Radical #RedForEd Movement Rallies Virginia Teachers’ Higher Pay Demand

Virginia teachers donned #RedForEd T-shirts this week as they demanded higher pay and more funding for public schools in protests at the state Capitol in Richmond.

It was great to be with a few thousand close friends as we were #RedForEd! Our students, their families, our schools are depending on us to lead a future that respects the whole child, the whole community and respects the men and women who know the names of the students @VEA4Kids pic.twitter.com/6dHpI9szvi

— Lily Eskelsen García (@Lily_NEA) January 29, 2019

“The rally is the latest Red for Ed action in a series of events ranging from the teacher walkouts in West Virginia, Arizona, and Oklahoma, to the recently concluded L.A. teachers strike,” said the National Education Association (NEA) – the nation’s largest teachers’ union – in its media outlet, NEA Today.

Virginia Educators United (VEU) joined NEA President Lily Eskelsen Garcia and American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten on the front steps of the Capitol:

Lily Eskelsen Garcia NEA and Randi Weingarten AFT on the front lines in Richmond, Virginia today. Standing up for #PublicSchools.#RedForEd #red4edva #TBATs #FullFunding @Lily_NEA @NEABATCaucus @NEAToday @rweingarten @AFTBATcaucus @AFTunion pic.twitter.com/bYFXLsd4y2

— Nancy Osborne (@NancyOsborne180) January 29, 2019

Thousands of @VEA4Kids educators rallied today to tell lawmakers it’s time to make kids and public education the top priority in VA. Joined by @Lily_NEA and @PrincessRMoss, they went #RedforEd for adequate funding, better pay and more opportunities for students. #FundOurFuture pic.twitter.com/TAv9TVgoJt

— NEA (@NEAToday) January 29, 2019

The #RedForEd movement launched in Arizona last year, where Marxist music teacher Noah Karvelis announced, “Teaching is political”:

https://twitter.com/Noah__Karvelis/status/935325080703209472

Last year, we studied the intersectionality of Lauryn Hill's life/work. Then, wrote raps centered upon feminist issues. Several of the 8th-grade women then extended the work/consciousness into a petition against the sexism of the school dress code. #HipHopEd

— Noah Karvelis (@Noah__Karvelis) February 28, 2018

Two personal favorite parts of #RedForEd so far:

1. Seeing educators so empowered.

2. The incredible discussions this has started with my students on workers’ rights, labor movements, civil disobedience, and fighting for necessary social change.

— Noah Karvelis (@Noah__Karvelis) March 25, 2018

VEU is using the radical #RedForEd campaign, with Marxist underpinnings, to spark similar action.

Virginia Democrat Gov. Ralph Northam has offered a five percent teacher raise – rather than a planned three percent hike – which Republican leaders in the GOP-led House of Delegates said they support, according to the Associated Press.

Following a strike in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) under the #RedForEd banner, however, United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) ultimately reached an agreement with the school district last week that included only minor concessions to the union:

Solidarity with striking teachers in LA! The teachers fighting nationwide for their students and schools give me such tremendous hope! #RedForEd #UTLA https://t.co/JL0vpr6hvR

— Noah Karvelis (@Noah__Karvelis) January 16, 2019

Breitbart News reported:

The deal includes a 6 percent salary increase for teachers — the same amount the district had offered — as well as “meaningful class size reductions” without a specific cap, LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner told reporters at a press conference with union leaders and L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti at City Hall.

In keeping with #RedForEd, UTLA President Alex Caputo-Pearl boasted the deal entailed “social justice” provisions that included protections for students against “racial profiling.”

“UTLA’s strategy to win was based on bargaining for the common good, which brings demands in collective bargaining that benefit the entire community, not just union members,” said NEA Today.

The union media outlet counts among UTLA’s wins “plans to increase green space and the end of ‘random searches,’ which send many students of color into the school-to-prison pipeline. Additionally, the school district will provide a dedicated hotline and attorney for immigrant families and will collaborate with UTLA for other services.”