‘Democratic Socialists’ Join L.A. Teachers’ Strike, Confront Substitute Teachers: ‘Scabs’

The Los Angeles branch of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) has joined the ongoing strike by the local teachers’ union, turning out to support picket lines and to hurl abuse at “scabs” hired by the school district.

The “scabs” have been hired to supervise group activities for the roughly one-third of students who are still attending school during the strike because their parents cannot afford to take time off work or to pay for child care.

Many of the teachers on the picket lines happen to be wearing red, traditionally favored by communists and socialists. Demonstrators told Breitbart News at one protest Wednesday that the color red simply stands for solidarity, and also happens to be the color favored by their union, the United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA).

Teachers who have gone on strike in other parts of the country recently have also favored red, often referring to their protests with the hashtag “#Red4Ed.” The National Education Association (NEA), the nationwide teachers’ union and the largest union in the U.S., has adopted the “Red for Ed” label in support of strikes across the country.

The Los Angeles DSA posted several photos and videos of its exploits this week, and retweeting “confrontations”:

The Democratic Socialists of America boast two open members in the House of Representatives, both of whom were elected on the Democratic Party ticket — namely, Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI).

Ocasio-Cortez has publicly supported the Los Angeles strike:

The strike continues, as the L.A. Unified School District Board and the UTLA have yet to reach agreement. The differences between their positions are small: for example, the union wants a 6.5% raise, made retroactive for one year, while the district is offering a 6% raise over two years.

As some teachers have admitted, the motives for the strike are largely political. Public sector unions have lost considerable clout since the Supreme Court made dues optional, and non-unionized charter schools are growing in Los Angeles.

The unions are using the strike to demonstrate their continued power — in solidarity with similar teachers’ strikes across the nation.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. He is also the co-author of How Trump Won: The Inside Story of a Revolution, which is available from Regnery. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.

Photo: file