For the 50th anniversary of the historic civil rights rally, an ode to the women who helped it succeed—and got little recognition for it.

(Steve Schapiro/Corbis)

Women of the Dream Defenders.

From the hard marble floors of the Florida Capitol to the Capital of these United States, Dream Defenders #MarchOn Washington!

Fast-food protests that started in New York spread to Los Angeles and other cities across the nation Thursday as workers called for higher wages and the chance to unionize.

Dozens of fast-food workers and supporters marched outside a South Los Angeles Burger King at 6 a.m., chanting their demand for a $15-an-hour minimum wage.

Holding signs with slogans such as “Burgers and Lies,” “Yo Quiero $15,” and “Lovin’ a Living Wage,” they began moving into formation before sunrise, headlights speeding by on the 110 Freeway behind the restaurant in the Brodway-Manchester neighborhood.

As the sun slowly rose and honks from passing passing cars increased, the employees and protest organizers from the Service Employees International Union, many decked out in “Fight For 15” T-shirts, snaked around the corner at Broadway and Century Boulevard.

The fast-food protests began in New York last November. There have been three protests in New York since then, and they have spread to Chicago and other cities. Thursday’s protest is to mark the first for fast-food workers in Los Angeles and other cities.

"This is our fourth strike in New York, and now we have 50 cities striking with us," said Tyeisha Batts, 27, one of the protesters, who has worked in fast food for six years. "I’m ready for a change."

The Los Angeles area has 181,595 fast-food workers, earning a median hourly wage of $9, according to protest organizers from SEIU. They say – pointing to an MIT living wage calculator – that an adult living in the area with one child needs to earn $23.53 an hour full time to afford basic necessities.

One worker who planned to protest told KTLA-TV early Thursday morning that it’s unfair that some of his colleagues have been in the industry for more than 20 years “and they still earn 8 bucks an hour.”

“They have a family to feed and everything….They have two, three jobs and things just shouldn’t be like that,” he said.

The protests come as more workers in blue- and white-collar jobs begin to agitate for better working conditions. But the fast-food protests are unique because they are not targeting one employer or company, but a whole industry.

Workers were expected to protest outside a number of fast-food outlets, including Wendy’s,McDonald’s, Burger King and Subway.

The fast-food industry used to employ mostly younger people just trying to make some extra money as they went through school. Now, workers are older and depend on the work to feed families. Analysis by the Economic Policies Institute shows that the average age of minimum-wage workers is now 35, and that 88% are 20 and older.

"This morning, I’m out here taking a stand for all the fast-food workers around the world," Derrick Langley said. "If you’re not going to stand up for yourselves, we will."

But industry groups such as the International Franchise Assn. said protesters’ goals are “unrealistic.”

Individual franchisees, not the bigwigs at corporate headquarters, determine wage levels for workers, according to the group. And many such operators are contending with thin margins made worse by a lagging economy, high commodity costs and soaring energy costs, according to the group.

"Mandating increased wages would lead to higher prices for consumers, lower foot traffic and sales for franchise owners, and ultimately, lost jobs and opportunities for employees to become managers or franchise owners,” Steve Caldeira, the association’s chief executive, said in a statement.

Watch our conversation with Phillip Agnew of the Dream Defenders, where he discusses what he would’ve said on Wednesday at the March on Washington anniversary event.

someone just put this on my mailbox & I love them for it.

We love you too.

#JBC FOR DREAMDEFENDERS.ORG | WE ARE THE YOUth MOVEMENT!

Don’t Believe Us, Just Watch.

Our generation has been called complacent and disengaged. We’ve been kept out of discussions and meetings and strategies because some of the old heads of the movement still have a white-knuckled grip on the torch, but we’re ready. And we’re already working.

Yesterday, at the 50 year commemoration of the March on Washington, my friend, colleague and Director of the Dream Defenders, Phillip Agnew, along with Sofia Campos of United We Dream, two of the youngest speakers were cut from the 70-person speaker list just as each of them approached the podium. Apparently, previous speakers had run too long. Phil’s name appeared on the big screen announcing him as the next speaker right before they told him it wasn’t going to happen. Then Al Sharpton spoke.

Please watch the video of his speech and then make your own #2Minutes. Tweet/fb @dreamdefenders (@thedreamdefeners on IG) and use the hashtags #OurMarch and #MarchOn.

Tell us what you march for. Who you march for. Tell us why you think our voices aren’t heard. Read us a poem. Read a quote you’re inspired by. Sing a song. We want to hear your voices. We outchea.

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I’m a Scholar, Not a Criminal: The Plight of Black Students at USC

Instead of studying for the last final of my undergraduate career, I am writing this letter in protest of the University of Southern California’s latest atrocity. Last night, students gathered at a house near campus to celebrate their completion of another rigorous school year. Many attendees were graduating seniors. Almost all attendees were minority students: African-American and Latino.

I did not attend last night’s party, but I could hear the helicopter circling from my dorm room over a mile away. When the Facebook posts and photos started appearing on my news feed around 2:30am, I had flashbacks to an era I wasn’t even alive to suffer through. I was too scared to go outside, legitimately fearing that an officer would see me and arrest me for being Black and inquisitive. I can only imagine how my peers felt when they saw over twenty LAPD patrol cars pull up and release 79 officers to end a peaceful, congratulatory party.

It is inexpressibly disheartening to hear fellow students recount horror stories of police brutality two weeks away from being among the first in my family to graduate from a four-year university. To know that my college degree holds no weight in the face of institutional racism and discrimination is sobering. Since the three most recent shootings, all triggered by non-USC affiliated Black males, that occurred on and around USC, there has been an increased presence of LAPD and other security forces around campus. Amid the tense racial climate that followed, I patiently endured the ignorant comments, racist blog posts and suspicious stares, but the intolerance has reached a new high. Six of my friends spent the night in jail.

To be clear, I do not have a problem with increased protection or security. Who’s to say that a shooting won’t occur at the next student party? It could happen, God forbid, and I understand why USC wants to be prepared. My issue lies within the selective surveillance of minority-hosted parties, as if crimes only happen among high concentrations of melanin. Hundreds of criminal offenses, including sexual harassment, rape and assault happen every Thursday night on Greek Row, a undeniably white establishment. Yet, the culprits of the Department of Public Safety Crime Reports distributed to USC students and faculty, seem to be strictly limited to Black and Latino males (6’2-6’5 in dark hoodies). These reports, together with the newly constructed, other-izing gates around campus, have instilled an unhealthy amount of fear in students, administrators and safety officials. We have been trained to double check for USC logos on the sweatshirts of minority males on and around this campus to make sure that they’re “one of us.” It doesn’t surprise me that LAPD has adopted the same attitude. For them, it has been this way for decades.

If the USC Department of Public Safety feels justified in allowing nearly a hundred police officers to shut down a minority attended party due to the fact that African-Americans were responsible for the recent shootings, we’re in for a bigger battle than most students bargained for when they decided to enroll here. That ideology reeks of racial profiling and associates the behavior of a few criminals with the entire Black student body, a comparison that makes my stomach turn. While LAPD is busy sending all of their manpower to harass the future of America’s leaders, the real trouble lies within my campus’ freshly painted fences.

USC should not be permitted to reap the benefits of diversity without facing its complexities. You can’t help the hood without loving it first. When USC’s founders decided to break ground in South Central instead of Malibu, it signed up for a difficult and delicate community partnership that needs to be revisited.

To me, protection means opening our gates even wider for at-risk youth who are in desperate need of positive role models, not locking them out after 9pm. I will feel safe on this campus when I see DPS officers negotiating with LAPD, pleading with them to let students of color party in peace. I will feel welcomed when I see a public statement from President Nikias acknowledging the discrimination and blatant racism that my people have had to endure since we were first admitted into this school. I will become a proud Trojan when the USC community finally grows to reflect and embrace its resilient surroundings.

To my peers, I am sorry that we have to dedicate hours that should be spent studying to defend our freedom of assembly. None of us have the time to write letters, plan meetings and rally against injustice, but we must. The next generation of brilliant Black students is depending on us to guarantee their right to a dignified college experience.

Ways to Act:

Sign this petition to help end racial profiling at USC: http://www.change.org/petitions/stop-racial-profiling-at-usc

Attend the Sit-In at Tommy Trojan on Monday, May 6 from 12-4pm

Attend the DPS & LAPD Campus Discussion on Tuesday, May 7 at 6pm in Annenberg 204

*Meet in front of Annenberg at 5:30pm to pray over the meeting.

Florida Dream Defenders challenge Governor Scott, state politicians

Florida Dream Defenders at the first day of legislative session. (Fight Back! News/Staff)

Tallahassee, FL - On the morning of March 5, over 150 Black and brown Dream Defenders from across the state converged onto the state capitol here to deliver one important message to Florida Legislators and Governor Rick Scott on the first day of legislative session: the start of the “Dream Era.”

Dressed in black shirts with the phrase “Can we dream together” etched in white, the Dream Defenders gathered on the first floor of the Capitol building, starting off the day with a press conference to tell state legislators and national press about their Dream Agenda. Speakers from Dream Defender chapters all over Florida, including Miami, Tampa, Orlando and Tallahassee, spoke on the issues of stopping Florida’s school to prison pipeline, immigration, and repealing Florida’s absurd Stand Your Ground Law, as well as stopping Republican efforts to suppress the votes of Black and brown people. There, Dream Defenders delivered their own State of the State address, hours before Governor Rick Scott was scheduled to give his later that day.

After the speeches, the 150-deep crowd chanted, “Whose state is this? The state is ours, the state is ours, the state is ours!” to the same rhythm as the famous old school rap single, “The World is Ours” by hip hop artist Nas. The large crowd of Black and brown youth then marched to the fourth floor of the Capitol rotunda to greet the legislators and Governor Scott.

The students lined up in two with signs that read, “Can we dream together?,” “I am human,” “Zero tolerance for zero tolerance,” and “Welcome to the Dream Era.” Chants then began, and the legislators and lobbyists immediately started to feel the effect of the Dream Defenders’ attendance. The singing chants of, “Mama, Mama can’t you see, what the system’s done to me,” echoed throughout the whole building, even into the legislative chambers where legislators were taking in session.

Dream Defender and FAMU Chapter President Elijah Armstrong led chants and other activists chimed in with, “We are the dreamers, the mighty Dream Defenders,” all to the chagrin of capitol police and security who tried to stop the chants. However they were unsuccessful as the youth kept on, waiting to confront Governor Scott before he gave his State of the State address.

With Dream Defenders all over the fourth floor, Governor Scott and his security staff tried to enter the front of the House Chambers through a back hallway. Scott’s attempts to avoid the young activists were unsuccessful. He was confronted by loud chants of, “We who believe in freedom shall not rest until it’s won.” A visibly uncomfortable Scott quickly hurried into the House Chambers with his security personal to avoid the wrath of the protesters.

“We came here today to flex and let Governor Scott know that this is just the start”, said Dream Defenders at FSU Vice President Brian Marshall. “The Dream Era has just begun and Black and brown youth are rising to flourish in the state of Florida and fight for the issues that affect us the most.”

Dream Defenders are planning to keep the pressure on the Scott and the Republican-dominated legislature to make sure their Dream Agenda is heard.

For more information on Dream Defenders and the Dream Agenda, visithttp://dreamdefenders.org/

Boost!

Welcome to the Dream Era!

Dream Defenders lobbying at the Florida Capitol during the first day of legislative session.

The Dream Agenda consist of five issues: The School-to-Prison Pipeline (SB 2112 and zero-tolerance policies), the repel of Stand Your Ground, immigration reform (support for the Trust Act and Promise Act), prison divestment for Fla. universities, and voter restoration/suppression rights.

In an era where the voices of our black and brown youth have been systematically silenced, the Dream Defenders fight back against those forces that kept our communities silent and content with the status quo. No longer will we tolerate being subjected to a second class status. We demand justice and equality and we want it now!

It used to be that getting in a schoolyard fight meant a trip to the principal’s office—detention, maybe. But in Florida, more than any other state, that schoolyard fight can lead to the student’s arrest and even felony charges. Last year 12,000 students were arrested 13,870 times in Florida public schools, the Orlando Sentinel reported. The arrests are meted out unevenly. Black students are just 21 percent of Florida youth, but make up 46 percent of all school-related referrals to law enforcement, according to the Sun Sentinel.

The majority of the arrests, 67 percent, were for infractions like fist fights, dress-code violations, and talking back—schoolyard misbehavior that, in Florida and elsewhere, increasngly results in misdemeanor criminal charges. “The vast majority of children being arrested in schools are not committing criminal acts,” Wansley Walters, secretary of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, told the Orlando Sentinel.

While Florida is not alone in turning to police to discipline young people, it has the distinction of being the nation’s leader in school-based arrests. Last year, Florida produced the highest documented number of school-based arrests in the country—and that number was an improvement over previous years. In 2005, Florida made 28,000 arrests in school. It has logged a 39 percent drop in school arrests over the last seven years, according to the Department of Juvenile Justice. (PDF)

In most cases, 69 percent, the juvenile justice system ultimately dismisses or otherwise diverts the charges. But experts say getting hauled away from school in handcuffs nonetheless has a lifelong impact.

David Utter, director of the Florida Youth Initiative at the Southern Poverty Law Center, notes that getting arrested is, at a basic psychological level, a “highly traumatic” experience for young people. It can precipitate the breakdown in trust between young people and the adults in their lives, making what should be a welcoming and nurturing environment a hostile place.

The arrests also carry more measurable costs. Even when the arrest doesn’t go anywhere because, say, the state chooses to drop the case, a child is forever forced to answer affirmatively when asked on job and other applications whether they’ve ever been arrested. Statutes allow a child to have his or her record expunged, but expungements are not automatic, said Utter, and the state still holds onto personal data about a child. “It’s pretty damn permanent,” Utter said.

Convictions are even more damaging. Convicted felons are not allowed to vote in Florida, and are barred from accessing certain benefits like housing or higher education grants, said Alana Greer, a staff attorney at the Advancement Project.

School-based arrests are a byproduct of the growing role of police in schools, a trend that’s developed alongside the rise of so-called “zero-tolerance” school discipline policies since the 1980s. The policies, using language borrowed from the war on drugs, demand swift and harsh punishments as a response to disciplinary infractions. Many observers worry that as school-based shootings shock the country, schools will see a further escalation of zero-tolerance policies and a concordant influx of police in schools. Last month, President Obama unveiled a multi-pronged plan to prevent future school-based shootings. As part of his school security plan, Obama called for more therapists, social workers, counselors—and police officers.

Those police officers, who are not trained in adolescent development, are increasingly being called on to fill a role that school counselors, teachers and other adults used to fill, said Greer. “Disciplinarians are so overwhelmed so much of the time, and there’s someone down the hall who can make the situation go away,” Greer said, “But that person happens to have a badge, a gun and handcuffs.”

“We’ve lost sight of common-sense discipline,” she said.

Florida is not alone in its zealous use of arrests as a disciplinary response, or in its racially disparate application of school-based arrests. More than 68 percent of youth go to U.S. schools with a police officer assigned to their campus. When police officers are around, what they tend to do is arrest kids, juvenile justice advocates have lamented. Late last year the Department of Justice sued Meridian, Miss., for running a school-to-prison pipeline which ushered a disproportionate number of black students out of school and straight into the waiting arms of the juvenile justice system.

But more police don’t necessarily improve school climates. The American Psychological Association’s sweeping 2006 review found that zero-tolerance policies aren’t effective tools for discouraging misbehavior. Nor do they make schools safer. “While the intentions of putting those police officers in schools is good, they come with an extraordinary number of unintended consequences,” said Lara Herscovitch, a senior policy analyst with the Connecticut Juvenile Justice Alliance.

In Florida, where Walters’ Department of Juvenile Justice has committed to reducing the rate of school-based arrests by 10 percent this year, the situation is still urgent. Even with recent improvements, the percent of those arrested for petty misdemeanors “hasn’t budged,” Utter said. “While it’s a good thing that fewer children are being arrested, we’re still arresting kids for utter bullshit.”

Groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Advancement Project, along with local affiliates like the Florida NAACP in Broward County are working with educators, law enforcement and school administrators to address the arresting spree.

But for all the recent improvements, the post-Newtown talk of ramping up school security via more police has advocates on watch. Herscovitch says that especially in this post-Newtown climate, when the impulse is to send even more police officers to schools, juvenile justice and school safety advocates “are working very hard to make sure that the response to Newtown doesn’t create another 10 to 20 years of consequences.”

Dream Defenders Strategy Session.