A thread.

So I’ll hand it to the government. Pretty evil genius of them to pit parents against teachers. Take the two most invested parties in the lives of children, create a false conflict between them, sit back, relax, eat popcorn, and watch the country go to shit.

Let’s examine this “conflict.” Because it isn’t real. Parents, we get you. What you’re being asked to do is ridiculous. Go back to work (probably in unsafe conditions, too) and somehow find a way for your kids to be safe, supervised, and educated with schools closed. Outrageous.

And impossible. Year in and year out nothing makes teachers happier than ensuring that your kids are safe, healthy, loved, and educated while you take care of whatever you need to do. We have always wanted you to know that we have your back. Your babies are in good hands.

But what has happened? The government wants you to think that we don’t care enough about your plight, your dire pandemic home situation, the cost/risk of daycare, the fact that if you don’t go to work you will get fired, and that your kids will be left alone and uneducated. LIES!

We want nothing more than to be back at school with your kids. Our kids. But we know we cannot do that safely. We know returning to school will put them at risk, you at risk, us at risk, and our families at risk. So why exactly can’t we return to school safely?

Don’t look at us. Look at the government. They’ve refused to fund us, refused to prioritize school reopening, refused to acknowledge and adhere to safety guidelines from the CDC. They want us — as in you, the kids, and us the teachers — to bear the risk of their irresponsibility.

Please know that the government currently has ample means to be providing us all with monthly pandemic relief payments. Easily. At least until the end of 2020 if not longer. Other countries LESS well off than the US have done and are doing just that for their citizens.

Our government has simply chosen to prioritize giving billions to corporations and spending money on defense and building walls. And this is a direct attack on the low-income/working class, whom they then know cannot stay afloat without returning to [unsafe] jobs.

And because they don’t want to take care of us, it was easier to just create a conflict between parents and teachers. This way, if reopening schools backfires (and it will), we will be blamed for it. It is a very calculated government tactic. And right now, it’s working.

But you know who will ultimately suffer the most if we don’t stand up, call bullshit, and stick together? Our children.

UPDATE: to the very fair follow up question of, “okay so what, then?” — I put together the following proposal: https://link.medium.com/UkUnaGsE27 

UPDATE #2: try this link instead if the precious makes you hit the metered paywall: https://bit.ly/303xC5i  — Thanks to you all this piece is now going to be distributed formally by Medium. Thank you for your support