National Week of Action on School Pushout
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National Week of Action on School Pushout: October 1-8, 2011
Throughout the week of October 1-8, 2011, thousands of parents, youth, and educators took part in student-led actions and events in 28 cities to expose the school pushout crisis in our nation and advocate for the human right of every young person to a quality education and to be treated with dignity. The events and actions included street theater, public forums, rallies, restorative justice trainings, and more.
The Dignity in Schools Campaign’s National Week of Action brought together organizations and individuals from 14 states and Washington, D.C. to call for an end to zero tolerance policies, for the implementation of positive approaches to discipline, like restorative justice practices and positive behavior supports instead of relying solely on suspensions and expulsions, and for the passage of federal legislation that promotes positive school climates.
- Download the DSC National Week of Action Platform in English and/or in Spanish.
- Download the DSC Factsheets on School Pushout here.
Find a Week of Action event near you:
California Colorado District of Columbia (DC) Florida
Georgia Illinois Louisiana Maryland Massachusetts Mississippi
Missouri New York North Carolina Oregon Pennsylvania
Week of Action Videos:
- Week of Action on School Pushout 2011 PSA
- Video of DSC-NY rally and march
- Video of Nollie Jenkins Family Center phone banking
- Virtual Rally for School Discipline: Los Angeles, CA, Part 1
- Virtual Rally for School Discipline: Los Angeles, CA, Part 2
- Video of "100 Days of Colorado Stories" Padres y Jovenes Unidos: Denver, CO
Week of Action Media Coverage:
- School Discipline Policies in Colorado Too Harsh? Lawmakers and Advocates Say Yes By Melanie Asmar, Denver Times, 10/11/11
- Protestors Chant for an End to Excessive Suspensions of Students By Kait Richmond, Pavement Pieces, 10/06/11
- Padres y Jóvenes Unidos Proponen Alternativas al Sistema Disciplinario Escolar Viva Colorado, 10/06/11
- Positive School Environments, Not Metal Detectors, Are the Key to Student Success By Claudia Gomez and Leslie Mendoza, The Eastside Sun, 10/06/11
- Protesta por Politica de Cero Tolerencia KCEC News, 10/05/11
- Study Finds Minority Students Get Harsher Punishments By Nirvi Shah, Education Week, 10/5/11
- Minority Students Face Harsher Punishments, Report Shows Huffington Post, 10/5/11
- National report highlights punitive suspensions of minority students, which are on the rise in Baltimore The Baltimore Sun, 10/5/11
- Treme Center to Host Forum on School Discipline Policies Tonight By Andrew Vanacore, The Times-Picayune, 10/04/11
- New York's Pushout Crisis: Why Students Don't Graduate By Emily Shaw, Liz Sullivan and Refat Shoshi Chowdhury, Gotham Gazette, 09/27/11
Photos from Week of Action Events
- Black Organizing Project (BOP) in Oakland, CA
- COFI/Power-Pac in Chicago, IL
- Padres y Jovenes Unidos - Denver, CO
- "Speak Out!" Virtual Rally - Los Angeles, CA
- Community Roundtable - McComb, MS
- "Forgiveness" a Community Conversation - Lawrenceville, GA
Join the Dignity in Schools Campaign on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to recieve updates about the 2011 Week of Action.
Contact Chloe Dugger to learn about how to get involved in this year’s Week of Action.
Organizations participating in the National Week of Action include:
Access Living, ACLU of Eastern Missouri, ACLU of Pennsylvania, ACLU of Southern California, Action Communication and Education Reform, Activists With A Purpose, Advocates for Children of New York, Advocates for Children's Services (a project of Legal Aid of North Carolina), Advocates for Justice and Education, Atlanta Community Engagement Team (ACET), Black Organizing Project, Blocks Together, Boston Parent Organizing Network (BPON), Boston Student Advisory Council, Boston-area Youth Organizing Project, Center for Community Alternatives, Children’s Defense Fund – California, Children's Defense Fund - New York, Citizens for a Better Greenville, COFI, Community Asset Development Re-defining Education (CADRE), Community Rights Campaign of the Labor/Community Strategy Center, Concerned Citizens for a Better Tunica County, Desis Rising Up and Moving (DRUM), Dignity in Schools – NY, DSC-Los Angeles, Education Not Incarceration, Families and Friends of Louisiana's Incarcerated Children (FFLIC), Fannie Lou Hamer Center for Change, Freedom House, Future of Tomorrow, Generation Y, Girls for Gender Equity, Gwinnett STOPP, Interfaith Children's Movement, Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana (JJPL), Kids Rethink New Orleans Schools, Lambda Legal's Southern Regional Office, Make the Road New York, Mass Transit Street Theatre, Morehouse Chapter of the NAACP, MS Coalition for the Prevention of Schoolhouse to Jailhouse, National Economic and Social Rights Initiative (NESRI), New Settlement Apartments Parent Action Committee, New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), Nollie Jenkins Family Center, Padres y Jovenes Unidos, Parents Organized to Win, Educate and Renew - Policy Action Council (POWER-PAC), Portland Parent Union, Power U Center for Social Change, Public Counsel, Safe Schools Healthy Students - New Orleans Recovery District, Sistas and Brothas United, SNAPPS, Sunflower County Parents and Students Organization, Teachers Unite, The Commutation Project, Urban Youth Collaborative (UYC), West Town Leadership United (WTLU), Women of God's Design Ministry, Young Adults Striving for Success (YASS), Young People's Project - Greater Boston, Youth Innovation Movement Solutions, Youth Justice Coalition, Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice, Youth on Board, Youth on the Move, YWCA of the Greater Triangle.
Scroll down to read about last year's Week of Action and watch videos from our on-line School Pushout Story Bank.
National Week of Action on School Pushout: October 11-17, 2010
The Dignity in Schools Campaign organized actions around the country during the week of October 11-17 to expose the pushout crisis in our nation’s schools and advocate for the human right of every student to a quality education and to be treated with dignity.
Read about actions and events that took place below and join our call to action by contributing to testimony to our on-line School Pushout Story Bank [http://dsc.jillhubley.com/content/school-pushout-story-bank]or signing the National Resolution for Ending School Pushout [http://dsc.jillhubley.com/content/dignity-schools-national-resolution-ending-school-pushout]!
Read our DSC Week of Action flyer and press release (also available in Spanish).
Week of Action Nationwide Events
During the National Week of Action, communities around the country engaged in different local activities to bring people together and support local change. Read below for highlights of activities by state, or access a list of events by date. Here are examples of what communities around the country are doing.
Atlanta, GA: Parents and Community Members Break Down the Pipeline
Itta Bena, MS and Chicago, IL: Youth Speak Out Against Zero Tolerance and Offer Positive Solutions
Los Angeles, CA: Caps and Gowns, Not Jail Cell Bound [http://dsc.jillhubley.com/dsc-ny-oct-14-teach-in]
New York, NY: Youth Speak Out Against Zero Tolerance and Offer Positive Solutions
Week of Action Film Highlights
Take a look at the various actions in cities across the country. Watch youth, parents, advocacy organizations and others come together to raise awareness and pushback for dignity and fairness in school.
The Dignity in Schools Campaign is collecting video, audio and written testimony for the online School Pushout Story Bank.
Dignity in Schools National Resolution for Ending School Pushout
Over 200 organizations and individuals have signed on to support the resolution, a call to action for our school systems to end the harsh disciplinary policies and law enforcement tactics that push too many young people out of school.