This is what Democracy looks like!
On Tuesday, I learned about the Bill that Gov. Walker is proposing:
Public Unions would be stripped of their right to collectively bargain including the ability to negotiate health care and, for teachers, class size and how many hours. It could result in the lowering of teacher incomes by up to $8,000, by taking cost of benefits out of paychecks. Collective bargaining is a right that Unions have held for over 50 years and has brought us minimum wage, weekends and safety laws. Walker's plan to gut the heart of unions has very little to do with the budget, and much do with Republican agenda to bust Unions.
The only state workers that would not be affected by this bill would be the police, firefighters and state patrols. Wanna know why? They supported Walker in his election. Also, nobody wants rebelling police. Of course, that doesn't stop firemen to make speeches with us and play their bagpipes loudly through the capital... more on that later.
Also on Tuesday, students walked out of our high schools and our university to join workers down town. 13,000 people rallied at the capital to protest Walker's Bill.
On Wednesday, school was cancelled for the Madison school district because 40% of teachers had called in sick on strike Tuesday night and more were expected to join them. More than that, students across the district were planning on marching out again. This didn't stop our students from meeting at East and West High school to march to the capital at 11am.
This day, aprox 5,000 students marched from both sides of town to encircle the capital and support our teachers, parents, bus drivers, and our educations and futures. We all wore red in unifying colors to support MTI, the teacher's union and, to show how much we love our city and state and education by wearing badger colors. Students walked out from Monona Grove and Mt Horeb and Oregon to join us.
Numbers grew to 30,000 people at the capital. I was among these numbers.
"What do we want?" "JUSTICE" "When do we want it?" "NOW!"
"What's disgusting?" "UNION BUSTING!"
"KILL THE BILL! KILL THE BILL!"
It was truly inspiring. People made speeches all day and the legislators listened to people's testimony for 17 hours in an attempted citizen filibuster. They start to amend the Bill, but make no real progress and the Bill continues to be incredibly harmful.
And Today became even more intense. Schools were closed throughout Dane County, so the march from West was even BIGGER.
Our Democratic legislators realized they would be outnumbered by Republicans if put to a vote, so all of the 14 Democrats and 2 of the Republicans left the state. Without enough legislators, they cannot vote and the Bill cannot be passed.
I would guess at about 40,000 people at the capital today, but I'm not sure, it could very well be more...
NYC also protests stating that we are not getting the national attention we deserve. Ed Schultz from MSNBC is down town now and will be reporting live at 9/ 10 East.
"TAX! TAX! TAX THE RICH! WE CAN FIX THE DEFICIT!"
"HEY HEY! HO HO! SCOTT WALKER HAS GOT TO GO!"
"RECALL WALKER!"
"We're not gonna take it. NO! We ain't gonna take it! We're not gonna take it anymoooooooore!"
We sang that as we marched into the capital, and it blasted from speakers at every corner of the square.
"Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?"
We sang the Star spangled banner in the capital underneath a giant flag that we held like a parachute above our heads on the ground floors.
We had supporters from Illinois and Michigan. I just hope we can also get some MN supporters, cause their Gov. is very practical and I like him a lot.
Scott Walker threatened to bring in the National Guard. Too bad a lot of them are in unions and were equally offended by the misuse of the National Guard.
A few protest stories:
A little old lady, about 75 years old, climbing over the 5 feet high walls surrounding the capital.
We get called crazy communists in a violent protest by FOX news? Everyone in the capital shows them how violent we are and turns to the person next to us to give a big hug.
no walking room inside the capital building.
So... find out more. It's starting in WI, but the other states might be looking at something very similar.
http://www.channel3000.com/news/index.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-O-ngDdKZw
(btw, I've been there a lot, so I'm home to nap and will go back after cello ensemble rehearsal, probably)
Public Unions would be stripped of their right to collectively bargain including the ability to negotiate health care and, for teachers, class size and how many hours. It could result in the lowering of teacher incomes by up to $8,000, by taking cost of benefits out of paychecks. Collective bargaining is a right that Unions have held for over 50 years and has brought us minimum wage, weekends and safety laws. Walker's plan to gut the heart of unions has very little to do with the budget, and much do with Republican agenda to bust Unions.
The only state workers that would not be affected by this bill would be the police, firefighters and state patrols. Wanna know why? They supported Walker in his election. Also, nobody wants rebelling police. Of course, that doesn't stop firemen to make speeches with us and play their bagpipes loudly through the capital... more on that later.
Also on Tuesday, students walked out of our high schools and our university to join workers down town. 13,000 people rallied at the capital to protest Walker's Bill.
On Wednesday, school was cancelled for the Madison school district because 40% of teachers had called in sick on strike Tuesday night and more were expected to join them. More than that, students across the district were planning on marching out again. This didn't stop our students from meeting at East and West High school to march to the capital at 11am.
This day, aprox 5,000 students marched from both sides of town to encircle the capital and support our teachers, parents, bus drivers, and our educations and futures. We all wore red in unifying colors to support MTI, the teacher's union and, to show how much we love our city and state and education by wearing badger colors. Students walked out from Monona Grove and Mt Horeb and Oregon to join us.
Numbers grew to 30,000 people at the capital. I was among these numbers.
"What do we want?" "JUSTICE" "When do we want it?" "NOW!"
"What's disgusting?" "UNION BUSTING!"
"KILL THE BILL! KILL THE BILL!"
It was truly inspiring. People made speeches all day and the legislators listened to people's testimony for 17 hours in an attempted citizen filibuster. They start to amend the Bill, but make no real progress and the Bill continues to be incredibly harmful.
And Today became even more intense. Schools were closed throughout Dane County, so the march from West was even BIGGER.
Our Democratic legislators realized they would be outnumbered by Republicans if put to a vote, so all of the 14 Democrats and 2 of the Republicans left the state. Without enough legislators, they cannot vote and the Bill cannot be passed.
I would guess at about 40,000 people at the capital today, but I'm not sure, it could very well be more...
NYC also protests stating that we are not getting the national attention we deserve. Ed Schultz from MSNBC is down town now and will be reporting live at 9/ 10 East.
"TAX! TAX! TAX THE RICH! WE CAN FIX THE DEFICIT!"
"HEY HEY! HO HO! SCOTT WALKER HAS GOT TO GO!"
"RECALL WALKER!"
"We're not gonna take it. NO! We ain't gonna take it! We're not gonna take it anymoooooooore!"
We sang that as we marched into the capital, and it blasted from speakers at every corner of the square.
"Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?"
We sang the Star spangled banner in the capital underneath a giant flag that we held like a parachute above our heads on the ground floors.
We had supporters from Illinois and Michigan. I just hope we can also get some MN supporters, cause their Gov. is very practical and I like him a lot.
Scott Walker threatened to bring in the National Guard. Too bad a lot of them are in unions and were equally offended by the misuse of the National Guard.
A few protest stories:
A little old lady, about 75 years old, climbing over the 5 feet high walls surrounding the capital.
We get called crazy communists in a violent protest by FOX news? Everyone in the capital shows them how violent we are and turns to the person next to us to give a big hug.
no walking room inside the capital building.
So... find out more. It's starting in WI, but the other states might be looking at something very similar.
http://www.channel3000.com/news/index.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-O-ngDdKZw
(btw, I've been there a lot, so I'm home to nap and will go back after cello ensemble rehearsal, probably)