[OccupyCU] Fwd: Fw: What's wrong with TFA?

[David Johnson via OccupyCU]

I’m Will Daniels, and I’m a USAS member at Eastern Michigan University. 
I grew up right down the street from EMU, as a proud black man in 
Detroit. I’m writing to you today about an injustice that has torn apart 
my community and working class communities across the country for too 
long — *and I need your support as I fly to New York this Thursday to 
change it. *
*Teach For America* claims to be a "racial and social justice" 
organization, but I know better. I know from firsthand experience that 
they're part of a corporate reform machine designed to turn over a major 
public good into private hands. This might be old news to you.
*_If so, will you stand behind me while I meet with the Teach For 
America CEOs?_* 
<http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=rU0isEpPqCULat%2FrcDEdVLYIm%2FHfegfq>
It's okay if you’re confused though. It's hard to see what could be 
wrong with an organization that aims to "close the achievement gap." And 
that’s why *many individuals who choose to do TFA are phenomenal, 
well-intentioned people*. But over the past few years there has been an 
epidemic of school closings, teacher firings, and union busting aimed at 
teachers and students in working class communities across the nation. 
*The attack on public education in each of these cities has been 
**directly connected to Teach For America and its growing network of 
alumni and wealthy supporters.*
My father was a teacher for thirty years in Detroit Public Schools. 
Then, our Republican governor designed a program that closed working 
class Detroit schools and laid off longtime teachers. These schools and 
teachers were replaced by the so-called Educational Achievement 
Authority. A quarter of EAA’s workforce are from Teach for America. In 
other words, experienced *teachers were fired so that they could be 
replaced by undertrained, recent college grads*. They were cheaper labor 
than my father, who had dedicated his life to this community.
_*Tell Teach For America that Detroit students, and students all across 
the country deserve better than a transient, undertrained workforce. *_ 
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We're meeting with Teach For America co-CEOs Matthew Kramer and Elisa 
Villanueva-Beard on Thursday to ask them restore TFA to its original 
mission by only operating in areas of actual teacher shortages, giving 
aspiring teachers adequate education and training, and cutting ties with 
corporations like Walmart and Goldman Sachs that are mistreating workers 
and destroying our communities.
_*Sign our petition to support college students’ efforts to reform Teach 
For America, and fight for quality public education.*_ 
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In solidarity,
Will Daniels, USAS Local 734
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*United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org 
<http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=AdddZplyRPMl8leyZ%2B3ISrYIm%2FHfegfq>*
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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