Red for Ed: Fighting Back Against Attacks on Our Public Schools
Red for Ed: Fighting Back Against Attacks on Our Public Schools
Greetings, MTA members,
This morning we joined members in Revere as they walked in, cloaked in “Red for Ed,” to demonstrate our commitment to our public schools, our members and their right to teach, and our students – all of them – and their right to learn. We are so proud to see all of the photos and videos coming in from your walk-ins all over the state! Today you showed your collective strength as educators and community members! Never forget that you have built the finest public education system in the country, and the public trusts you more than anyone else on issues relating to our public schools and colleges.
And the Day of Action is not over yet. Please join us and your union siblings with AFT for a virtual town hall tonight at 7 p.m. Speakers will address how we continue to fight back together against threats to federal education funding and protect our students, schools and communities.
Today is one step in the fightback against what is coming from Washington D.C. It is about the funding cuts. It is about the threat to our immigrant students. It is about the war on racial justice. It is about the demonization of our LGBTQ+ students for who they are.
It is also, fundamentally, about a war on the very idea of public education as the foundation of democracy. That may sound overstated, but this is happening before our eyes – eliminating the federal Department of Education, making a frontal attack on the right to teach our accurate history and celebrate the diversity of this nation, and promising to rapidly replace funding for public education with vouchers – backpacks full of cash for some, usually the privileged, to take from public schools and deliver them to private schools. That’s just the beginning.
The idea of today’s walk-ins is to bring us back to our beloved schools and the people who make them work, and the parents and community members who support them. This applies here in “blue” Massachusetts, but it also applies in many red states. Public education is under attack. And today we showed that we “stand up and fight back!”
MTA Events, Opportunities and Solidarity Actions
Social Security Fairness Act Update
Good news! According to an update on its website, the Social Security Administration is beginning to pay retroactive benefits. Monthly benefit payments to people affected by the repeal of the Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset will begin soon. People who expect to receive a retroactive benefit as a result of the repeal should get a one-time payment, deposited into the bank account that SSA has on file, by the end of March, according to the agency. This retroactive payment will cover increases going back to January 2024. Because Social Security benefits are paid one month behind, most affected recipients will begin receiving their new monthly benefit amount in April 2025.
Go to massteacher.org/wepgpo for an expanded explanation.
Time to Register: ESP Conference Where: Wellsworth Hotel, Southbridge When: April 5 and 6
Registration for the Education Support Professionals Conference is open. This year’s conference has an all-new location and schedule. Join fellow ESPs for a plenary with Nick Juravich, MTA member and author of “Para Power: How Paraprofessional Labor Changed Education.” Enjoy the great workshops and join us for a special dinner as we honor MTA’s ESP of the Year. Learn more and register.
Day of Action in Solidarity With Immigrant Communities Where: Boston City Hall Plaza When: Wednesday, March 5, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The ACLU, MIRA Coalition and the Boston City Council are coordinating a Day of Action rally to stand up and fight back for immigrants' rights and a future where all community members are free from fear and isolation. The event will coincide with the testimony of Boston Mayor Michelle Wu before a U.S. congressional committee. Click here for more information.
Fair Share Amendment Impact
How is the Fair Share Amendment positively impacting your life, family or work? Please share your Fair Share story with the Raise Up Massachusetts coalition, which is collecting stories about the ways in which the amendment is making a difference for state residents.
Political Education
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is leading the fight against Elon Musk and the oligarchy that is taking hold of our government… and he’s taking that fight out into red states. Sanders is modeling what we have to do, which is to fight clearly and consistently for working people. And this needs to happen right here in Massachusetts where almost 37% of voters, and many in working-class cities, voted for President Trump.
Some who aren’t speaking out enough are college and university presidents. Michael Roth, president of Wesleyan University, urges college leaders to be less frightened and more bold.
In solidarity,
Max and Deb