FES is resorting to naked racism to promote their September 30 rally attacking de Blasio. People are calling on them to take it down. But then where would they put their half a million bucks? Not in the schools, pray tell. I pray tell they leave that ad up for the public to see.
You know, so many teachers are also attacking de Blasio from the other side for not reversing many of Bloomberg's policies and also attacking the UFT/Unity leadership for not doing enough to pressure him for changes because they want to be a partner (ie, stool at the table.) I keep thinking if we would be better off with the alternative - Eva or someone of that ilk - like Hakeem Jeffries who would savage teaching core and put a charter in every pot. They are going to knock off de Blasio and we will not end up with a more teacher friendly mayor -- but maybe that's better - to have a clear enemy to battle.
I reported on the Success Charter leaked memo on how to force parents into bringing their children to the upcoming Sept. 30 Charter school rally by closing down her schools and leaving them without child care, forcing many of them to take off from work that day:
Eva Moskowitz Sept. 30 Rally.
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| Charters force march parents and students |
Eva's version of the Bataan death march.
On the surface it seems as if Eva is winning. But with every outrageous act skepticism grows among the public and press. Imagine of FES has put their millions into supporting, not degrading schools?
Someone emailed me about doing something the day of the rally to protest. My response was that FES and Eva closing schools and holding a naked political rally only helps in the battle of ed deform.
Here are reports on the racist FES ad from Schools Matter and Capital NY:
Schools Matter via
the Observer
from the Observer:
“The rhetoric of this ad, and the people and money behind it, are part of the problem,” she said.
“‘Race baiting’ like
‘red baiting’, exploiting the values and legitimate concerns of our
city’s communities of color, for whatever political purpose, is
abhorrent and posits a dangerous and expanding wedge in a city all to
segregated by class, color and community,” Mr. Acosta stated, noting
that Roberto Perez, a City Hall staffer, encouraged him to speak out.
“It is abhorrent that a movement that emerged as a demand to tell the
truth is used to obfuscate, divide and attempt to denigrate New York
City’s progressive agenda”.
While Mr. de Blasio
is enlisting surrogates to fight back on his behalf, his office was a
bit less hostile, though it called the ad “crass.” “Our students and our
families need solutions, not another crass political ad. That’s why
Mayor de Blasio and Chancellor Farina are focused on ensuring that every
child, in every classroom, has a future that isn’t limited by their ZIP
code,” said Wiley Norvell, a spokesman for the mayor.
Since failing last
year to halt the expansion of Success Academy Charter Schools, run by
his old political foe Eva Moskowitz, Mr. de Blasio has softened his
rhetoric toward charter schools, even as his liberal allies continue to
seethe. Democratic elected officials aligned with the city and state
teachers’ unions see charters as a thinly-veiled, well-moneyed effort to
erode job protections for teachers.
“These folks have
figured out a way to make profit off the same kids that they disdained
for years and years. As far as I’m concerned, its predatory education,
subprime schools,” Ms. Lewis said. “Eva Moskowitz and none of them
wouldn’t be doing this if it wasn’t making enormous profit. To then turn
around and say, ‘Oh black people, I’m trying to save you from the big
bad white man, the mayor, who wants to put you in a failing
school’–that’s racist.”
A spokesman for FES declined to comment.
http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/city-hall/2015/09/8577871/critics-call-new-charter-school-ad-racist
A coalition of elected officials, community organizations and
union-allied groups criticized a new Families for Excellent Schools ad
Friday, accusing the pro-charter group of "race-baiting" in order to
advance its political agenda.
The ad,
first reported by POLITICO New York,
is called "Tale of Two Boys" and argues that Mayor Bill de Blasio is
forcing minority students into failing schools. It began running Friday,
though it was not publicly promoted by FES.
The ad buy will cost
FES about half a million dollars this week and will become a
multimillion-dollar ad buy over the next few weeks, according to a
source.
The ad contrasted the educations of a young white boy and a
black boy in New York City, saying the white child would attend a good
school and go to college while the black child would be trapped in a
struggling school and never make it to college.
Bertha Lewis, the president of the Black Institute, called it "the most racist ad I've seen in my life."
"They
found a way to make money and profit off little black boys and girls,"
she said. "They act as if they are here to save us."
Zakiyah
Ansari, the advocacy director of the Alliance for Quality Education,
made a similar argument. AQE is partially funded by city and state
teachers' unions.
"They are using a black face to push their
political agenda, and they make the assumption that all black people are
poor," she said. "They used our children in a race-baiting commercial."
Some called on FES to remove the ad on Friday.
Brooklyn
Assemblyman N. Nick Perry called on FES to "do the right thing" and
pull the ad. Perry — who is also the chairman of the New York State
Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus — said he was
"incensed over the use of blatant race baiting tactics to advance the
agenda of FES."
Other elected officials also took issue with the ad.
Manhattan
Borough President Gale Brewer accused FES in a statement of helping to
"divert money, resources and space from our public schools ... into
increasingly unaccountable private empires. The rhetoric of this ad, and
the people and money behind it, are part of the problem."
New York City Council education committee chair Danny Dromm called the ad "highly divisive and harmful."
Representatives
for three of New York's largest charter networks — KIPP, Uncommon, and
Achievement First — did not respond to requests for comment about the
ad.
A spokesperson for FES declined to comment.
