CLEVELAND, Ohio-West side activist groups of Cleveland during a poor people's conference on Sat. called for Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson (pictured) to direct his appointed city prosecutor to drop all criminal charges against Occupy Cleveland members, to back off of plans to build trash incinerators throughout the city to pollute it, and called for a Cleveland School Board of Education policy that mandates parents and teachers at the table in the hiring of the school district CEO and school principals and the crafting of far reaching education plans.
Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson
Some 250 people attended including Occupy Cleveland Members and east side affiliates such as Peace in the Hood Leader Khalid Samad, Valerie and Stewart Robinson of Stop Targeting Ohio's Poor, The Family Connection Leader Priscilla Cooper, United Pastor's in Mission Vice President Tony Minor, Imperial Women Leader Kathy Wray Coleman and former Ward 8 Councilwoman Sabra Pierce Scott, now a graduate student at Case Western Reserve University.
Larry Bresler, who leads the Northeast Ohio Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign and Organize Ohio, sponsored the all day conference with groups such as Stop Targeting Ohio's Poor, and Cleveland Jobs With Justice, which is led by Community Activist Debbie Kline.
Cleveland Jobs With Justice Executive Director Debbie Kline
A Democrat, Jackson recently crafted a Cleveland schools education plan independently with Republican Gov. John Kasich (R-OH) that calls for a state law to illegally negate the provisions of the teachers union collective bargaining agreement by striping district teachers of seniority and tenure in layoffs. The unprecedented plan also seeks a merit pay scale for teachers and demands the use of public funds for charter schools through a proposed schools operating levy for November.The Cleveland Teachers Union has vehemently opposed the plan and the mayor cannot brag of any support of in in its entirety from any elected Democratic Cleveland or county official.
And under the Cleveland schools desegregation court order, which was dissolved in 1998 when the state law instituting mayoral control was instituted, Blacks and other parents, a teacher, an administrator and a business representative were required at the table when hiring district superintendents, principals, and assistant principals, as well as for other major educational projects.
And unlike no other school districts in Ohio, the mayoral control law requires that central office administrator do not have to be educated or have state administrative certifications, which permitted Cleveland mayors since Michael R. White in 1998 to hire their friends in those jobs, jobs with no contractual protection as is required by state law in all other Ohio school districts.
Community activists claim that the lack of trained central office personnel has contributed to the bottom of the barrel ranking of Cleveland schools students on state mandated tests and other educational assessments.
Jackson's plan to build trash incinerators starting on Ridge Rd in on Cleveland's west side was met with protests earlier this year of over 300 people, some led by Ward 14 Councilman Brian Cummins, who called the plan preposterous.
The Jackson administration claims that the trash incinerators will ultimately save money through burning the trash and gaining fuel energy, and by eliminating the $7 million annual fee to dump trash in an outside land fill.
But Cummins said they will only pollute the environment and that the costs to construct them is in excess of $350 million.
Cummins said that Jackson has become increasingly difficult to deal with and will not honor simple request to meet on community issues with himself, Cleveland Ward 16 Councilman Jay Westbrook and other city council members on the proposed incinerator project and other matters.
Cleveland Ward 14 Councilman Brian Cummins
Jackson press spokesperson Andrea Taylor said in a previous interview that the incinerator project is not set in stone.
"Nothing has been finalized," Taylor said.
On the Occupy Cleveland issue the mayor is under fire because Chief City Prosecutor Victor Perez allegedly filed additional criminal charges against five Occupy Cleveland members that disrupted a sheriff's foreclosure sale two and a half weeks ago.
Peter Schanz, 32, who led the protests with others, said that though the five were arrested, detained and cited with minor misdemeanor citations for alleged disorderly conduct, when they appeared for arraignment last week and refused to plead guilty, Perez and Cleveland Law Director Barbara Langhenry added fourth degree misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct for four of them and a first degree misdemeanor charge of aggravated disorderly conduct against the fifth one.
"We want all charges dismissed since we were only exercising our free speech rights accorded under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution," said Schanz, who added that their cases are before Cleveland Municipal Court Judge Matt Zone.
Last year 11 Occupy Cleveland protesters that were camping on Public Square in Cleveland were arrested for refusing to leave and charged with a host of misdemeanors including resisting arrest. Their cases are also pending and are before Cleveland Municipal Court Administrative Judge Ron Adrine.
A federal district court judge ruled that city officials could not bar free speech protests on Public Square but that around the clock camping is prohibited.
Reach Journalist Kathy Wray Coleman at www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, ktcoleman8@aol.com and phone number: 216-932-3114.