Black Lives Matter Week of Action Resolution
SPONSORS: Newark Teachers Union (Local 481)
TOPIC: Black Lives Matter Week of Action
The Newark Teachers Union,
RECOGNIZING The necessity for social justice, community engagement, and political activism in the success of Newark Public Schools’ students and families;
ACKNOWLEDGING Racial diversity and the need for increased cultural competency as priority interests within the Newark Public Schools and the Newark Teachers Union;
ACKNOWLEDGING The Newark Public Schools’ mission of ensuring students develop “social skills necessary to be productive, civic minded individuals;”
ACKNOWLEDGING The Newark Public Schools’ commitment to “[working] closely with parents and community stakeholders to create a culture of inclusiveness and engagement;”
ACKNOWLEDGING The Newark Public Schools’ implementation of restorative justice, in place of punitive discipline, that will allow many traditionally disenfranchised young people to develop social capital and a deeper bond with their school communities;
ACKNOWLEDGING The role of teachers in examining, demonstrating, and discussing the concepts of racial justice, institutional racism, and equal justice under the law in their classroom, lessons, and other academic spaces;
ACKNOWLEDGING The city-wide collaboration of the Mayor’s Office, the Newark Municipal Council, and the Newark Community for Accountable Policing in the creation of the Newark Civilian Complaint Review Board;
ACKNOWLEDGING The collaboration of the Mayor’s Office and the Newark Police Division in implementing restorative practices and local hiring as a means of offering students and community members a greater sense of comfort in working with law enforcement officers;
ACKNOWLEDGING The persistent struggle for social and economic empowerment faced by Newark students and families in response to conditions of poverty and racism;
WHEREAS The Newark Teachers Union is an organization of education professionals founded on the principles of social justice and due process;
BE IT RESOLVED The Newark Teachers Union will contribute to the collection and creation of educational materials supporting a social justice oriented classroom and teacher;
BE IT FURTHER The Newark Teachers Union will continue to support the implementation of
RESOLVED curricular materials that focus on dismantling impositional structures created to disenfranchise oppressed groups;
BE IT FURTHER The Newark Teachers Union encourages teachers to examine the concepts of equal
RESOLVED justice under the law, racial justice, and institutional racism in their classroom lessons and other academic spaces;
BE IT FURTHER The Newark Teachers Union encourages teachers to educate students within the context
RESOLVED of Black History, with special focus on Newark’s extraordinary significance and with the purpose of bettering the social standing and expectations of black families;
BE IT FINALLY The Newark Teachers Union supports the Black Lives Matter Week of Action, February
RESOLVED 5th-9th, 2018, as well as related community forums, and peaceful demonstrations.