Open invitation to the next GEM meeting

Join teachers and parents at GEM's next meeting — Tuesday, July 14th — to discuss how local communities can stop Bloomberg's charter schools from muscling into existing public schools without parental input or oversight.

That's what mayoral control has given New York City — autocracy, thuggery, and marginalization.

It's happening across the city, from Brooklyn to the Bronx, and many more communities will have to fight for their public schools before this mayor is through. He's the apex of a corporate business class wielding way too much power in New York.


As John Lawhead wrote a couple of months ago:

Not every threatened school community rallied to defend its school but many did, including M.S. 399 in Bronx, I.S./P.S. 72 in East New York, P.S. 150 in Brownsville, P.S. 144 and P.S. 241 in Harlem and Louis D. Brandeis High School on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The local daily newspapers and most of the broadcast media ignored the ruckus. Participants and supporters shared video clips of rallies on Youtube and the education blogs.
(See Ednotes for full article.)

And if you haven't already, read Juan Gonzalez's article here about how Eva Moskowitz's moving crew tried installing her Harlem Success Academy into P.S. 123 without warning a week ago:

They saw the sudden arrival of the workmen Thursday as a signal that the discussion was over. So several of them rushed upstairs to confront the strangers, blocked the doorways and occupied the rooms.

"I told them, you're not taking my books and furniture out of here," said one teacher.

Police were called in. After an hour-long standoff, an official from school headquarters called to say that no one had authorized Moskowitz's movers to be in the school.

The workmen then vacated the building, leaving furniture and boxes strewn in the hallways and piled high in a corner of the gym.

Afterward, Harlem leaders labeled it a sneak attack.

Parents and teachers have already mounted a protest — see it here. And they'll do it again at 8:30 tomorrow morning, and again if they need to. You can join them.

If you teach in the city, or if you're raising your kids in the city, now's the time to get involved. Check out the GEM sidebar for events that need your support, and read about them more completely in our monthly Action Calendar posts.

Next GEM meeting
Tuesday, July 14th at 4:30 p.m.
CUNY Grad Center Room 5414 (or the room next door)
(34th Street and 5th Avenue)
Bring ID.