Thread by @FrancaMullerPaz

1)THREAD: Here are some quotes and facts I shared during my #citycouncil #educationhearing testimony in favor of a SAFE reopening plan: @Zeke_Cohen @CouncilmanKB @Porter4Bmore @TonyGlover13 @TheRobertStokes @JamesTorrenceJD @CouncilmanETC @docbullock @odetteramos @CCMiddleton6

2)As teachers, we want schools buildings to be fully reopened, but not if we are jeopardizing the lives and economic stability of our kids. To avoid this harm, it is CRUCIAL that @baltcityschools commit to the following basic protections and requests from @BTUBaltimore.

3) DEMAND #1: City Schools staff are fully vaccinated before returning to their facility (both doses and waiting period to reach full efficacy);

4) DEMAND #2: Ventilation upgrade work is completed before any students or staff are brought back into buildings;

5) DEMAND #3: Minimum public health metrics must be met for at least a week (positivity rate and case rate) before expanding in person programming;

6) DEMAND #4: A robust, reliable and proactive testing program for staff and students, both symptomatic and asymptomatic.

7) Why is this especially necessary in a school district made up of 76.6% Black students and 13.5% Latinx students?

8) School Board Commissioner Brooks: "The fact is that Black people are three times more likely to die from COVID-19 than white people, and the burden of the disease must be weighed against the reality that racism means that Black communities will pay a higher cost if exposed."

9)School Board Commissioner Brooks Cont.: "In fact, both racism and poverty are major predictors of poor educational achievement and negative health outcomes in Black and brown communities." baltimoresun.com/opinion/op-ed/…

10) And how does this affect the Latinx Community? According to Baltimore's Bishop Bruce A. Lewandowski, pastor of Sacred Heart, “We started weeping in April, and we haven’t stopped weeping, and you wonder, how many tears can a community cry?” baltimoresun.com/coronavirus/bs…

11) Baltimore Sun: "Between March and May, in the JH Health System, 42.6% of Latino patients tested for COVID-19 had positive results, compared with 17.6% of Black patients and 8.8% of white patients, according to a report published in the New England Journal of Medicine."

12) Baltimore Sun Cont: "In October, in 20 of 44 U.S. states tracking COVID-19 by ethnicity, the proportion of cases among Latinos was at least double what would be expected on the basis of population, and in 11 states, it was more than three times as high."

13) Baltimore Sun Cont: "In Maryland, Latinos represent 10% of the state’s population but 23% of COVID-19 cases. Death rates are also disproportionately high."

14) Wendy Smith, president of Local 558 of AFSCME Council 67 (union that represents BCPSS school nurses): Nurses "are absolutely frustrated. We don’t have the proper protection PPE. we don’t have the physical stuff to handle opening up schools in a pandemic."

15) Wendy Smith, president of Local 558 of AFSCME Council 67 cont: "We were already at a critical point for the schools. This may be what actually breaks nursing in Baltimore schools”

16) In addition to the health risks of contracting COVID19, which disproportionately endanger Black and Brown lives, we know that many of Baltimore’s families live paycheck-to-paycheck.

17) The economic burden of losing an income due to illness or hospital bills, in addition to the financial burden of the pandemic, could send our already struggling community members into an economic free-fall.

18) Expanding in-person learning prior to ensuring it’s safe, puts the entire Baltimore City community at risk. We as educators WANT to go back to schools, but not until it is safe. #makeitmakesense #stillnotsafe #saveourstudents #sos