Tucson Students Take Over School Board Over Ethnic Studies

Students in Tucson, Arizona preempted what they perceive to be a vote to undo ethnic studies in their schools, rushed into the Tucson Unified School District board room, tied themselves to the board members’ chairs, and held a protest that lasted for hours. Below is a video of the students chanting, and as you can see, it’s a very powerful and passionate protest.

The students were chanting, “Our education is under attack, what do we do? Fight back.” From what I gather the issue is this: board President Mark Stegeman is trying to make Mexican-American studies classes into electives, not core courses, thus de-legitimizing and less legitimate than “real” history, such as U.S. History, for example. When the students took over the board room last night, they prevented a vote on this measure, though it’s been rescheduled for — of all days — 5 de mayo. Here’s more:

The board was scheduled to consider a proposal that some Mexican American Studies courses would no longer be used to fulfill core-curriculum requirements.

The protest was organized by a youth coalition called UNIDOS. The group demanded the proposal, written by board President Mark Stegeman, be withdrawn…

Stegeman proposed the program change because he felt that some Mexican American Studies courses fall short in covering core topics, just as traditional core social studies classes do not provide adequate coverage of alternative viewpoints.

We’ve written previously about Arizona’s move to outlaw ethnic studies, and a subsequent effort to save ethnic studies in that state. We’ll keep you updated on developments here at News Taco.

Follow Sara Inés Calderón on Twitter @SaraChicaD