschman, Dave Crosland, Len Feldman, Bill Guy, Craig Hamilton, Ken Johnson, Dina Martin, Sheri Miyamoto, Diane Morte, Mike Myslinski, Kamran Nasser, Edit Ruano, Edward Sibby, Frank Wells EDITORIAL INFORMATION California Educator is published for the information and edification of its members. The editorial philoso- phy is governed by the policies of CTA. Articles and advertising reflect that philosophy. Letters to the editor may be sent to editor@cta.org. Publication of advertising in the California Educa- tor does not indicate CTA approval of the product or of the companies that purchase advertising. Advertising rate card and information is available from WebSolutions, Media Division, 5666 Spruce Harbor Court, Las Vegas, NV 89122 (702) 838-3434; FAX (702) 838-3355 CTA/NEA membership dues for the fiscal year, Sept. 1-Aug. 31, are $805, including a $20 voluntary contribution. 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