LA school workers rally against cuts!
Los Angeles, CA – Thousands of spirited Los Angles Unified School District (LAUSD) workers rallied on May 7 to protest proposed cutbacks and layoffs by Superintendent Alberto Carvalho.
In front of LAUSD headquarters, the educator’s union, United Teachers of Los Angles (UTLA) and SEIU 99 school workers voiced a united strong message of “no cutbacks and no layoffs” that will hurt students.
Ainelda Gonzalez, a Miramonte teacher and UTLA chapter chair stated, “Cutbacks will hurt our students with cuts to counselor hours and cuts to teacher aides, who are vital in supporting student learning and development.
At the rally, UTLA President Cecily Myart-Cruz gave a strong message saying what LAUSD workers won in 2023 in the three-day strike will not be cut!
UTLA reported in their bulletin, “By unilaterally cutting school-site budgets, Carvalho is creating chaos as schools scramble to save as many positions as possible. With a projected $6.27 billion in reserves, Carvalho and the district are trying to undermine what we fought for out on the picket lines and won — class size reductions and increased staffing to support our students’ mental health, well-being, and academic achievement.”
The rally was attended by many community organizations, including Reclaim Our Schools, a coalition advocating for public education. A delegation of Centro CSO attended and joined the loud chanting, “No cutbacks!”
Centro CSO members circulated a flier on our campaign to stop the construction of a large Extera charter school in an East Los Angeles residential community. This project would cause pollution, traffic and parking problems. An appeal hearing is set for September 17 at the LA County board of supervisors meeting on a motion by Supervisor Hilda Solis. Centro CSO encourages people to attend and send public comments opposing the Extera construction project.
Centro CSO is a long-time strong ally of UTLA and advocates for public education against privatization by charter schools.