At 11:30 a.m., hundreds of high-school and middle-school students walked out of their classes at Boston schools and streamed onto buses and subways for the ride downtown to let the mayor and the governor know they don't want their programs cut.
They swarmed out of Downtown Crossing for a rally at the Parkman Bandstand on the Common, followed by a march up to the State House and then to Faneuil Hall. Mayor Walsh, who was attending a press conference at Faneuil Hall to announce that Boston would host a conference for millennials who want to get rich, got into his car and left without talking to the students outside. Perhaps he heard them booing his name and vowing to make him a one-term mayor.
Heading to the State House:
Although Mayor Walsh has announced a $13-million increase in city funding on BPS, school officials say they still need to make cuts because of previously negotiated salary increases, transportation costs that did not come down after assignment zones were rejiggred and other increases. Much of the $50 million in cuts will come in centralized services such as janitorial services, but high schools will all have to make cuts - some have already announced plans to lay off librarians and eliminate some foreign-language classes. Elementary schools are largely spared because they have fewer discretionary programs to begin with.
Students chanted "What do we want? Education? And if we don't get it? Shut it down!"
Some protesters were silent as they held their signs:
And one protester took it out on a presidential candidate:
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Comments
Good for them
By anon (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:16pm
I hope they stay smart about it. There are good activists and bad 'activists', and young people don't yet know enough to always pick the right role model or advisor.
Chaos
By CCD
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:18pm
They all congregated in Downtown Crossing near Primark. Not sure if that's where the protest ended. There were some fights/altercations among students, one girl was hauled off in cuffs. Easily 25+ police(Transit and BPD). Looks like they shoulda stayed in school instead!
No news is bad news
By BostonDog
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 5:49pm
I'm sure most students don't condone the violence. If there wasn't these protests a majority of the city wouldn't know about the cuts. Now at least the topic is out there and it isn't just parents who are aware.
I'd be pessimistic much will change as a result but it hardly supports Walsh and puts schools front and center which is a good thing.
Most student
By anon (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:38pm
Acted like a bunch of belligerent thugs - I saw it, and I'm glad there were plenty of cops around.
No
By adamg
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:58pm
There may have been issues with some kids at DTX, but the vast majority peacefully exercised their First Amendment rights. I know, because I was in the middle of them all for a couple hours.
Who was fighting? Was it
By Patricia
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 4:44pm
Who was fighting? Was it fights breaking out among the students? Or, was there a counter protester(s)?
Adam. Please.
By erik g
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 5:33pm
He posted it on the INTERNET. You can't just make things up when you post them on the INTERNET. I suppose we're supposed to value "journalistic integrity" and a "long history of providing boots-on-the-street coverage while the two fishwrappers in town are busy writing opinion pieces about the Olympics" over the word of a guy who was there and saw those thugs in action?
Thugs, Really?
By Ms.C (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 5:46pm
Why are you calling them thugs exactly?
Thugs are violent criminals. I have seen no reports of people being arrested at the protest. Even if we pretend there were some arrests, a small minority of students do not represent an entire group (that was largely peaceful) and they do not give you license to accuse them all of being criminals.
Pretend?
By Anon (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 6:47pm
So, should we ignore the fact that there were in fact arrests and fighting and simply pretend, whatever you meant by that? And as a matter of fact that percentage does represent the entire group - the loud, violent ones are the leaders that everyone else looks up to.
Imagine...
By SoBoYuppie (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 7:24pm
...if one of these kids sent 3,000 Americans to die in an immoral war.
You'd be really bent out of shape because if you weren't you'd by a hypocrite.
Care to share
By SwirlyGrrl
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 8:00pm
Your sources on "fights and arrests"?
Other than our imaginative anons here who swear that they must have happened?
Fights and arrests
By HenryAlan
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 9:12pm
Unfortunately, there was at least one brawl resulting in three or four arrests. I saw it and know that it happened. I also know that there were well over a thousand other well behaved kids at the rally. So while some may want to use an isolated incident to tarnish the rest, the lie isn't that it happened, but that it was widespread.
Thank you
By SwirlyGrrl
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 10:20pm
You are a reputable witness (some anons were claiming fighting in times/places where I was there or could see from my window). Thanks for reporting in.
True story
By CCD
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 8:25am
I work on Arch st and confirm this happened. The students were congregating at the intersection of Winter St and Washington. There was one girl being led off in cuffs. Something about throwing a water. It was quite an energetic and fired up group of students. Maybe cause of the protest? Or cause they werent in school?
This girl?
By adamg
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 8:27am
Teen in cuffs.
So, by your small minded
By Mz M (not verified)
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 2:43pm
So, by your small minded thinking, the other 3,490 peaceful demonstrators disobeyed their leaders????
To clarify...
By erik g
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 7:15am
I thought my original statement was dripping with enough sarcasm that I didn't need to put the disclaimer, but it may have fallen flat. "Thugs" is a word with some notoriety around here, and when the commenter above me referred to the student crowd as such, it got my dander up. Obviously the student protesters are not criminals, and the folks who are dog-whistling otherwise are schmucks of the highest order.
EXACTLY! Well said.
By Mz M (not verified)
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 2:41pm
EXACTLY! Well said.
Erik G. Please.
By Mz M (not verified)
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 2:40pm
Erik G. Please.
That fight at downtown crossing was AFTER the Walk Out. Those young people were dealt with. It has nothing to do with and and in no way diminishes the fact that THIRTY FIVE HUNDRED STUDENTS GATHERED IN PEACE!
Define "a bunch" because I
By 2 (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 4:32pm
Define "a bunch" because I was near the rally at the State House before heading to Park Plaza and the worst going on was loud chanting, which is to be expected at a rally.
Oh Hai Plural Challenged Anon
By SwirlyGrrl
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 6:43pm
Enjoying your unicycle? I know that you can't handle the plural of the word "wheel", either.
Those of us who got caught up in the swarm have a different story to tell. Energetic? Yes. Noisy, of course. Belligerent? Nope. One kid who was kind of dancing around walked right into me, but then apologised profusely and his buddies were helpful, too.
Perhaps you should go back to school and learn how to use your words properly.
I saw it too, work outside
By Down With Gentr... (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 8:49pm
I saw it too, work outside downtown and was there during entire ordeal. Yes the kids got into scuffles with eahother but the majority of the chaos was caused by unnecessary police intervention and antagonizing
It's okay to have an opinion
By AYouth (not verified)
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 9:45am
It's okay to have an opinion but please do not call my peers and I, "belligerent thugs". That would be greatly appreciated because us "belligerent thugs" care about our future and education. Instead of criticizing us youths, you should expand your vocabulary to more positive words. Thank you and have a blessed life.
Really?
By anon (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:33pm
I was at DTX when they were emerging. I think you have a very vivid imagination.
Most Remained Focused
By HenryAlan
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:52pm
I shadowed much of the rally and march, and while I did see some fights and arrests, such activity was not a significant feature of the event. Most of the kids were well behaved and orderly. This was true on the 'T and downtown.
Local TV news is reporting
By anon (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 6:12pm
Local TV news is reporting that some studens were throwing bottles at cops. That was disappointing to hear.
2/2500
By Matt (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 11:25pm
And this is what the media focuses on, to stoke your fears. The students were 99% bold and brave.
So protestors that throw
By anon (not verified)
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 7:54am
So protestors that throw bottles at the cops (1 T cop caught a bottle off the head) isn't newsworthy? There's a fine line between bravery and stupidity
When the students throwing bottles
By roadman
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 1:54pm
represent 0.08 percent of the crowd, then that's not newsworthy - it's just typical media sensationalism.
It's newsworthy
By Waquiot
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 2:42pm
But it is not the lede. The Herald did a good job reporting on the walkout that mentions the incident at the end, which is where they put similar incidents at the end of parades.
Most of them were protesting
By anon (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:33pm
Most of them were protesting peacefully which should also be mentioned. I believe they may have walked to the State House.
Imagine if
By FootPad
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:36pm
they employed the same zeal to their studies as they do this walkout. My cynical opinion is that most of the students used this event simply as a skip day and that if funds magically flowed into BPS as a result of this walkout then the students would not suddenly find algebra or calculus or any of the sciences or English/grammar or history any more interesting.
opportunity cost
By anon (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:40pm
so maybe they missed 3 hours of classroom instruction. That's nothing over the course of a school year.
On the other hand, if this galvanizes some move to increase funding, that's a big win for the students.
What's the real opportunity cost to skipping an afternoon here?
Put aside all the complexity around funding, budget, union negotiated salaries, etc... I mean just from the student perspective.
I doubt it.
By Malcolm Tucker
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:53pm
I tend to think that kids who want to skip a day of school won't then go to a massive protest. These kids all seem to feel pretty strongly about protesting the budget cuts - probably because they're smart and studious enough to understand how those cuts can harm their education going forward.
Imagine if you'd actually been there
By adamg
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 4:00pm
You would have found the kids both knowledgeable and well spoken.
high-school kids
By Ishmael Jones
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 4:09pm
I'm sure high school kids are probably knowledgeable about who organized this, and why they were demonstrating. I think whoever was behind this, though,should have left the 7th and 8th graders who are younger and less knowledgeable out of this.
Many of the students
By Kathode (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 4:58pm
do apply the same zeal to their studies. Who are you to assume otherwise? My son was worried about repercussions from leaving early, but ultimately decided to do it. It was not a "let's get a day off" kind of thing. He had already been in school for 3.5 hours. And many of these kids are protesting the loss of teachers, librarians, counselors, in some cases that would leave schools unaccredited.
As someone already said, if
By Ms.C (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 5:37pm
As someone already said, if they wanted to skip, they would have gone home, not to the Commons or State House.
Considering that the students are not protesting about boring classes, you are probably right, those classes won't be more interesting next year. But, I think you are missing the point. The students are fighting for the opportunity to go to fully-funded schools. They are fighting for the opportunity to go to schools where the internet works in every classroom, where there are less than 30 students in a class, where they can take language electives or art classes. It doesn't matter how engaged or disengaged a student is, they are all acutely aware of the disparities between school districts with money and those without. They may not know the numbers, but they wouldn't be shocked to know that Newton's per-pupil spending is $15,000 while Boston's is $5,200 (next year it will be $4,900) because that is their reality. So yes, some students viewed the walk-out as a chance to skip class, but the majority didn't. The majority are tired of having a lower quality education (and then being personally blamed for not having a good education).
Ummm, what?
By anon (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 11:02pm
Did that $5000 figure bleed straight out of your bleeding heart? Because those pesky department of education peeps have different figures - in fact, a whole $3,000 MORE than Newton. http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/profiles/finance.aspx...
The $5000 figure is what each
By anon (not verified)
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 1:06pm
The $5000 figure is what each school gets per pupil...the rest of the money goes to the central administration to pay for transportation and the many levels of administrators salaries.
F*ck Trump? I don't get the
By Patricia
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:39pm
F*ck Trump? I don't get the connection. Is this student mad that Trump has tons of money? Or maybe Trump is supposed to donate to the schools?
Maybe that kid should've stayed in class.
Its possible to be against
By Kinopio
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:52pm
Its possible to be against two things at once. In this case school cuts and a politician who consistently retweets white supremacists on Twitter.
It dilutes the message
By Waquiot
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 6:23pm
If the issue is cuts to school funding, talking about how the state has cut funding or how in real terms the city has been cutting funding would be on point. Noting in concrete detail the effects of the cuts reinforces the message.
Talking about Trump makes this a general protest for the sake of protesting. It kind of reminds me of the protests in the runup to the U.S. invading Iraq back in '03. There were signs about Palestine. Palestine! Yes, American foreign policy towards the Middle East might have been poor back then (and perhaps now), but there were concrete reasons not to invade Iraq. Making the message "U.S. foreign policy stinks" didn't make any fans for those vacillating on the issue, like myself (who thought there was no actual evidence to support the Bush administration case.)
Same thing unfortunately
By anon (not verified)
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 7:50am
Same thing unfortunately happened with the Occupy Movement. A well publicized public attempt at getting income inequality and lack of economic opportunity welcomed everyone with open arms and became completely diluted with everyone's pet causes.
"What do we want?!"
By Waquiot
Tue, 03/08/2016 - 10:29am
"A bunch of different things that will be fully spelled out once we arrive at consensus!"
"When do we want them?!"
"Now!"
Racism
By BostonDog
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:56pm
Trump's primary platform is to blame all of America's problems on immigrants and minorities. The RNC's central plank is to cut funding for every public program except the military. Seeing as how many of these kids (and their friends, parents, etc) are immigrants AND this is a story about funding cuts it's not an unreasonable to link Trump to these problems on a broad sense.
Nah,
By Patricia
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 3:58pm
Nah,
I disagree. Remember, they are not cutting funds..
Who isn't cutting funds?
By BostonDog
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 4:13pm
The city signs contracts valued at X and only increase funding by Y so the net result has to be cuts somewhere.
If you get a $400/month raise and your rent goes up $500/month at the same time you're worse off even with the raise.
Yes, but you aren't making less money
By anon (not verified)
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 4:37pm
It's a bit pedantic but important. Schools are underfunded because the city has failed to plan to cover the obligations they made to the BPS employees and to some extent SPED requirements. The city should not be claiming to be surprised by budget issues when they were a party to these contracts.
To use your analogy, if you get a 400/month raise and know your rent will go up $500/mo in six months time, you shouldn't act surprised when you have a budget problem in six months time.
Are the schools acting surprised?
By BostonDog
Mon, 03/07/2016 - 4:46pm
Yes, no one should be surprised the cuts were coming but how is that relevant? From the student's point of view the circumstances leading to the cuts is irreverent.
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