Teachers in Bellevue, Washington are proudly displaying their support for the controversial Black Lives Matter movement, following the lead of educators in Seattle who donned Black Lives Matter t-shirts last year.
The politically active “Educators for Justice – Bellevue Schools” is encouraging teachers in the Bellevue School District to buy “Black Lives Matter” t-shirts from them to wear during a weekly “Day of Action” through the end of the school year, KIRO reports.
Today, droves of Bellevue teachers came to class with the special shirts, which include “Black Lives Matter” across the front and a statement on the back: “I Stand For and With All of My Students Who are Targeted Due to Their Race, Gender, Orientation, Immigration Status, Religion and/or Ability.”
Educators for Justice – Bellevue Schools’ Facebook page features a young white student modeling the t-shirts, which sold for $15.
The group also sells buttons that read “No Human Is Illegal.”
“I think the main goal for this day is primarily to let our students of color know that there are people who are fighting for them, who understand the issues they are facing and take it seriously,” Bellevue High School teacher Terry Jess told the Seattle Times.
Tuesday’s “Day of Action” follows a similar event in October in Seattle, where about 2,000 teachers wore Black Lives Matter shirts to school to show solidarity with black students.
In Seattle, teachers held a massive rally, but in Bellevue, where less than 3 percent of students are black, organizers are goading educators into focusing on race issues during class time, Bellevue High School teacher Hannah Yale said.
Both Yale and Jess denied the Bellevue event is political, insisting instead that it’s “social justice.”
“There have been questions of ‘why do we need this in Bellevue?’ ” Yale told the Times. “But that’s another way they (marginalized groups) are ignored, just because their numbers are small.”
“We have to acknowledge that something needs to be done and draw attention to that,” Jess said. “There are more conversations that need to be had.”
KIRO reports Bellevue’s Educators for Justice sold at least 230 t-shirts to raise more than $2,000 for scholarships for minority students.
The Day of Action in Bellevue is fully supported by the local teachers union, the Bellevue Education Association, according to president Andy Rubesch. A resolution adopted by the BEA in October supports teachers wearing the Black Lives Matter shirts because they allegedly show “solidarity with the cause of ending racial inequalities.”
The event kicks off a campaign of weekly Black Lives Matter action days scheduled for every Monday through the rest of the school year, KIRO reports.
The Bellevue district “recognizes and supports our staff’s rights to freedom of speech and interest in social justice issues,” according to the district’s prepared statement.
“Similar to other districts, they can exercise their rights as long as it does not impact the school day and the ability to provide a safe and civil learning environment for all students.”
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