Strong Crowd Shows Up To Oppose HISD Takeover & Defend Democracy

There was a crowd of about 250 at the Hattie Mae White HISD administrative complex in the summer heat at 9 AM on Saturday, 8/5 to protest the shut down of 28 libraries at Black and Brown Houston schools.

The libraries are being replaced with Zoom discipline chambers where kids will be sent as punishment.

The strong crowd is part of a growing movement in Houston on behalf of our kids & in support of democracy. Houston has lost its elected school board in what just 60 years ago a Jim Crow City.   

(The picture is two women at the protest who made excellent umbrellas reminiscent of the use of umbrellas by pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong.)     

Belligerent Greg Abbott-appointed superintendent Mike Miles is making a lot of rushed changes. He wants to end union involvement in HISD & seeks approval to be able to offer contracts to vendors of up to $2 million without an okay from the Abbott-appointed Board of Managers. He'll just say where the money goes. 

What does the Board of Managers think about all this? Nobody knows. They've taken a vow of silence it seems. You can say as little as you want when not accountable to voters. 

Community Voices for Public Education is a good source to follow to stay updated on opposition to the hostile takeover.

The anti-democratic state takeover is fully connected to the ongoing sham lawsuits by Harris County Republicans to undo much of the 2022 Harris County election, the ceaseless attacks by the Texas state legislature on the political autonomy of diverse urban areas in Texas & the ongoing dangerous embrace of Donald Trump by much of the national Republican Party.

​The fight for our Houston schools and the fight for democracy are the same fight. The takeover of HISD isn't just bad for kids. It is part of the  far-right ongoing coup against voting rights and democracy.

The Houston Democracy Project is working every day to put democracy on the agenda in 2023 Houston city elections. Please share word of the Project & please support the effort with your donation. ​

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