Yikes! Michigan's Legislature Has Gone Caca-KoOko0--Contact Your Reps RIGHT NOW!
Yesterday the Ann Arbor Chronicle published my latest column, which is about how Michigan's lame-duck lawmakers are cramming through several laws that will privatize education--and doing so without public debate, and despite wide ranging protest from families, educators, and freaked out citizens. The column begins:
I’d like you to add at least one more letter to your list: I need you to drop a line to your state reps, senators, and the governor telling them that you’re opposed to any expansion of Michigan’s Education Achievement Authority during the current lame duck session.
You’ll want to tell these folks to oppose or veto House Bill 6004 and Senate Bill 1358 (which expand the Education Achievement Authority) and House Bill 5923 (allowing for the unlimited formation of new publicly-funded charter and cyber schools).
More than that, though, I want you to activate your whole network – that Facebook thing you do, that Twitter thing and even LinkedIn. Because I bet you have friends, family members and colleagues who live in Kalamazoo, Traverse City, Grand Rapids, Bad Ax or wherever else in Michigan, who you can move to action by nudging them with social media. What we want to do here is activate the entire state.
And is followed by a template letter and contact info for your reps, plus 3000 words explaining whats wrong with this specific education scheme. Since this column went live *yesterday* our Governor has pulled a 180 on right-to-work legislation (a confusing double-speak name; it means that the Governor and state GOP are now aggressively anti-union and passing laws to hobble collective bargaining) and our State Senate has pushed through draconian, bigoted anti-abortion laws.
These bills are being raced through without debate or public comment. They locked the capitol yesterday afternoon--in contempt of a court order *not to do so*--in order to keep out the People out yesterday, and maced protestors on the capitol steps.
So, *damn*; if there was ever a day to email your reps and the governor, it's *TODAY* Go. Go now. DO THIS!
