United Teachers of Richmond CTA/NEA Resolution in support Black Lives Matter at School Movement/Week 2020
January 29th, 2020 REP Council Meeting
WHEREAS The United Teachers of Richmond has previously taken a national leadership role in the Black Lives Matter at School movement and position in support of the Black Lives Matter movement including passing a resolution in 2017,
WHEREAS there are far too few Black educators (1,500 out of 310,000 educators in 2019) and educators of color in CA in proportion to the number of students of color in the schools
WHEREAS zero tolerance discipline and over-policing of our youth has proven to be ineffective in the reduction of discipline, and fully funded and supported Restorative Practices has proven to be a powerful tool in the reduction of disproportionate discipline,
WHEREAS according to the Washington Post this year there have been 898 police- involved killings, including 204 of Black people,
WHEREAS, the implementation of ethnic studies and culturally responsive curricula is of critical importance to supporting the learning needs of all students, but particularly Black and Brown students, and
BE IT RESOLVED that the United Teachers of Richmond join the national call for Black Lives Matter at School Week to kick off Black History Month during February 5th to February 11th,
BE IT RESOLVED that UTR will continue to advocate for fully funded supports and services for all our students of color,
BE IT RESOLVED that UTR will work with community organizations such as the RYSE Youth Center, AASAT, MDAC, and DLCAP to ensure resources are directed to our students and schools most at need,
BE IT RESOLVED that UTR will continue to advocate for WCCUSD to come up with a plan to retain our educators of color and how to support them,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that UTR will encourage its members to get training around racial issues, wear Black Lives Matter shirts to school that week and teach lessons that week about the school-to-prison-pipeline, Black immigrant youth, Black women empowerment, Black LGBTQ community, and Black history.
