the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
Jun 4, 2012
On May 29, about 60 parents and teachers gathered to protest the planned closing of Detroit’s Southwestern High. Protests, including a student walkout, have gone on since February, when Roy Roberts, the so-called Emergency Manager for Detroit Public Schools, put Southwestern on the closing list.
The true agenda of the Emergency Manager is to charterize and wreck the public school system, draining it of every possible dollar that can be turned over to private, for-profit interests. The State of Michigan and the City of Detroit cover up this agenda by claiming to be acting in the kids’ best interests. But it’s a lie, and Southwestern shows it.
Records show that Southwestern is the safest public high school in the district.
Southwestern is a high achieving school, graduating 97% of its seniors in 2011. It ranked 8th in ACT scores out of the 23 DPS high schools.
Southwestern’s facilities were recently refurbished, including a new roof, windows, and upgraded athletic facilities. But now, a parent said, “We’ll be spending money on plywood instead” to board up the school–if the Emergency Manager’s plans go through.
But plans can be changed. The protesters’ energy and determination can spread. In fact, another school, Maybury Elementary, was taken off the closing list after vigorous protests by the parents there.
It’s the protesters, not the city nor the state, who are fighting for the kids’ best interests.