Asean Johnson, 9, a student at Chicago’s Marcus Garvey Elementary School, electrified a crowd of hundreds speaking at a rally to protest the closing of 54 Chicago Public Schools by an un-elected board appointed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, former Chief of Staff for President Barack Obama.
Rahm thinks we are all toys…he is not caring about our schools; he’s not caring about our safety,” He only cares about his kids. He [does] not care about anyone but himself. He moved a woman in from Detroit who don’t even know anything about the streets of Chicago to close these schools. She should not be closing these schools. They need safety and protection.
“You should be investing in these schools, not closing them. You should be supporting these schools, not closing them,” Asean said as the crowd roared with approval. “We shall not be moved today. We’re going to city hall; we are informing Rahm Emanuel [that] we are not toys. We are not going down without a fight.”
“It is 90 percent of school closings are African American. This is racism right here.
Asean ended his call-to-action with his right fist in the air and the powerful chant:
“Education is our right, that is why we have to fight.”
“The words were all his,” said teacher, Lori Harris, who added that she helped with grammar.
Watch Asean’s brilliant speech below:
After the 3rd-grader’s passionate speech, he marched around the area with a megaphone, chanting:
“Rahm, let’s face it, your policies are racist.”