RUN: No Justice, No Peace

After some tough lessons I have come to realize that Life isn’t fair; sometimes we face inequality or unfair treatment and we just have to deal with it. However, sometimes the injustices that we face must be confronted. I have truly come to love and respect my students and the admiration that I feel for them increased tenfold this last Friday.
In my opinion Spanish heating leaves something to be desired, and our school is no exception. The average temp for the past month has been around 8̊C so that means that our school is usually 5-6̊C inside. At it’s worst kids wear coats and bring blankets to class, and even this Coloradan can be seen wearing a coat and scarf. The heat seemed to be functioning at the beginning of the winter, but as the weeks went on it got colder and colder. Initially the lack of heat was blamed on the “Crisis” (as so many things are) but eventually they told us that there was no heat because the heat was “broken”. Gimme a break! So, last week was the final straw for the students and they decided that they were going to go on strike! Yep, you read correctly... A STRIKE! The entire week they had been threatening that if the heat did get fixed then they wouldn't be coming to school. So you can imagine my disappointment when I showed up on Friday and all the students were there in their classrooms. Then all of a sudden the bell rang all of the students started stacking their desks and chairs in the entry ways so their teachers couldn't enter. The students then started climbing up on the desks and yelling that the strike was in fact starting right at that moment. It was truly the best example of organized chaos I have ever witnessed by kids. The students then proceeded to move outside as the principle kicked each classroom out individually. From then on the students rallied and demonstrated outside with signs, blow horns, and whistles. 

But don’t just take my word... see for yourself.  

The students were not deterred by threats of suspension or even the cops showing up. They demonstrated outside for the entire rest of day shouting “ Sin Calefacción, No Hay Educación” which pretty much translates to “Without Heat, There is No Education” Sometimes we can’t always see the effects of our actions but this strike did have a positive response and outcome. As of Friday, the heat was “fixed” and we have now had heat for three days now. Bien Hecho chicos!!