“On strike for our students,” was a phrase that was used by educators across the Minneapolis school to show that they weren’t just fighting for themselves. They were fighting to help the students. They were fighting for our communities. They were fighting to help everyone. The strike needed to happen. I believe that it didn’t need to last as long as it did. The MPS district leaders refused to compromise with the teachers. The district would send out their “last best final offer” and the teachers would respond within hours making changes and then were abandoned for days on end by the district. The district ignored and disrespected our teachers. Our teachers are the ones who are educating the future generations of the country and yet are discarded. They are stripped of their power. The district handled the strike in a horrible manner. There could have been a solution in the first week of the strike, yet the district did not allow that. Our educators do not deserve the blame for what happened and the punishments that are being put upon everyone. The district is the one that has made irrational and harsh decisions, impacting everyone.

Adding forty-two minutes to every school day until the end of the year is horrific. This is because it would ruin important schedules and events for students, parents, and many in the Minneapolis community. The district does not seem to understand that children and teenagers have lives outside of school. Students have jobs, sports, extracurriculars, or siblings that need to be taken care of. They don’t seem to understand that we have responsibilities that we have to do. Adding the forty-two minutes changes the time that everyone has built their lives around. How are kids supposed to get home if busing doesn’t change? How are people supposed to get to the places they need to be if school ends when their thing starts? We have lives. We have things to do. Why is everyone being punished for people trying to get basic needs? Adding two weeks of school to the school year is appalling. This would disrupt planned trips, camps, jobs, plan with friends, and other important planned events  By taking away two weeks of the summer, the district takes away our time for a break. Students need to have a long summer break to help their mental and social health. The district is trying to take away our summer which is unfair to everyone.

Teachers care a lot about their students. The district does not care about the students. How come so many school-age kids living in Minneapolis don’t go to MPS? It is because of the people in power. The people in power don’t try to help the students. Their actions during the strike caused so much damage and pain to our community. More people will be leaving this district because of the district’s response. Overall, the district needs to change. They need to understand that their community has power and cares about one another. They need to understand that we will fight for what we believe in. They need to understand that we matter.