A Governor, a Girl, and a Couple Dozen Teachers

Tonight the Hawaii Democratic Party hosted a rally for the Kona area with the Governor and Mazie as headliners. We decided to take advantage of the opportunity to show our signs and red shirts to the governor, political leaders, and members of the community attending the rally. We had about 25 members, their children, and supporters there -Teachers Taking a Stand - as one of the signs said.

We started our sign-waving at about 4:30. The red shirts do make quite a statement. We had good responses from the public as they came to pick up their kids at school and as they were coming to the rally. Some of the folks going to the rally stopped to speak to us and also shared their disappointment in the governor.

An unassuming sedan came up honking and we are always happy to hear the supportive sounds of cars honking but elated when we saw it was Mazie. She then walked down the sidewalk to talk to us, which was such a good move on her part. There were a few photos taken with her so I hope I can post those soon. When she spoke later in the rally, we all stood and cheered for her. In fact, it was pretty much a standing ovation. By contrast, about a tenth of the audience stood for the Governor. There was quite an obvious difference in the reception towards Mazie and the Governor. That's a statement !

Back to the sign-waving: One of our teachers decided that she would walk across the crosswalk with her sign if she saw any SUV-type vehicles with tinted windows. She correctly identified these cars, the first one was driving Lt. governor Schatz. The second one was the governor's car. I didn't see this, but was told that this car did not slow down as she crossed the crosswalk, unlike every other car driving in this school zone. After barely letting her pass, the driver sped into the lower parking lot. Teachers who saw this said that some students waiting there told them to slow down. The cross-walking teacher went into the cafeteria and confronted him face-to-face, scolding him for almost running her over and then about the contract. Other teachers took turns talking to him. One of the teachers who had a chance to talk to him told me that as she was talking to him, a Big Island Senator and his ally, muttered that he wasn't going to listen to us anyway. She was visibly annoyed with us. Finally, they got him to break away from the red shirts, and Skyla Graig-Murray, a student at West Hawaii Explorations Academy and daughter of one of our teachers, Erin Graig, boldly asked to speak to him. She wasn't wearing a red shirt and he recognized she was young. She told him "I have fantastic teachers. And I love them all. I want them to feel like they can continue to teach." He responded, "I do too, but I've spoken to you here more than I have the (representatives)".

Kealakehe Elementary teacher Erin Graig and her daughter, WHEA student Skyla Graig-Murray, who the Governor admitted made an impression on him. 

We know we made an impact. Neil's speech had undertones I believe were directed at us, about having disagreements, but the need to respect each other despite our disagreements, and being "pono." In fact, he mentioned Skyla and said that he was impressed by her, but also is impressed by a teenager fighting for her life in England who was shot in the face for expressing her desire for an education. Referring to Skyla, he said: "This young lady felt that she could speak freely and openly and that she would be respected for it." He spoke about the value of freedom "that I'm experiencing right at this very moment, being able to speak with you, and to have the opportunity to be listened to by those who have serious issues not only with my administration or ... about Act 55 ... or what we might do or things that cause you to have concerns. The fact that we can do this is very precious to me and that I don't take for granted. I think about that young woman who I think speaks for entirely what this is about..."

I recall a debate I was having with someone about high-stakes testing and I was winning so my opponent brings up that we should be doing something for the starving children in Africa instead of putting so much time and energy into such a lame issue such as testing. That the governor compares Skyla's comments to the horrible story of the Pakistani girl shot for saying girls deserved to be educated shows that we touched him. He had to frame our presence. He chose to frame it juxtaposed to the Pakistani heroine, fighting for her life, not able to enjoy the freedom that we have. In a way, it was an attempt to minimize our presence. But on the other hand, it acknowledged our presence.