Teachers and students from across Oklahoma protested for more public education funding Wednesday outside the south end of the state capitol.
The rally lasted approximately four and a half hours, but protestors were outside and inside the Capitol as early as 7:30 a.m. Many of them carried picket signs and posters in opposition to the Oklahoma legislature or in support of Oklahoma teachers.
The rally opened with students from Edmond Memorial, Bethany, Ardmore and other high schools reading speeches in front of the public in attendance. After, OEA president Alicia Priest addressed the crowd and introduced guest speakers who spoke in support for the teachers.
“We want you to continue to walk,” said Princess Moss, secretary-treasurer of the National Education Association and one of the guest speakers at the protest. “Walk until you are heard. Walk until the legislators do the right thing in funding our schools.”
The rally also featured recently-eliminated American Idol contestant and Oklahoma native Thaddeus Johnson. Johnson performed Josh Groban’s “You Raise Me Up” and Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” and even led the crowd in some dance routines.
These teachers came out despite the passing of House Bill 1010XX last week, which put aside a $447 million revenue package for teacher pay raises. According to many teachers, however, this is not just getting more money for themselves, but also acquiring more resources for their students.
“We’re doing this for them – so that when they get to high school – we want books in their hands that they can actually learn from and not stuff that’s happened 20 years ago,” said Brandy McNeely, a fifth-grade teacher in the Midwest City-Del City School District. “And, we should have those. Oklahoma is a great state. We just need to put that into our education.”
The teachers who protested at the state capitol will potentially have more opportunities to have their voices heard as the week continues. As of Wednesday, 60 school districts, including Norman and Oklahoma City Public Schools, have already announced they will be closed at least for Thursday, and over half of those will not be in session Friday as well.
Jericka Handie, Adam Seibel, and Brandon Martin also contributed to this article.
