Chanting “Si, se puede! Si, se puede!” members of the Sacramento City Teachers Association (SCTA) bargaining team marched past security guards into school district headquarters on Thursday morning as the strike entered its seventh day, which coincided with Cesar Chavez Day.

Bargaining team members of SCTA and SEIU Local 1021, which represents school support staff, are in their second day of a “bargain in” at Sacramento City Unified School District’s Serna Center. Angered by the district’s lack of urgency, Superintendent Jorge Aguilar’s absence from negotiations as well as bargaining that had reached a standstill in sessions conducted entirely by zoom, the “bargain in” is an effort to increase pressure so that a fair settlement can be reached.

The bargaining team walks into the Serna Center this morning.

Sacramento City Councilwoman Katie Valenzuela and Sacramento County Supervisor Phil Serna joined bargaining efforts Wednesday, and a group of parents spent all night at the Serna Center, adding their voices to those pressuring the Superintendent and school board to come to settle the contract for the sake of students.

On Thursday morning, parent April Ibarra joined CTA Secretary Treasurer Leslie Littman, Vice President David Goldberg and Board Member Shelly Gupton, UFW President Teresa Romero and others in a morning rally in the district headquarters’ parking lot that drew connections between the work of late labor leader Cesar Chavez and the striking educators and school staff.

CTA Vice President David Goldberg speaks at the morning rally.

“We need good faith bargaining. Aguilar needs to come to the table,” said April Ibarra, one of the three Sacramento City mothers who spent Wednesday night in the Serna Center. She urged other parents to join the cause. “Parents come out! Your voice will not be silenced. I will not be silenced.”

CTA Vice President David Goldberg said to the gathered crowd, “I was here on Day 1 and I mentioned that every day you have to win this strike. But you are killing it! This energy is unbelievable!”

“Cesar Chavez fought for the rights of immigrant workers just like we’re here fighting for our teachers and staff and what they deserve,” said Angelicia Carranza, a student at Luther Burbank High School.

“One day longer, one day stronger!” said SCTA President David Fisher. “You know how I know that’s not a slogan? Because last night on the strike line was our strongest turnout yet!”

“You are the people educating our children. It doesn’t get any more important than that!” said Teresa Romero, president of the United Farm Workers.

Although SCUSD continues to refuse to accept a neutral fact-finder’s recommendation to address the district’s severe staffing crisis, on Wednesday night around 9:30 p.m., Superintendent Aguilar briefly met with SCTA members. He has not been part of negotiations and it was the first time he had ever met face-to-face with the bargaining team. SCTA members shared the detrimental and personal impacts of the proposed changes to the district’s health insurance plan and challenged inaccuracies about the budget.

For the first time, Aguilar agreed to a meeting of education leaders and financial experts, including Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, FCMAT, the Sacramento County Office of Education, SCTA. Aguilar had refused a similar meeting last week.

By late Thursday, the SCTA bargaining team was still at the Serna Center and committed to staying put. Parents who had spent the prior night at the district headquarters, their ranks growing, were pledging to remain. On a Facebook live update, Fisher and Vice President Nikki Milevsky notified listeners that the district had asked a few clarifying questions by email. They urged educators and community members to reach out to board members Darrel Woo, Christina Pritchett and Jamee Villa, calling on them to accept the fact finder’s compromise.

The Serna Center in Sacramento

“We are prepared to be here late tonight to make some progress to get our kids back in school tomorrow,” Milevsky said.

But if not, everyone would be back at the picket lines tomorrow. The Facebook live update concluded the way the day had begun – with chants of “Si, se puede!”

Keep up with the Sac City educators strike!

Follow SCTA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for up-to-date news and information, and visit their website at www.sacteachers.org. A strike fund has also been set up to provide financial support for educators struggling to make ends meet while on the picket line. Please consider donating and sharing with your network.