This Wednesday, May 29, Spiral Q Puppet Theatre, Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY), and a group of students from Powel Elementary are teaming up to stage an “artful action” in front of City Hall and in the City Hall Caucus Room to protest the proposed school budget cuts. Specifically, this event addresses the need for art instruction in the schools that would be eliminated if the proposed budget comes into effect. The students will be there from 9 to 11 a.m. and are inviting other kids to join them.
Spiral Q and PCCY, which helped arrange the event, will transport several of the “Terracotta Warriors” that children made this semester as part of this year’s school-wide thematic unit on China (students choose a different country/culture each year). Each warrior is the size of a child and was decorated by a small group of children.
Along with the visuals, the students and parents will deliver petitions to Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell, who is the chair of the Education Committee.
Powel invites other schools and kids to join in tomorrow’s action as it will be “a pretty cool sight to see” and also to bring “drums, signs, gongs, [and] enthusiasm!”
For more information and the tentative schedule please visit the event’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/events/139407546249353/
May 29th, 2013 at 7:40 pm
Great job by Powel students! Here’s what’s going on tomorrow (courtesy of Teacher Action Group)
3:30 PM: Rally with the Counselors @ City Hall
Philly Counselors United will be meeting outside of City Hall to deliver letters of support to City Council, and then marching their way up Broad Street to the main rally. Go support the lifeblood of our schools!
4:00 PM: Save Arts & Music @ 440
The Masterman Student Orchestra will be putting on a protest concert to demand that SDP save funding for arts and music in next year’s budget. Go stand with our students!
4:30 PM: The Big Rally against the Doomsday Budget @ 440
Let the School Reform Commission know that we won’t stand for their budget! Bring your colleagues. Bring your students. Bring your families. Wear red.
And watch for members of PCAPS, who will be out collecting signatures in support of the Use and Occupancy Tax Reform Bill. As reported by Fight for Philly, “The bill maintains the city’s current U&O rate instead of lowering it, in an effort to balance an estimated $200 million shift in the tax burden from large commercial properties to residential ones under AVI.