The Pinal County Greens today announced their support of The Black and Brown Stand Up for Justice Rally at Cesar Chavez Plaza in downtown Phoenix on April 6. Richard Grayson, Pinal County Greens co-chair, said, "We strongly endorse this mass movement of local organizations such as the NAACP and community members in solidarity with the family of Trayvon Martin, for whom we all seek justice." The Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) in alliance with Puente Arizona have organized this rally to organize people of color in demanding justice in the law enforcement and criminal justice systems. The Black and Brown Stand Up for Justice Rally is also part of the "Arrest Arpaio, Not the People" campaign organized by Puente Movement to demand Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio face criminal charges for his negligence and violation of human and civil rights as outlined in a Department of Justice 2011 report. "At a minimum, we need to make sure everyone in Arizona is treated with dignity," said Pinal County Greens co-chair Grayson. "Sadly, that is not happening at present, and things must change."
The Pinal County Greens today attended Occupy Phoenix's rally for public education in Arizona, Occupy Education. Here is a report from Pinal County Greens co-chair Richard Grayson, who also took the accompanying photos:
Late this morning we took the light rail from Mesa to Central and Washington in downtown Phoenix to attend Occupy Phoenix's rally for public education in Arizona, Occupy Education, at Cesar Chavez Plaza. It was the kickoff for Occupy Phoenix's January “Month of Education,” and as the press release stated,
Together with teachers, parents, and students, we will be discussing vouchers, merit pay, high-stakes testing, the rising cost of college tuition, and many more important topics. Are you a parent who has seen cutbacks damage your children’s public school? Are you a teacher struggling with low pay, large classes, and little support? Are you a college student buried in debt? Join us on January 7th at noon and speak out! Let’s send a message to our legislators that our children’s education is not for sale! A good education is a right, NOT a privilege for just the wealthy few! Bring your signs and friends of all ages!
Obviously, Cesar Chavez Plaza was not anything close to what we saw at Occupy Wall Street in Zuccotti Park in the fall, but on the other hand, we met people who've been here since the very beginning of Occupy Phoenix and we were impressed with how well everything seemed planned, without the loss of any spontaneity. We spoke to a number of people who were highly informed, dedicated, energized and passionate about the concerns of the Occupy movement. The human microphone wasn't really necessary as a bullhorn gave the speakers resonance over the whole plaza. On the steps of Phoenix's Old City Hall, people from Occupy Phoenix discussed the issues regarding public education, from inadequate state funding and the corporatization of education to the problems of massive student loan debt and attacks on programs like ethnic studies. The facilitators of the breakout groups announced what they'd be discussing and we met in these groups at various spots in Cesar Chavez Plaza. We attended a terrific session, "Higher Education Secrets for the 99%," with college students and recent graduates, university and community college faculty and administrators, all providing interesting testimony and ideas about the crisis in higher education. Chelsea Starr, Ph.D., the facilitator, gave us terrific handouts with charts showing the exponential rise in tuition over recent decades (we attended Brooklyn College for free from 1969 to 1973!), the net college costs as a percentage of median family income for all income quintiles, the sources of undergraduate aid, and more. Another breakout group was titled "What Happens When Public School Becomes a Business?," in which Megan and Connie Leach, Ed.D., discussed the ways in which taxpayer money is taken from public education to support corporate profit, vouchers and tax credits, class size/student-to-teacher ratio, and other topics. "What's Money Got to Do With It? How Income Affects Educational Opportunities" had Ana Ramos-Pell, Ed.D., leading a session on the status of the nation's public school system and dealing with questions like "Are schools really failing?" and "Does income affect our public schools and prevent students from attaining the American dream?" Joya Scott led a breakout session on "Why the Arts Matter in Public Education," discussing the value of arts education in a high-stakes-testing-in-basic-skills system, why recent severe cuts to arts education are harming American children, and what parents and others can do about it. There was also an open topic discussion breakout group led by Mike Royer. Unfortunately, we had to get back to Apache Junction before the reconvening of the whole group when session participants read their calls to action and people made closing remarks. Although we wish we could have stayed longer at Cesar Chavez Plaza, we were really glad we finally got to see Occupy Phoenix in action and look forward to returning for other events. During the January "Month of Education," special guests will conduct teach-ins about nonviolence, sustainability, and the housing and foreclosure crisis here in the Phoenix metro area, and there will be regular teach-ins focusing on the History of politics and current events. We're grateful to Occupy Phoenix for giving a voice to the 99% on numerous issues, including those surrounding public education. You can find a treasure trove of information and livestream at the Occupy Phoenix website.
The Pinal County Greens today passed a resolution announcing "full support" for #Occupy Phoenix and its protests. The resolution urges others to support #Occupy Phoenix at Cesar Chavez Plaza and to take part in the Occupy movement's events, such as Friday's march to the corporate headquarters of Freeport-McMoRan to protest the recent killing of striking miners in Indonesia and the egregious environmental damage caused by the world's largest publicly traded copper company, and Saturday afternoon's Feast of Financial Fools, a celebration of Halloween and the terrifying economic and social horrors caused by greed and corruption. The Pinal County Greens, members of the Arizona Green Party in Pinal County, America's second-fastest-growing county, have been a presence at the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations at Zuccotti Park (Liberty Plaza) in New York's financial district. Richard Grayson, co-chair of the Pinal County Greens, thanked the #Occupy Phoenix movement "for providing much-needed leadership in the Valley for the fight against inequality and in favor of a much more equitable economic framework in American life." PHOTO_ID_5672656918999209346" /> In their resolution, the Pinal County Greens also noted the leadership of the Maricopa Greens, who joined in the October 15 Day of Action with #Occupy Phoenix at Cesar Chavez Plaza. Finally, the Pinal County Greens resolution asked everyone to keep abreast of developments regarding #Occupy Phoenix
and the loose Occupy Together nationwide movement spurred by Occupy Wall Street. "The people of #Occupy Phoenix have our full support and our admiration," said Grayson. "Today's report by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office showing that in the past thirty years the top one percent of Americans with the highest incomes have seen their incomes grow by an average of 275 percent, showing irrefutable evidence that our system has become skewed to reward this tiny elite minority with the highest gains, leaving the other 99% sharply behind." "In light of the brutal police attack on Occupy Oakland," Grayson said,
"it is even more important for us to express solidarity with #Occupy Phoenix, Occupy Tucson, and other Occupy groups fighting for economic justice and political reform in cities around the United States." "In a saner America, we wouldn't have Gestapo tactics in the streets of Oakland."
