At 1:00, all of the walk out planners went into a deserted class room and planned the walkout. Mum was the word, for we did not want the school board to here word of this walkout in fear of prevention. We had to hide a megaphone under a jacket, and signs were secretly brought into the school. Many of the Jefferson students were afraid about the consequences and the planning of this walkout because they had never done it before. Tensions were high, and thoughts of canceling were more than considerable, but we still stood strong.
When the clock reached 1:30, there was no turning back. We left the class room and started yelling "walkout!" We banged on lockers, knocked on doors, and cheered to get everyone out of their classroom. Of course, the Jefferson students knew about this before hand, but we wanted to let them know it was time. People rushed out of their classrooms with smiles on their face. We screamed and yelled until the fire alarm was pulled. Let me just say, that was a brilliant idea. It eliminated the possibility of suspension and got everyone outside.
When we went outside, student volunteers spoke on the megaphone about the teacher cuts. What seemed like 300 students were all waiting for us outside. 26 teachers are being cut from Jefferson alone, while none are being cut from Lincoln. Lincoln, as part of students for peace, had at around 5-6 people supporting Jefferson. There is a war on the poor that is happening but no one is noticing it. Jefferson, after the cuts, will have a 1-20 teacher/student ratio. That is counting counselors, staff, coaches, etc. So you really have to think about what class is going to be like after the cuts.
Around 2 o'clock, we started the march. We marched around the school twice. There was a little trouble with taking the streets, we had been warned not to. We tried to get everyone on the sidewalks, but the media coverage was a very vital thing so in some cases we had to take the streets. We ended the same place we started, in front of the school. Some students went back to class and some stayed for the press. We talked to the press for about twenty minutes (don't worry KATU wasn't there) and then did a sit in. We sat on the steps while speakers from Jefferson told us their stories. A couple of students sang a nice rendition of "we shall not be moved," followed by some choir songs. I got to talk to some people about their past experiences with protests, so it was quite enjoyable. Oddly enough, the police did not give us guff about sitting on the stairs. At 3:00, because of more planning, we decided to postpone all action until we can go to city hall. I will fill you in when that happens, or at least when we have a plan for it.
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