February 16! Defend Public Education in Oakland: Endorse and Attend

The following is being organized by a broad coalition
of labor, community, civil rights and interfaith
leaders initiated by the Oakland Education Assocition.
PLEASE E-MAIL YOUR ORGANIZATION/ INDIVIDUAL
ENDORSEMENT TO educatorsandcommunity [at] yahoo.com

Please forward widely!

Organize to Defend Public Education in Oakland!

Community Meeting: Wednesday, Feb. 16 – 5-8 PM
Cox Elementary School – Cafeterium
(9860 Sunnyside Street at 98th Avenue – Take I-580 to
98th Ave)
Dinner and Childcare will be provided

Restore Democratic Control of the Schools to the
No Privatization! No Transformation to Charter Schools!
Community of Oakland! End the Takeover!
No Education Cuts! Stop the Layoffs and Union Busting!
Fully Fund Public Education! Make Corporate Oakland
Pay Its Fair Share!

Teachers, students, parents and community members are
in a fight now for the future of Oakland’s youth and
our public schools. Against the wishes of the
community, the unelected state administrator Randolph
Ward is moving to close six more schools this year and
convert up to thirteen Oakland elementary schools into
charter schools, mostly run by private management
companies.

Profits always come first when private management and
public service are mixed: look at the disaster in
health care. Ward’s budget already means less for
remedial reading, English, toilet paper, books and
pencils even in some of his “new small schools”. Now
he is planning to send mass layoff notices to teachers
and other school workers, leading to larger class
sizes for students and dirtier, dangerous schools. He
plans to subcontract out food service and other union
jobs to non-union companies and continue closing
school libraries and cutting other essential services.


A coalition of forces to defeat the takeover, fully
fund public education and stop charters and all the
attacks on public education is being built across
labor, civil rights, interfaith, and community
organizations. We need your support to build the
campaign that can express the aspirations of the
people of Oakland for democracy and equality in
education. We can mobilize the overwhelming opposition
of the city against these attacks. The time to fight
is now! Together we will win!

For More Information Contact OEA President Ben Visnick
at (510) 763-4020 x 15