A-Infos (en) US, NortWest anarchist Common Action Newsletter INTERSECTIONS, Vol. 1, Issue 2 - Page 3 - Portland, OR: No to High Bus Fares; WASL Fight Heats Up

Portland, OR: No to High Bus Fares by Brandon Feld ---- High prices on 
everything from gas to food have been driving more and more Portland residents 
to use public transportation. So you would think that the increase in riders 
might lower the fares, or at least keep them from going up -- right? Wrong. In 
September TriMet, Portland's public transportation system, raised basic fares by 
25 cents, bringing the adult all-zones fare to $2.30. The rate increase is 
attributed to higher gas prices, but as gas prices drop, there are no plans to 
lower the fares. We compared TriMet's fares to LA Metro and found a drastic 
difference. The basic fare for LA Metro is $1.25 Although LA Metro, like TriMet, 
has a ridership percentage of 12%, LA Metro has not increased its fares in 9 years.

On October 11, 2006 the American
Public Transportation Association
(APTA) honored Los Angeles County
Metropolitan Transportation Authority
(LACMTA) as one of the best four
transit agencies in North America. They
were judged on customer satisfaction
and ridership increase. Like most good
things in this world, LA Metro's
success didn't come from letting the
bosses call all the shots. Their success
is attributed to working class
organization and direct action. The LA
Bus Riders Union has been fighting for
bus rider's rights for many years, with
impressive results. Where once there
was overcrowding and continuous fare
hikes, they now have an award-winning
transportation system.
This is just a snippet of the things that
LA's Rider's Union has accomplished:
  · Federal Civil Rights Consent Decree,
  1996-2006 (Obligates MTA to reduce
  overcrowding, maintain equitable
  fares, and create a five-year plan for
  new county-wide service to break
  down transit segregation)
  · 3,000 dues-paying members and
  50,000 supporters
  · No fare increase for 9 years
  · More than  1,800 new compressed
  natural gas buses
  · Largest clean fuel fleet in the county
  (Prevented 33 premature deaths, 805
  asthma attacks, and 7,000 lost work
  days)
  · 12% increase in bus ridership
  · More than 800 new public sector,
  green, union jobs
We cannot rely on politicians to fix our
transit problem. We need to organize
and create a working class movement
that demands our rights as riders of a
transportation system that is supposed
to publicly owned. Let's have our say,
let's organize!
If you are interested in organizing a
bus riders union in Portland, contact
the Portland Common Action branch at
alexandrasnapp@gmail.com

------------------------

WASL Fight Heats Up by Sylvia Jones

This year, the Washington State
Assessment of Learning (WASL) became a
graduation requirement for public high
school students. But forty percent of
students of poverty and students of color
are failing it, according to the Seattle
Education Association (SEA). "This is a
story of institutional racism and
institutional classism," wrote SEA union
leaders Wendy Kimball and Steve
Pulkinnen, in a letter to Seattle senators
and representatives.
What went wrong? You could certainly
point to flawed test design,
developmentally inappropriate questions,
and inconsistent scoring. But the main
problem is the inappropriate use of the
WASL as a graduation requirement. It was
designed to measure schools, not students
And organizations such as the Washington
Education Associa tion (W EA), the
Washington State PTA, and the SEA all
oppose use of the WASL for high-stakes
testing.
But ordinary working people are fighting
back against the WASL. Grassroots
organizations such as Mothers Against the
WASL are calling for WASL boycotts and
opt-outs. In Seattle, teacher Carl Chew
risked his job when he refused to give the
W ASL, and h e ser v ed a tw o- w e ek
suspension. And students like Spokane
high-schooler Adam Kuntz have boycotted
the WASL until it was absolutely
necessary for graduation.
But it's important to remember that not
everyone can afford to fight the WASL the
same way. Schools that enter the No Child
Left Behind sanction process get punished
by "restructuring," which includes firing of
principals and staff. And high school
students who boycott the WASL put their
graduation at risk.

              WASL: Take the test.
Fortunately, there are plenty of other
ways to resist. For example, Seattle
Young People's Project (SYPP) waged a
two-year campaign against the WASL
and brought public attention to its
problems. Check out their WASL
Haunted House video on YouTube.com
-- and while you're at it, forward it on
to your friends. And students in Bellevue
used Facebook to round up 200 students
to picket in support of striking teachers
and against standardized curriculum.
And students, teachers, and parents alike
are helping out by spreading the word.
Let's keep it up. By acting in solidarity
to resist the WASL, we can win back our
public education.

Want More Information on the WASL?
    Seattle Young People's Project
          http://www.sypp.org
    Mothers Against WASL
         http://www.mothersagainstwasl.org
    Washington Education Association
          http://www.washingtonea.org
    Seattle Education Association
          http://www.seattlewea.org
    Washington State PTA
          http://www.wastatepta.org
_________________________________________
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