The last kick in the gut inflicted by the revolutionaries in the Portland teachers' union when they agreed to go back to work after a month-long strike was to be gifted a two-hour late start. Getting paid to strike is so tiring. And though the strike is over for the moment, it's worth remembering the antics and activities of the union members who pretended to strike for "the children" but did it for "raw power."
For my money, not that there's much of it these days — thanks Democrats — the best part of the strike was when the Antifastanis, which comprise a large number of teachers, began ordering the kids to be on the picket line or else.
Portland Public Schools @PPSConnect teacher Sunshine Meadow Mcfaul Amadoro (that’s her real name, she teaches at Grant High School) released a statement saying she would not write letter of recommendations for her students who don’t attend her political protest.… https://t.co/bYyKI1nFVC pic.twitter.com/CpfzQ3l1Dv
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) November 21, 2023
That's right, a teacher borne of hippies, Sunshine Meadow Mcfaul Amadoro, who teaches at Portland's Grant High School, said on social media that if kids didn't hit the picket lines in solidarity with teachers, she wouldn't bother to write them a letter of recommendation. Good grief, no wonder the union issued a plea for teachers to shut up.
Related: Angry Parents Weigh In on Portland's Teachers Strike, Which Has SHUT DOWN All the Schools
Before the gag order, a union executive board member said it was just so great to have the kids "come to the [picket] line, make us food every day." Indeed, Democratic Socialist Party member and teachers' union board member, Emily Golden-Fields, said going on strike was a teachable moment for the children.
They are learning how to be leaders. They are learning what civil disobedience is. They are learning what the movement is. What a strike is. And our community and our students are in lockstep with us. We are fighting for what our students need, what our families need. We are all in the fight together because it's all for the common good...We are on the way to reshaping this district and this state.
And she shared her feelings about the "raw power" she felt the union was using.
Gong on strike has been "an eye opening transformative experience" says schools are underfunded. "using our raw power has been amazing to see" fawning over community support
That's not all that she said on the Portland-area revolutionary granola radio station, KBOO. I've got another piece nearby on PJ Media about how the strike wasn't really about the children but about the revolution. You'll want to check it out.
This kind of social blackmail wasn't unusual for the Portland Antifa Association of Teachers. Tuesday before Thanksgiving, the union ordered teachers to come for a march downtown where they were stage-managed into taking over the Burnside Bridge and sitting down. The union ordered that the city be held hostage for about an hour by staging their sit-in on a major bridge that links the downtown area to the East side of the city.
STRIKE CONTINUES: Hundreds of @pdxteachers are sitting on the Burnside Bridge as the @PPSConnect strike moves into its 4th week. Teachers tell me they’re frustrated by the lack of movement from the district on approving a contract.
— Savannah Welch (@svnnh_wlch) November 21, 2023
They tell me they hope this sends a message: pic.twitter.com/7e6uClfVgp
The Portland Antifa teachers doxxed the school board members splaying their home addresses on social media.
Related: How the Mobs Stole Christmas (Tree Lightings)
The chief negotiator for the board, Chairman Gary Holland, had the word "shame" spray painted on his expensive car. The home of another board member, Julia Brim-Edwards, was vandalized. The district guaranteed that this behavior would continue by giving teachers a pass for threats against students and the community by promising not to retaliate or seek to discipline any teachers who did it.
After being targeted, Brim-Edwards capitulated to the mob and then welcomed them back with lots of hearts and exclamation points.
‼️ Welcome Back ❤️ ❤️❤️
— Julia Brim-Edwards (@BrimJulia) November 27, 2023
(For additional news/info: https://t.co/wt89Z0z09Y)@PPSConnect @pdxteachers pic.twitter.com/77QM5iVRoH
There were mixed feelings about going back. Some parents and citizens wondered why parents would bother sending their kids back to "school" when standards have been thrown out for the entire state anyway. How much more learning loss could be had with the teachers in the classroom versus out of the classroom, they asked. One parent wrote on a local social media account that "The kids are better off at home learning from their parents. They have a better chance of learning reading writing and math. [sic]"
Teachers complained of uncomfortable classrooms, rats, deferred maintenance, and greed. Whose greed? Not theirs, of course.
For their part, teachers were given more prep time and full pay for November when they didn't work and received $120/day strike pay, along with their new, higher pay from the day they ratified the contract. Union members who worked during the strike won't get "more than their salary for the work performed."
And with this agreement, they've been given a hall pass to do it all over again.
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