Hundreds of teachers protest for equity in SC schools
Hundreds of teachers from around the state rallied in Columbia Saturday to advocate for the lives and education of Black students while calling on elected leaders to ensure those students have equitable opportunities inside and outside the classroom.
The peaceful demonstration, called “Teachers March for Black Lives,” started just before noon and marked the second full week of protests in the state’s capital following the death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man who died after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.
While the circumstances surrounding Floyd’s death have resulted in mass Black Lives Matter protests around the country, protesters say Floyd is just one name on a long list of unarmed African Americans unjustly killed by law enforcement officers. Teachers said Saturday they fear that if systemic racism and disparities aren’t addressed quickly, one of their students could be next.
“I don’t want my students to grow up and get killed,” said Kelsey Harris, a Greenville middle school teacher for students with disabilities.
Harris was among the throng of advocates who said they felt compelled to travel from around the state to march from South Carolina’s Department of Education building to the steps behind the State House.
Along the way, teachers held signs and chanted “our students matter,” “Black lives matter” and “let out students live.”
A few called on local leaders to defund police departments and prisons, while others asked that those resources be reinvested into schools to better pay and equip educators and counselors who speak with students everyday.
But most had a simpler request: equal treatment.
Zuleika Jackson-Jones, a fifth grade math and science teacher in Columbia who lives in Blythewood, carried a sign with pictures of her son, a recent high school graduate. She said she worries every day about racism and excessive use of force by officers.
“The fear I have when my son steps out of the house, and when he’s not home at a certain time, it’s real. The anxiety is real,” she said. “I’m out here because my baby’s life matters.”
Event organizers spoke to the crowd about how laws, schools and court systems have historically been unfair to minorities compared to whites.
Rye Martinez, a co-founder of “I Can’t Breathe S.C.,” said money is often a driving factor in who can obtain a quality education and become successful in life. She said segregation still exists because Black students are more likely to live in lower income neighborhoods and go to lesser quality schools compared to white students. Those disparities also lead to other statistics that negatively affect Black people, such as who is more likely to be targeted by police or commit crimes or use drugs.
“It’s like all odds are against us as minorities,” Martinez said.
In order to address some of those issues, teachers like as Lindsay Hulett, of Summerville, say educators are sharing resources to do their part. Just being more cognizant of their own biases in the classrooms, she said, can go a long way in tackling racism at an early age.
“The education piece is so important because when you’re in the classroom, you see those kids for an hour a day and to know what comes into the classroom with them is invaluable to helping them learn and succeed,” the middle school teacher said. “I’m not just a white lady teaching them math. I care about them as individuals, I care about where they came from.”
Traveling with Hulett was Adrianne Dukes, a kindergarten teacher at Flowertown Elementary School in Summerville.
Dukes carried a Black Lives Matter sign with the names of some of her students on it. The sign said, “Please don’t make one of their names the next.”
“Anytime you hear about another person losing their life, you just can’t help but tie that back to our students,” she said.
The gathering occurred as South Carolina is reporting its highest daily totals of new coronavirus cases. In response to critics who say protesters may contribute to the spread of the virus, event organizers say they were well aware the pandemic is ongoing. Most protesters could be seen wearing masks and free masks were handed out to those who needed them. There were also free COVID-19 testing resources available, organizers said.
“This is a real-time civil rights movement,” said Merrell Johnson, a volunteer with “I Can’t Breathe.”
“This is very important and staying at home is not an option.”
Though protests have slowed in recent days, Martinez said her group’s efforts haven’t.
“You may not see us as much in front of the State House, you may not see us as much walking, but our work load has not slowed down,” Martinez said. “We’re still working to get those laws changed.”
This story was originally published June 13, 2020 at 4:55 PM.