Other viewpoints: This one from the Party for Socialism and Liberation. Remember what The Beastie Boys taught us: “You gotta fight for your right to party!”
You wake up late for school - man you don't wanna go
You ask you mom, "Please?" - but she still says, "No!"
You missed two classes - and no homework
But your teacher preaches class like you're some kind of jerk
You gotta fight for your right to party.
By: David Feldman | PSL Web.comWednesday, June 9, 2010 -- End the attacks on education! This past school year was a tough one for Los Angeles Unified School District employees, and next year promises to be even rougher. LAUSD plans to shut down 200 classes for disabled students, adversely affecting the most vulnerable of the district’s students. One campus that specializes in serving the disabled will be closed. The aim of the district-wide budget cuts is to close a $628 million deficit LAUSD currently has on the backs of working-class students and their families. The cuts will increase class sizes, eliminate many art and music programs, close libraries and lay off over 1,000 district employees. The district is saving money by limiting services to the children it is supposed to educate. Despite the fact the federal government has enough resources to spend trillions on imperialist war and bank bailouts, the federal government only pays 17 percent of the cost of providing disabled students with an education. For many years, LAUSD neglected special education students, but the district was forced through a high-profile lawsuit in 1993 to accept an independent monitor. Since then, some gains have been made. There are more qualified special education teachers than there used to be, staff is better trained in meeting the needs of disabled students, and more special equipment has been purchased. The rights that have been gained on behalf of the disabled are due to decades of struggle by educators and activists. Next year, budget cuts will force thousands of children into larger classes, where they will get less attention for their individual needs. Teachers will now be unfairly put in the position of having to provide for the needs of significantly larger groups of children with a wide range of ages and disabilities. Special education teachers will be told to do a much tougher job with fewer resources. Teachers in special education are already in high demand due to the high turnover rate and tough nature of the work. Many students will also have to take much longer commutes to school, since LAUSD is cutting busing for disabled students by $7.4 million. Parents can supposedly challenge district decisions through “due process” procedures, but many of the parents who send their children to district schools are either poor or undocumented, and unable to participate in this process. Working-class parents will suffer the most because of the cuts. In recent public hearings, hundreds of parents of special education students have spoken out against the district’s plans. We need a united movement of parents and teachers to defend special education and public education as a whole. To defeat those who aim to divide the unions from the general public, we must build a people’s movement that demands that money be spent on education and public needs, not war and bailing out capitalists. |
Los Angeles Unified School District slashes services for the disabled Wednesday, June 9, 2010 -- End the attacks on education! This past school year was a tough one for Los Angeles Unified School District employees, and next year promises to be even rougher. LAUSD plans to shut down 200 classes for disabled students, adversely affecting the most vulnerable of the district’s students. One campus that specializes in serving the disabled will be closed. The aim of the district-wide budget cuts is to close a $628 million deficit LAUSD currently has on the backs of working-class students and their families. The cuts will increase class sizes, eliminate many art and music programs, close libraries and lay off over 1,000 district employees. The district is saving money by limiting services to the children it is supposed to educate. Despite the fact the federal government has enough resources to spend trillions on imperialist war and bank bailouts, the federal government only pays 17 percent of the cost of providing disabled students with an education. For many years, LAUSD neglected special education students, but the district was forced through a high-profile lawsuit in 1993 to accept an independent monitor. Since then, some gains have been made. There are more qualified special education teachers than there used to be, staff is better trained in meeting the needs of disabled students, and more special equipment has been purchased. The rights that have been gained on behalf of the disabled are due to decades of struggle by educators and activists. Next year, budget cuts will force thousands of children into larger classes, where they will get less attention for their individual needs. Teachers will now be unfairly put in the position of having to provide for the needs of significantly larger groups of children with a wide range of ages and disabilities. Special education teachers will be told to do a much tougher job with fewer resources. Teachers in special education are already in high demand due to the high turnover rate and tough nature of the work. Many students will also have to take much longer commutes to school, since LAUSD is cutting busing for disabled students by $7.4 million. Parents can supposedly challenge district decisions through “due process” procedures, but many of the parents who send their children to district schools are either poor or undocumented, and unable to participate in this process. Working-class parents will suffer the most because of the cuts. In recent public hearings, hundreds of parents of special education students have spoken out against the district’s plans. We need a united movement of parents and teachers to defend special education and public education as a whole. To defeat those who aim to divide the unions from the general public, we must build a people’s movement that demands that money be spent on education and public needs, not war and bailing out capitalists. |
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