To Charter School Operators: You Want the Truth? You Can't Handle the Truth

Charter schools and charter authorizers try to get charter school parents to attend ITBWFS Brooklyn premiere movie screening Tuesday. May 31.

A lot of people commented when I ran this headline Wednesday night:

Rich White Woman Tells Poor Black People to Rally Against NAACP While Shutting Their Children Out of Their Schools for Hours

'Nuff said!

If you didn't see the short film I posted from the Brandeis HS press conf over Eva's blatant attempt to take over prime real estate on W. 84 st. that we built with tax money, check it out - in particular the arrogance of Moskowitz' supporters http://youtu.be/iYhH-hsztn4
while a teacher at a co-located school list the crimes committed against public school kids in the name of "choice". Of course public school kids in Eva schools are not given the choice to go to a nice bathroom or given the choice to not be put near a smoking boiler room.

I guess the charter school Klones are feeling some of our movie heat. Valerie Babb of the NYC Charter Schools, the DOE partner in crime (too bad Walcott didn't show up at the Comm Bd 12 meeting May 21 to hear NYCCS CEO James Merriman trash Tweed before running off with his tail between his legs to avoid facing off with Julie Cavanagh and Mona Davids) sent this out.

From: Valerie Babb <vbabb@nyccharterschools.org>
Subject: Film Screening Tuesday Night
Date: Saturday, May 28, 2011, 10:15 AM

Dear Parents and Supporters,

Here at the Charter Parents Action Network – CPAN, we believe parents should be educated about the issues, their schools, and their choices. Accordingly, we wanted to inform you about a unique opportunity. A new documentary film, The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman, is premiering in Brooklyn this week.

The Inconvenient Truth Behind Waiting for Superman
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
6:00 p.m.
Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon Street
The screening will be followed by a panel of charter and district public school parents.

The film, written and directed by New York City public school teachers and parents, has been created in response to the highly acclaimed Waiting for Superman (which featured several charter school leaders, including Geoff Canada). It attempts to show how the many educational reforms that have taken place in NYC over the past decade are “actually hurting public education.”

We encourage you to attend the film and make your own decisions. I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Valerie Babb
Director, Charter Parents Action Network (CPAN)

NEW YORK CITY CHARTER SCHOOL CENTER
111 Broadway, Suite 604, New York, NY 10006
T: 212.437.8317  F: 212.227.2763
www.nyccharterschools.org

We don't just attempt, we show how public education has been harmed - and we had enough footage to make a 5 hour film (Shoa, NYC style).
Here is a statement from Mona Davids' counter charter school parent org on the NAACP suit with the UFT on closing schools and charter co-locos, which charter school advocated have been trashing.

Subject: NYCPA Statement on the Charter Schools Attack of the NAACP
From: "New York Charter Parents Association (NYCPA)"

Date: Sat, May 28, 2011 2:09 pm
To: "Mona Davids"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

A message to all members of New York Charter Parents Association (NYCPA)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 28, 2011

Contact: Mariama Sanoh, New York
Charter Parents Association: (917) 340-8987
New York Charter Parents Association Statement

Charter Schools and Charter Authorizers Abuse Power by Delaying School Opening for Political Purposes

The New York Charter Parents Association condemns the exploitation of charter school students by some of New York City's charter school leaders for political purposes this past Wednesday. We were appalled by the abuse of power on the part of charter school leaders when they delayed the start of the school day and required all students and parents -- the majority of whom are African-American and Latino -- to attend a protest rally attacking the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) for supporting charter school reforms.

The New York Charter Parents Association, with the support of groups such as the NAACP, successfully won many charter reforms benefiting charter students and parents. One such reform is the requirement that charter schools establish Parent Associations or Parent-Teacher Associations. These sensible and reasonable reforms were strongly opposed by charter school leaders and their authorizers.

Furthermore, unfortunately, many charter school leaders and their authorizers are now non-compliant with these reforms. As strongly as we condemn the abuse of authority and responsibility on the part of these charter school leaders, we condemn even more the hypocrisy, the patronization and blatant racism exhibited by these leaders.

In this city, the charter school movement has been led by individuals who are white and, in general, privileged. This racial profile includes charter administrators, their institutional supporters, and even a good percentage of their faculty. The racial profile of the student population, however, is overwhelmingly Latino or of African descent. In isolation, this contrast is not necessarily a bad thing. But we are seeing the manipulation of African-American and Latino parents and students by white people who see their less-privileged neighbors as a noble cause as well as
an easy meal ticket. These white hustlers command salaries higher than that of the American President as they preside over education empires that grow at the public's expense, feeding on the tax dollars of the brown people they supposedly serve. In this model, our children are merely the widgets. These white hustlers preach "accountability" and "reform," but they rely on a lack of public scrutiny and old-school corporate discipline to sustain their organizations. These white hustlers talk about what they bring to our children, but they want to overcrowd public school buildings so they can get space for one dollar per year from our billionaire Mayor.

Now, when other organizations who put children first and who have a history of recognizing oppression and exploitation, object to these practices and speak up for charter reforms, these hustlers have the audacity to use our children to attack our true leaders, such as the NAACP. The New York Charter Parents Association is supportive of public school choice and the existence of charter schools, but we will not stand by and allow charter school leaders -- and their authorizers -- to
manipulate, deceive and divide our communities. The NAACP deserves our strong support and gratitude for speaking up when we need to hear its voice.

### About Us The New York Charter Parents Association (NYCPA) is the first and only independent citywide and statewide charter parents’ organization. We are of the parents, by the parents and for the parents.

The NYC Department of Education (DOE), SUNY Charter Schools Institute (SUNY CSI), NYS Education Department (NYSED), NY Charter Schools Association, NYC Charter Center or any charter school do NOT control us.

We are not afraid to stand up for parent rights, student rights, accountability and transparency in charter schools. We are not intimidated by any individual or organization. www.nycharterparents.org

Visit New York Charter Parents Association (NYCPA) at:
http://nycharterparents.ning.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

Check out Norms Notes for a variety of articles of interest: http://normsnotes2.blogspot.com/. And make sure to check out the side panel on right for news bits.