The National Summit on Urban Education – Videos

National Urban Summit Leaders Push for Equitable High Quality Public Education – The Reverend Dr. Janette C. Wilson who currently serves as the Senior Advisor to Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr. and Jitu Brown National Director of The Journey For Justice Alliance, share the impetus and goals of the National Urban Education Summit. 60 years after Brown vs. Board of Education was decided we see inequities in Public Education based on Race and Class. The J4J Alliance, 37 organizations in 23 cities around the United States asserts, we are the real civil rights movement! Corporate reforms, proven mediocre interventions are only accepted because of the race and class of the children they “serve.” The goals of this Alliance are The End of Privatization of Public Education coupled with the adoption of Sustainable School Transformation, The end of School to Prison Pipeline and an emphasis on respect for and dignity of our children, Funding Equity, ending the attack on Black Teachers in Urban Schools and coupled with a commitment to Teachers who look like and have similar experiences as the students they teach.

Zakiyah Ansari the Advocacy Director for the Alliance for Quality Education and a mother of 8 children. In New York 12 % of the Black and Brown students are graduating college ready. Policies coming from the national government do not work! Corporate reform agenda is a failure. We have lost our moral compass in regards to children… Particularly children of color.

Read Death By a Thousand Cuts available at J4Jalliance.com or through the highlighted text links.

Rebecca Fernandez Community Engagement Specialist at the Patterson Education Organizing Council offers, there is an Assault on Brown and Black Communities. Paterson, with a school population of 29,000 students only graduated 19 students this year who are college and career ready. From Detroit our own Harriet Tubman, the President of Black Parents for Quality Education and The Keep the Vote No Takeover Coalition., Miss Helen Moore shared in 1973 there were 300+ schools now 93. Clear evidence of a corporate and federal government attack on public education in Detroit and around the country.

Jitu Brown and Karran Harper Royal remember ‘We are here to work!” Today we will create education policies for our children, Jitu Brown, “Give everything I can in the way I can…Work today believe with all your heart in our leaders … You are the leaders.” Sister Karran, “We are here as a movement not a moment Leave here today with a policy agenda that will impact the national discussion and the upcoming elections.”

Miss Jadine Johnson from the Advancement Project Civil Rights. She is an Attorney working with Journey For Justice

[J4J] on Title 6 Civil Rights lawsuits filed on behalf of students and parents from Newark, New Orleans and Chicago. While 40% of the students in Chicago are black 80 % of the students affected by school closings are Black, Out of 1000 students affected by school closures in New Orleans only 5 were white. Not one more closure of neighborhood schools! Title 6 complaints filed. Brandon Johnson a CTU teacher speaks to the precipitous decline of Black educators due to school closing as an attack on Black labor. Hold all elected officials accountable for the harm done to the Black and Brown communities

Jadine Johnson answers WBEZ reporters question on progress of Title 6 lawsuits. Investigations active in all three cities where lawsuits were filed. Reverend Wilson speaks to need to advocate for Justice in the courts, in the legislature and in the streets.

Jitu Brown in his introduction of Dr John Jackson Director of the Schott Foundation. Spoke to the need … “ to stop straddling the fence, the importance to speak power to power.” , what is important to say about Dr Jackson is, he is sincere…he remembers he is here to serve, and that he lives his commitment to the community. Dr Jackson stated: There is more power in this room than in the White House. We need to learn to use that power. Consider the story about the mule…that pulled the car out of the ditch? Otis, the mule acts differently when he knows he has support. We need to be that support, our work can be frustrating There is as there has been, hard work to do and more needs to be done. Brown [versus the Board of Education] was a first down not a touchdown.. The story of a Boy living in a tomb … there was someone willing to go to him …We cannot help people we are not willing to reach. Our challenge is to bring a living agenda to all … not just the bright 4.0 students but to all regardless of status.

Unchained but still not free our students are being pushed out of schools how do we get rid of that policy? Genetically we are 99.6 percent the same. It is social policies that make up “race.” Change the policy! Stop incarceration! Draw the line…or erase lines that divide us from our communities, our interests, and ourselves. Let’s talk about education, the economy, housing, food…Connect.