NCAE calling on NC teachers to take off work to protest in Raleigh. Here’s when
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- NCAE urges teachers to skip work May 1 and gather in Raleigh for protest.
- Organizers link the march to national May Day actions and long-term political goals.
- Critics warn closures will disrupt families, students, and hourly school workers.
The North Carolina Association of Educators is encouraging teachers to call out of work on May 1 for a mass march in Raleigh to protest for more funding for public schools.
NCAE is telling teachers that they need to come to Raleigh during school hours on May 1 “to take back control of public dollars, hold politicians accountable to families instead of donors, and finally put our kids first.” This would be the first mass mobilization organized by NCAE since the May 16, 2018 and May 1, 2019 marches in Raleigh that caused many school districts to close due to not having enough staff to supervise students.
“We have reached the conclusion that it is time to take the issue to our legislators’ bosses,” NCAE said in an FAQ on the May 1 march. “WE THE PEOPLE, in order to make the general public understand the moral disgrace of failing to put our kids first and ultimately with the aim of changing the composition of the legislature itself.”
NCAE says the May 1 march in Raleigh is part of a nationally coordinated effort of no school, no work and no shopping to coincide with International Workers’ Day.
Will protest burden working families?
The NCAE’s list of frequently asked questions explaining the reasons for the march was first reported by the Carolina Journal. In an opinion piece in the Carolina Journal, Terry Stoops said ordinary North Carolinians will bear the burden if schools have to close on May 1.
“When unanticipated cancellations occur, working parents must scramble to make arrangements for child care, students are deprived of a day of learning, and districts’ hourly workers are robbed of a day’s wages,” said Stoops, the director of state affairs for the group Defending Education.
But Tamika Walker Kelly, president of NCAE, said North Carolina parents are already burdened by problems, such as having substitute teachers cover their children’s classes because the state doesn’t provide enough money to pay teachers. Walker Kelly said the need for the rally is especially important now since the N.C. Supreme Court dismissed the 32-year-old Leandro school funding lawsuit on Thursday.
“This moment right now calls for a level of advocacy from public school educators and those who support public schools differently than it did before,” Walker Kelly said in an interview Monday with the News & Observer “We definitely want to make sure that we are amplifying the voices of our students and our educators at this moment, because it is deeply important to the future of public schools in North Carolina.”
Protest would come on a school day
NCAE officially distanced itself from protests earlier this year on Nov. 7 and Jan. 7 when some teachers called out of work to lobby for more state funding.
But NCAE is using the organization’s influence to bring people on May 1 to Halifax Mall by the Legislative Building. NCAE wants people in Raleigh by 11 a.m. for events that run until 3 p.m., which would last much of the school day.
May 1 is a teacher workday for traditional-calendar schools in Wake County, where Raleigh is located. But many schools across the state, as well as year-round schools in Wake County, are in session that Friday
The NCAE memo includes a section answering the question “won’t we be hurting our students by not being in the classroom?” NCAE’s response is that “the way we hurt our kids the most is by doing nothing and failing to stand up for what is right.”
“Our hearts are with our students and in our classrooms, but when the very idea of strong public schools is under attack and our kids’ future of growing up in a democracy is in jeopardy, it is our professional obligation and moral responsibility to fight for our kids,” NCAE says in its memo.
It’s unclear how many teachers will be able to come on May 1. But Walker Kelly said that’s why they’re also asking public education supporters and students to come as well.
“It remains to be seen how large this rally is,” Walker Kelly said. “But we definitely wanted to make sure that we were able to make our mark and make our voices heard.”
NCAE demands for May 1 protest
Since the 2019 march, NCAE notes how North Carolina has fallen to 50th in the nation in public school funding, according to a ranking by the Education Law Center.
The NCAE memo links people to a website asking them to sign up for the march. The website lists multiple demands it says it wants the Republican-controlled General Assembly to make, including:
- Invest at least $20,000 per student by 2030 — the highest funding in the Southeast.
- Fund modern facilities, free school meals and more health professionals in schools.
- Recruit and retain quality public school teachers and staff with affordable healthcare, better retirement benefits and a raise of at least 25% for all school employees.
- End corporate tax breaks and redirect that money to public schools and healthcare.
- Eliminate private school vouchers.
- Lift the ban on collective bargaining for public school workers.
The rally is part of NCAE’s Kids Over Corporations campaign.
Are teachers striking May 1?
Under state law, public employees are not allowed to go on strike. In its FAQ, NCAE said May 1 “is not a strike.”
“It is a mass mobilization to our State Capital to shine a spotlight on the moral disgrace of our leaders and to stand up for democracy and our kids,” NCAE continued. “We will be powerfully changing the conversation in North Carolina and setting ourselves up for wins in the near future, but we are not refusing to work until all our demands are met.”
NCAE says the UAW (United Auto Workers) is leading talks about having a general strike in 2028. But for now, NCAE says the May 1 march is one way to build their skill and readiness “for a more potentially powerful action” in the future.
“While it’s true NC teachers don’t have a protected right to strike, neither did any of the workers in our history who stood up to win us protections like the weekend, 8-hour work day and Social Security,” according to NCAE.
NCAE looks to fall General Assembly elections
NCAE says it doesn’t expect any dramatic change to occur right after the May 1 protest. But the group says it wants to get people talking in the lead up to November’s elections, when Democrats hope to break the Republican majority in the General Assembly.
“We want to remind our elected leaders, loudly and clearly, that their legislative building is really The People’s House,” NCAE says. “If they continue to undermine democracy and fail to put our kids first, then we will be voting them out in November.”
In his opinion piece, Stoops noted how NCAE’s parent organization — the National Education Association — is part of a nationwide effort calling for collective action on May 1.
“While the NCAE parrots many of the same class-war talking points as their comrades, its leadership has a more specific target in mind — undermining the Republican-led General Assembly,” Stoops writes. “And they are shockingly comfortable allowing North Carolina children and families to suffer to achieve their shameless political ambitions.”
