Arizona youth occupy boardroom: ‘Save Ethnic Studies’
By
Paul Teitelbaum
Tucson, Ariz.
Published May 5, 2011 8:31 PM
A racist plan to denigrate a popular Ethnic Studies program in the Tucson
schools has aroused resistance from a broad movement spearheaded by young
people.
The Tucson Unified School District Board had scheduled a special meeting for 6
p.m. on April 26 to vote on a plan board member Mark Stegeman intended to
introduce to reclassify the district’s Ethnic Studies program from the
Core Curriculum to Electives.
Currently, Mexican-American history as well as other Ethnic Studies classes are
part of the Core Curriculum and carry equal value in terms of academic
requirements. Under Stegeman’s plan every student would have to fulfill
the Core requirement of Eurocentric history but could “elect” to
take a Mexican-American history class in addition, if they desired.
The TUSD board intends to have the district comply with the racist right-wing
agenda and the anti-Ethnic Studies law HB 2281, which went into effect on Jan
1. This would relegate Ethnic Studies to second-class status in the curriculum
and threaten its future removal.
By 5:30 p.m., the lobby of the TUSD building at 1010 E. Tenth Street was filled
to capacity. The crowd of hundreds of Ethnic Studies supporters spilled out
into the street in front of the building. At 5:45 p.m. the doors to the meeting
room were opened, and the room was immediately filled.
A few minutes before the 6 p.m. meeting was to begin, nine youths catapulted to
the podium and chained themselves to the nine board member chairs. The group
unveiled a banner reading “The Youth School Board” from the podium
and led the crowd in the room and the street outside in chants of “Our
education is under attack. What do we do? Fight back!”
Other students in the room read a list of 10 demands, including an end to all
racist, anti-immigrant, anti-Indigenous policies; the removal of the Arizona
State attorney general, superintendent of schools and governor from their
offices; and local control of education.
Board Superintendent John Pedicone was forced to cancel the meeting. The
Stegeman plan was never introduced and no vote was taken.
The following morning Pedicone announced that he had turned over video of the
meeting to the Tucson Police Department for review in an attempt to file
criminal charges against the youths and any adults who supported them.
The next few days were filled with racist rants and calls for retribution
against these courageous youth from local right-wing radio talk shows and media
outlets. Local immigrant-rights activist Isabel Garcia, who was in the TUSD
meeting room at the time of the takeover, was singled out and accused of
instigating the “student riot.”
This media attack was orchestrated very much the same way as the attack against
local sheriff Clarence Dupnik after he blamed the right wing in the wake of the
Jan. 8 shootings and attempted assassination of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.
Pedicone also published an op-ed piece in the local newspaper condemning the
students and further insinuating that adults and the Ethnic Studies program
itself were to blame for the April 26 takeover. He also announced that the TUSD
Board would meet again on May 3 to discuss the Stegeman plan. Pedicone is
tripling the number of cops at the meeting and arming them, as well as bringing
in metal detectors and mandating searches of every person entering the TUSD
Building.
These tactics have not fazed the students or their supporters. Tucson’s
May Day rally was centered on support for the students and Ethnic Studies. A
wide range of community organizations are working to fill the streets on May 3
and fight back against this attack on the fundamental right to comprehensive,
quality education.
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