Teachers in Red States Oklahoma and Kentucky Revolt

FEATURING ISABEl NUÑEZ – For the second day in a row on Tuesday teachers in Oklahoma walked out of their jobs in frustration. The teachers remained resolute in their fight for higher pay after their state’s Republican dominated legislature passed a salary increase that was far less than what they were demanding.

On Monday Kentucky’s teachers also protested, flooding their state house during their Spring Break over a pension reform bill that state lawmakers passed.

Publicly funded educators in these two heavily Republican-leaning states are heartened by the recent successful wildcat strike by teachers in West Virginia that resulted in victory over their demands for a pay hike. Arizona’s teachers are now also considering similar actions.

Meanwhile President Donald Trump, who won majorities in 2016 in all four states where teachers have been agitating, has remained deafeningly silent on the issue.

Isabel Nuñez, Professor and Chair at the Department of Educational Studies at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne.