'Masks Are Disposable, Educators Are Not': Large Crowds Take Bryan Administration to Task on Education Deficiencies

Crowds gathered territory-wide to protest what local union leaders, educators, parents and regular citizens say are myriad deficiencies with the territory's school facilities, which they say hamper students' learning potential and educators teaching efforts.

In St. Thomas, the protest, led by St. Thomas-St. John district American Federation of Teachers union President Leontyne Jones, occurred at Emancipation Garden. On St. Croix, a large crowd gathered at Government House in Christiansted and took the Bryan administration to task for what they deemed a failure to adequately address the problems.

"What do we want?" asked Rosa Soto-Thomas, head of the local AFT union on St. Croix and organizer of the protest. The crowd said "action!" "When do we want it?" Mrs. Soto-Thomas fired back. The gathering yelled "now!"

"No justice, no peace! Tell Governor Bryan he got to spend the money before they take it away from the V.I. Governor Bryan needs to spend the money on our schools, hospital facilities," Mrs. Soto-Thomas further stated, referring to funding provided to the U.S. Virgin Islands after Hurricanes Irma and Maria, and $541 million as part of Covid-19 relief funding which governments were given wide latitude to expend.

"We want a change in government. We know that you're getting federal dollars, and if you're getting federal dollars and you don't know how to spend it, and spend it so that the people can understand and see it, then what's the sense of you being in government," said one of many protesters on St. Croix.

Wednesday's action was a culmination of frustration that was building for some time. The boil-over started with teachers at the Claude O. Markoe Elementary School on St. Croix in March, who protested what they said was the Dept. of Education's lack of attention to pressing issues at the school.

At the Claude O. Markoe action, one protester held up a sign showing a long list of areas that needed attention: "cafeteria, kitchen, nurse, gym, playground, more personnel, AC units, leaking roofs, new desks and chairs, drinking water."

During the protest in March, Mrs. Soto-Thomas — who has vast knowledge of the ills affecting the public schools on St. Croix — said the Claude O. Markoe School did not have a nurse, nor did it have drinking water. She also said that the Dept. of Education had been slow to respond.

The union president said students were eating late, including having their breakfast during the lunch period, and there were concerns about a rodent situation at Claude O. Markoe.