Rally
Dear Ralliers:
The protest rally on Freedom Plaza last Thursday marks a turning
point in DC politics. Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s war against DC school
teachers and their union led her to overreach with a maneuver that was
too cute by half — to hire many more teachers than she needed for this
school year in order to provide an excuse for largely arbitrary firings,
calling them a Reduction in Force. That offended not just veteran
teachers, but also younger teachers who realized that they, too, would
be the targets of Rhee’s iron whims. It showed students and DCPS
parents how Rhee’s methods, when put in practice, would harm them. And
it energized government workers and unions — not just local unions,
but national union leaders — in recognition that the Fenty
administration is engaged not in an effort to improve education, but in
an effort to bust public employee unions.
That changes the momentum in the 2010 mayoral race. Here’s how
things stand. The anybody-but-Fenty voting blocs include the unions;
most city workers, whether they are unionized or not; young people and
students, who see what Fenty and Rhee are doing to their schools,
including the University of the District of Columbia; most black voters,
who see Fenty as being uninterested in their issues; the poor and those
concerned about the welfare of the poor, who see Fenty’s cuts in
homeless programs, neglect of job creation programs, and closing of
child care facilities as being hostile to their interests; the good
government voters who follow city affairs closely and who oppose his
giveaways of government property and land to favored developers; and the
traditional values voters who are offended by his promotion of gay
marriage and his other snubs of organized religion.
The pro-Fenty voters include white voters, largely in sections of
Wards One, Two and Three, who have little involvement with or knowledge
of DC government; those gays for whom the gay marriage issue trumps all
other issues; monied contributors who have given three million dollars
to his reelection campaign; developers and contractors who have
benefited at the trough of District government; and twenty-somethings
who are newcomers to the District of Columbia and who believe Fenty’s
claims that recent economic development projects are due to him, rather
than being the culmination of his predecessors’ work.
What last Thursday’s large, well-organized, and enthusiastic
protest rally shows is that the passion in this race is mostly on the
anybody-but-Fenty side. Even among Fenty’s contributors, support is
tempered by resentment at how the Fenty campaign has coerced them to
contribute with barely veiled threats that if they want to do business
with the city, or want to continue to do business with the city, they
had better give generously. Many of Fenty’s strongest supporters in
the 2006 race do not support him now, or support him only in the absence
of any credible opposing candidate. Fenty’s strengths, on the other
hand, are his three million dollar campaign fund, the unwavering support
of The Washington Post, the absence of a credible challenger, and
the possibility that the various groups that oppose him will not be able
or willing to work together and to agree on a single candidate. There
are tens of thousands of traditional values voters and tens of thousands
of government workers and union voters. Together just these two groups
could sway the election, but do they have any willingness or ability to
work together?
The Post’s editorial board’s penchant for covering up for
and excusing Fenty’s and Rhee’s mistakes, which will be a great
benefit to Fenty in his campaign, is particularly evident in today’s
editorial on the rally, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/10/AR2009101001914.html,
which is replete with mistakes and misrepresentations. The editorial
board’s ignorance and bias is especially obvious when compared with
more accurate information elsewhere in the same paper. Read Thomas Toch’s
“Five Myths about Paying Good Teachers More,” which confronts and
takes down Rhee’s claims about the magic of performance pay, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/09/AR2009100902571.html;
Robert McCartney’s admission, as a Rhee supporter, that he’s not
convinced by her explanation of her firings, “Did Rhee Overplay Her
Hand or Seek a Showdown?” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/10/AR2009101001956.html;
and Jodie Gittleson’s account of her own firing and its aftermath, “Pink
Slip for a First-Year Teacher,” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/07/AR2009100702643.html.
The next time the Post’s editorial board tells you that Rhee’s
plans are wonderful, reread Gittleson’s story of how a grade-school
principal fired the school’s only third-grade teacher, and dealt with
the problem that created by kicking some third-graders up to the fourth
grade and demoting the others to the second grade.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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In the District, there is a body of law that is intended to create
and open and transparent government. Under the District’s Freedom of
Information Act (DC Code §2-531, et seq.) “the public policy
of the District of Columbia is that all persons are entitled to full and
complete information regarding the affairs of government and the
official acts of those who represent them as public officials and
employees.” Moreover, there is a “sunshine” or open meetings
provision in the DC Code (§1-207.42) that states that “all meetings
(including hearings) of any department, agency, board, or commission of
the District government, including meetings of the Council of the
District of Columbia, at which official actions of any kind is taken
shall be open to the public.” Despite the legal framework, District
officials continue to meet and make decisions behind closed doors, and
access to government documents is severely restricted. In recent years,
examples have included closed-door budget deliberations in the council,
WASA’s failure to release information regarding elevated lead levels
in the District’s drinking water, the disappearance and/or destruction
of government records concerning the 2002 arrests at Pershing Park, the
denial of a FOIA request seeking information on how the fifty million
dollar government grant to Abe Pollin for the Verizon Center was spent,
the denial of information regarding how the District government selects
developers and disposes of government-owned real property, secrecy
surrounding the purpose and funding of trips by the mayor outside of the
District, denying individuals access to their personnel files, and
denying information regarding how the District government awards
contracts.
The DC Open Government Coalition (http://www.dcogc.com)
has been created to enhance the public’s access to government
information and ensure the transparency of government operations. On
Wednesday, October 21, from 6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m., the DC Open Government
Coalition will hold a town hall meeting at the Charles Sumner School,
17th and M Streets, NW, to discuss the accessibility of government
information in the District. The meeting will be moderated by Colbert
King of the Washington Post. The program will include a panel
discussion with Kathy Patterson; Lucy Dalgish, Reporters’ Committee
for Freedom of the Press; Mark Segraves, WTOP; Bill Myers, Washington
Examiner; Ed Lazere, Fiscal Policy Institute; and Mara Verheyden-Hilliard,
Partnership for Civil Justice.
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There is a double standard within Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s
administration. What we are seeing is a chancellor who is not being
accountable when it matters most to be accountable. Most of us can agree
with the Post writer who said that Rhee overplayed her hand this
time in laying off hundreds of teachers. News releases show teachers
recounting horror stories of their dismissals despite years of positive
performance evaluations. Most have yet to be informed about the real
reasons for their imminent layoffs. Students following the lead of their
teachers and school counselors report that these untimely dismissals
have led to changes in class schedules, dropped classes, and worries
about their education. Despite unending news coverage of recent layoffs,
Rhee digs in her heels and refuses to provide data to substantiate her
claims of an education budget shortfall, now down to twelve million
dollars from earlier reports of forty million.
Read the article in today’s Washington Post by Jodie
Gittleson, a newly hired DC teacher, about her dismissal from DC public
schools. Her words illustrate better than I can how DC students are the
real victims in this tragedy.
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Low Power FM Radio Stations
Phil Shapiro, pshapiro@his.com
What would happen if there were a radio station in your neighborhood
-- within walking distance -- that you could walk over to host a radio
show or participate as a guest on someone else’s radio show? What
would it be like to connect with local community activists, writers,
poets, artists, musicians, dramatists, health advocates, educators via
that radio station? These are questions worth thinking about because
they may no longer be hypothetical. See http://tinyurl.com/ykrf2js
Click your voice of support by joining the Prometheus Radio Project
Facebook page. There’s a link on the left side of the above-mentioned
web page. Twelve hundred people are already there.
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Department of Parks and Recreation Columbus
Day Schedule
John A. Stokes, dcdocs@dc.gov
On Columbus Day, Monday, October 12, the DC Department of Parks and
Recreation (DPR) will open three recreation centers and the Wilson
Aquatic Center. All other DPR facilities will be closed in observance of
the holiday. The following recreation and community centers will be open
10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. on Monday, October 12: Ward 3, Chevy Chase
Community Center, 5601 Connecticut Avenue, NW, 282-2204; Ward 4, Riggs
LaSalle Community Center, 501 Riggs Road, NE, 576-5224; and Ward 8, Bald
Eagle Recreation Center, 100 Joliet Street, SW, 645-3960. The following
aquatic center will be open 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. on Monday, October 12:
Wilson Aquatic Center, 4551 Fort Drive, NW, 730-0583. Note: the center
will be open 6:00 a.m.-9:00 a.m. only for registration for DPR’s fall
programs.
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Environmental Health Group (EHG) Events,
October 13
Allen Hengst, ahengst@rcn.com
World War I munitions, bottles filled with chemical warfare agents
and contaminated soil have been found in and around the Spring Valley
neighborhood of northwest DC. The Environmental Health Group (EHG) seeks
to raise awareness of the issues and encourage a thorough investigation
and cleanup. Every Saturday at 1:00 p.m., please join the Environmental
Health Group for an informal discussion about Spring Valley issues. In
the cafe at the Tenleytown Whole Foods Market, 4530 40th Street, NW (one
block north of Tenley Circle). For more information, visit the EHG on
Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Washington-DC/Environmental-Health-Group/67807900019.
Tuesday, October 13, 7 p.m.: Monthly meeting of the Spring Valley
Restoration Advisory Board with the US Army Corps of Engineers. Digging
at the “Pit 3” munitions recovery site on Glenbrook Road has been
suspended since the unexpected discovery of mustard agent in an open
flask on August 4. Geophysical surveys began this month on sixty-two
acres of Dalecarlia Woods on the property of the Washington Aqueduct
between Dalecarlia Parkway and the reservoir. At Saint David’s Church
basement, 5150 Macomb Street, NW (one block north of MacArthur
Boulevard). For more information, go to http://www.nab.usace.army.mil/projects/WashingtonDC/springvalley.htm
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Senior Harvestfest 2009, October 14
Darlene Nowlin, darlene.nowlin@dc.gov
Senior Harvestfest 2009, sponsored by the Office on Aging Senior
Service Network, will be held on Wednesday, October 14, 10:00 a.m.-2:00
p.m. at Takoma Community Center, 300 Van Buren Street, NW. This free
outdoor event will include live entertainment, music, and an Old School
DJ under the main tent for hand dancing and line dancing, with pavilions
featuring demonstration bingo and carnival games; a health and wellness
pavilion with nutrition, wellness information and massages; an
information pavilion with government and community-based resources; a
health screening pavilion with free health screenings and immunizations;
and a food pavilion with fresh fruits and vegetables and barbecue for
sale. For more information , call 724-5626.
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Making DC Elections Accessible and
Accountable, October 16
James Bubar, jbubar@aol.com
The DC Council is considering Bill 18-345, the “Omnibus Elections
Reform Act of 2009,” that will allow for same-day voter registration,
early voting, no-fault absentee ballots, expansion of the pool of
qualified poll workers, and much more. The DC Affairs Section of the DC
Bar is hosting a program with Mary Cheh and Eric Marshall. You are
welcome to attend. The event is free, just RSVP.
Friday, October 16, 12:30 p.m.-2:00 p.m., at Wiley Rein law firm,
1776 K Street, NW (Farragut North Metro Station). Speakers will be
Councilmember Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3), Chair, Committee on Government
Operations and the Environment, and Eric Marshall, Campaign Manager,
National Campaign for Fair Elections, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil
Rights Under Law’s Voting Rights Project. Who should attend? Anyone
who votes in the District of Columbia or is involved in the elections
process. Free (bring a brown bag lunch), but register in advance by
sending an E-mail to Sally Kram at skram@consortium.org.
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CLASSIFIEDS — HELP WANTED
Community Organizer: Education Issues
Pariza Nourisi, parisa@empowerdc.org
Empower DC (http://www.empowerdc.org,
1419 V Street, NW) seeks a full-time organizer to lead the development
of a new grassroots campaign around education issues. Salary, $30,000
per year. Starting date, November 2, 2009. Duration, Through December
31, 2010, with possibility of extension based on funding. Forty hours
per week, with some weekend and evening hours. The organizer will work
to organize, empower and mobilize parents and guardians who have middle
and high school age students in DC Public Schools and charter schools to
be involved in the development of and advocacy for education policies
that will improve educational conditions, leading to an increase in high
school graduation rates. Empower DC’s strategy for resolving these
issues is to develop the sense of empowerment and entitlement of DC
parents and guardians, and enhance the self-advocacy skills of effected
low and moderate income DC residents, while bringing them together to
develop their collective power to make institutional change in the DC
educational system that will benefit children in the District.
Responsibilities include conducting extensive outreach to identify
and recruit impacted parents and encourage their involvement; developing
leadership and sense of empowerment amongst impacted residents through
the provision of training, mentorship and direct experience aimed to
develop effective self-advocacy skills; facilitating the development of
strategic campaign activities identified at campaign meetings during
which participants are encouraged to identify policy recommendations,
develop campaign objectives and take on leadership roles in carrying out
campaign activities; mobilizing this constituency to be actively
involved in the high level arenas where education policy making is
taking place; meeting regularly with partners, allies and leaders;
identifying the individuals, agencies, commissions and other bodies
responsible for and/or impacting education in DC; organizing trainings
and forums to educate the broader community about education issues in
DC; working with members and allies, develop an education advocacy
agenda; organizing city council and city agency meetings with Empower DC
members to advocate on issues of importance to the campaign; assisting
with administrative duties including maintaining contact database;
assisting with growing the membership of Empower DC; participating in
Empower DC’s quarterly membership meetings, board meetings, and other
activities as necessary; and other duties as assigned
Qualifications: minimum of two years organizing or advocacy
experience (volunteer experience acceptable) including experience
building the leadership of community members; knowledge of and
familiarity with the District of Columbia; strong interest in and
commitment to community organizing and social, economic and racial
justice; ability to effectively communicate, both in writing and
verbally, relaying complicated information in a user-friendly manner;
strong organizational skills, including the ability to work
independently and manage own projects; basic computer competency for
word processing and data management; must have a flexible schedule to
accommodate some weekend and evening hours.
Please send a cover letter, résumé, and the names and contact
information for three references to Parisa Norouzi, director, at parisa@empowerdc.org
or by fax, 234-6655, by October 19, 2009. Incomplete applications will
not be considered.
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