The 74 Million – Mat Barnum
“Detroit teachers have called off work en masse — widely referred to as a “sick-out” — in recent days to protest poor building conditions. The work stoppage has resulted in several schools cancelling classes, and led some observers, including Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, to condemn the protests, decrying the tactics as the wrong way to air grievances. But few who have criticized the sick-outs have actually addressed the substance of what the teachers are complaining about. So are Detroit teachers right to worry that the poor conditions of their school facilities are harming their students? In a word, yes. When the mayor of Detroit visited schools in response to the sick out, he promptly turned up a dead mouse, poor heating systems forcing kids to wear coats indoors, and an unusable gym floor because of roof leaks.”(more)