Detroit Teachers Threaten Another Mass Sickout Thursday
DETROIT (WWJ) - A teacher's group in Detroit is threatening another large-scale sickout on Thursday.
The Detroit Strike to Win Committee, in a release sent out Wednesday evening, said during a phone conference with "more than 100 teachers" it was unanimously decided to shut down the city's schools again Thursday. The group says protests will continue and a meeting on strike demands will also be held.
"Thursday night's meeting will vote on strike demands, including an end to Emergency Management, no more charters, return EAA schools to DPS, restore democratic rights to the people of Detroit, lower class size, raise teacher pay, provide adequate books and supplies, restore art, music and phys ed in all our schools, and more," Steve Conn, former Detroit Federation of Teachers President, said in a statement. "The struggle will continue until we have won justice for the people of Detroit."
Student and parent organizers also joined the telephone conference and described their ongoing efforts to broaden the teachers protests to include all Detroiters, especially the young people.
No word yet from Detroit Public Schools officials on any school closures.
On Wednesday, DPS filed an emergency motion against nearly two dozen teachers -- hoping to legally stop the sickouts that have forced dozens of schools to close.
[Detroit Schools Sue To Try To Stop Teacher Absences]
Erica Jones, a teacher at Cass Tech, is among the nearly two dozen people named in the court motion.
"I'm not happy about it because it's real public and it's open and they haven't actually handed this to us. We actually are getting text messages, our friends are calling us like 'Oh, I think you're being sued,'" she said.
The injunction came on the same day that 88 schools were closed due to what the district called "a high volume of orchestrated teacher absences," causing nearly 45,000 students to miss classes.
"This needs to be a national issue like it needs to be," said Jones. "We can't talk out about what's going on in the school district? They're putting a silence order on us? I know I need to look over some contracts and see what's really going on with this, but I'm not the cause of the sickouts so I don't feel like I should be sued for the sickouts."
[Teachers March Outside Cobo As Largest 'Sickout' Aims For Obama's Attention]
Disgruntled Detroit educators are protesting Gov. Rick Snyder's plans for the district, its poor finances, their low pay, dilapidated buildings and overcrowded classrooms. Some marched downtown Wednesday where President Barack Obama was getting a tour of Detroit's auto show.
The closures Wednesday come after more than 60 schools were closed Jan. 11 because of teacher absences. Other sick-outs affecting a smaller number of schools have taken place as well. In response, city officials have started inspecting schools for any code and safety violations.
Emergency Manager Darnell Earley called the sick-out "a publicity stunt" and said "sooner or later, the families who have been so adversely affected by these sick-outs will express their displeasure and voice their disdain of these actions."
Mayor Mike Duggan has also called for teachers to stop staging sick-outs and return to their classrooms while state legislators work on solving the district's financial crisis. Duggan said teachers' "frustrations are legitimate, but the solution is not to send the kids home."
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