Parents rally for reopening of LAUSD schools

LOS ANGELES - On the heels of LAUSD’s Zoom Blackout, parents took to the streets Saturday to demand schools reopen now. 

"It’s criminal, what UTLA and LAUSD are doing to our children" said one of many angry parents at a rally asking that Los Angeles Unified schools reopen now.  The event was organized by some of the same leaders behind the LAUSD Zoom blackout, where families refused to log on to online classes, demanding their children be allowed to go back to physical, in class learning.
 
Showcasing a yellow school bus they dub the "Open Schools" bus, the large group was pretty loud, but peaceful. Those we spoke to believe that UTLA, which is holding a vote next week on whether their members should return to school or not, is actually using their children as hostages to negotiate with the district.
 
UTLA has said they don’t want teachers back in school without vaccinations for all staff members, safety protocols and a change in the state assigned color tier, from purple to at least red.

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LAUSD Superintendent Austin Buetner has said that he’d like to reopen elementary schools on April 9th, if he gets at least 250,000 school staff members vaccinated.
 
But for these parents, that’s too long. Even the children we spoke to seem tired of Zoom sessions and say they want to go back – as much to see their
teachers, as to see their friends.
 
UTLA’s vote is expected to take place March 1st.

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