More than 10,000 converged on the Capitol in Hartford today.

A WHEA contingent made up a tiny part of this rally which was a tiny part of an international event.

The Courant’s article that follows gives you a sense of the scale of the crowd.  Please take a moment to watch the videos.  Kevin Limbo’s speech is also captured there.  Rumor has it that he could replace Malloy as our next Governor.  Behind him you will see our West Hartford Senator Beth Bye and State Rep Derek Slap.  Mayor Cantor spoke as well.

CEA opened its doors to us and our group spent a little time making signs.  We marched up the hill together and joined the thousands already assembled there.

As we were leaving, a gentleman approached me I think because I was waving a CEA flag and wearing an Obama hat.  He asked me, “So…What’s CEA doing here?”   I told him we were here to show our support for the movement and also to express concern about Betsy DeVos among many other things.

“So what’s wrong with Betsy DeVos?”  He asked with fake curiosity.

“Well, among many other things, she’s completely unqualified”

“What makes her unqualified?”  He asked pugnaceously

I had to think hard before I answered that one.  “Well, the fact that she has never held a job in the field of education….among other things”

“Well….so?   What’s wrong with that?”  he asked

We stared at each other for a second.  Then I looked up at the Sun and felt its warmth.  Fifty Degrees in January after having concluded our third warmest year in recorded history.  And I thought about our new Director of the Environmental Protection Agency who is a climate change denier.  And then I thought about Texas Governor Rick Perry who is now in charge of our nuclear arsenal as Secretary of Energy.  A Department that he had vowed should be eliminated several months ago…except that he couldn’t remember the name of the department.     I looked back at this gentleman and just shrugged.

“I gotta catch a bus…”

“OK….I see how it is”

“No you don’t”

Thank you to the sixty teachers who rode the bus today.  Thank you to Lara White for providing some much needed youthful energy to WHEA and for spearheading this thing.  Thank you to those who were with us in spirit and to those who were with us at one of the other hundreds of rallies around this great country.

Love Trumps Hate

Ted Goerner

WHEA President