DSA-LA’s Green New Deal for Public Schools LA campaign is hosting a 3-part public education town hall series (via Zoom) that gets at the core of the fight to defend and fully fund our public schools.

If we want to win a robust Green New Deal for LA public schools, we must ensure that our schools are well resourced, fully staffed, and protected from capitalist forces that seek to privatize and siphon funding from public schools that serve the majority BIPOC working class communities of LA County.

The first installation of our town hall series is “Public Education v Billionaire Class”. In this town hall, we will discuss how public schools can become sites for class struggle and how LA has become one of the key battlegrounds in the fight over school privatization.

To prepare for this town hall we have a shortlist of readings for attendees to review in advance. We highly recommend reading the articles listed below as they will contribute to a collective discussion of the issues facing our public schools and how we can organize to build the schools students deserve.

Readings for the town hall:

• To Protect Democracy, Defend Public Education – Interview with Derek W. Black
• What and who are fueling the movement to privatize public education — and why you should care – by Valerie Strauss

And here is a supplemental video explainer of Prop 13 and how it affects public school funding in California.

We look forward to your participation in this town hall conversation, and to working together to build stronger public schools!