It's been one week since two Oakland teachers began a hunger strike to protest the school district's campus closure plan. The fasting educators are now calling on Gov. Gavin Newsom to intervene to stop schools from being shuttered.
Maurice Andrew San-Chez, 33, and Moses Omolade, 35, both teachers from Westlake Middle School near Lake Merritt, have not eaten solid food since Tuesday in response to an Oakland Unified School District proposal which would close or merge more than one dozen campuses. The proposal, presented on Jan. 31, comes as the district faces a budget crisis and historically low enrollment.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, nearly all 12 schools targeted serve low-income students of color in less affluent areas of Oakland, including Westlake.
"To say that I’m hungry is an understatement, but I'm very high in spirits," San-Chez, whose preferred pronouns are they and their, told KCBS Radio.
"I've been craving a whole bunch of foods from my hometown of El Paso, Texas; enchiladas, tamales, tacos," San-Chez, the school's choir director, who appeared frail and is using a hiking pole to walk, added.
San-Chez said during the hunger strike they have only drank water, electrolyte water and herbal tea without caffeine. They have camped in tents outside the school throughout the duration of the strike.
"I feel full even though my stomach is empty," San-Chez stated.
Under the proposal, Westlake would merge with West Oakland Middle School, and two other alternative schools would fill Westlake's campus.
"It's not that we don't want to go (to West Oakland Middle School)," San-Chez said. "We just don't want to be consolidated. It's like putting a tiger in a large dog kennel. It's not big enough and we refuse as a people to be confined any longer."
"This is another example of divestment in the black community... this is more than a fight for education, this is in essence a class war," they said.
San-Chez and Omolade were named the school's staff members of the week, and students have been dropping off notes and signs to show their support.
Magdalena Meyers Dahlkamp, a student at a different school, dropped off a card to them which she told KCBS Radio was to tell the teachers that students are "here for you and we’re really proud of what you're doing."
"We support everyone's right to protest, including protesting possible decisions by the Board of Education. Of course, the District cares deeply about the health and well-being of our staff, and hopes that any staff member engaging in a hunger strike explores other means of protest that don’t involve harming themselves," Oakland Unified said in a statement provided to KCBS Radio. The school board is scheduled to vote on the campus closure proposal on Tuesday, though San-Chez said they do not have faith in them making the right decision.
The two teachers vowed to continue their strike until the school board backs off on its plan to close or merge over a dozen schools.
"If they don’t do that, our plan is to go straight to the top, we demand a meeting with Gov. Newsom," San-Chez emphasized.
KCBS Radio has reached out to Newsom's office for comment and has not heard back.
Related
