A sea of red-clad teachers took to the streets around North Carolina鈥檚 legislative building in Raleigh this morning to fight for higher pay and more school funding.
About 40 school districts closed for the one-day walkout, affecting close to 1 million students. The organizers of the protest anticipated that more than 15,000 educators would attend today鈥檚 鈥淢arch for 69传媒 and Rally for Respect,鈥� which coincided with the state legislature鈥檚 first day back in session. Most counts say that number was easily met.
North Carolina is home to the latest in a series of statewide labor actions in which teachers have shut down schools to protest what they see as low compensation and inadequate school resources.
Teachers in Arizona, Oklahoma, and West Virginia, all received pay raises after multi-day walkouts. In and Kentucky, teachers saw some rollbacks on possible controversial changes to their pensions after protesting.
North Carolina teachers, who earn an average salary of about $50,000, , are calling for a nearly $10,000 pay raise over four years, in addition to more school funding. That would put them in line with the national average for teacher salaries. (See this primer for more on how teacher pay works across the states.)
Below are some scenes from today鈥檚 march and rally.
Participants make their way towards the N.C. Legislative Building in Raleigh. 鈥擥erry Broome/AP
Teachers gather outside the Senate and House chambers during the teachers rally at the General Assembly. 鈥擥erry Broome/AP
Observers watch from inside the N.C. Legislative Building as teachers rally outside the General Assembly. 鈥擥erry Broome/AP
In a panoramic photo, teachers gather outside the North Carolina Association of Educators headquarters before the 鈥淢arch for 69传媒 and Rally for Respect. 鈥擡than Hyman/Raleigh News & Observer via TNS
A man encourages the crowd as teachers chant outside the House and Senate chambers during the teachers rally at the General Assembly. 鈥擥erry Broome/AP
General Assembly Police Chief Martin Brock tries to silence demonstrators outside the House and Senate chambers during a teachers rally at the Legislature. 鈥擥erry Broome/AP
North Carolina Rep. Evelyn Terry, D-Forsyth, second from left, speaks with educators during the teacher rally at the General Assembly.
Top Image: Standing on the roof of the North Carolina state legislature building, Javier Carranza, a teacher from Asheboro, captures a selfie with a long line of teachers filling Bicentennial Mall behind him. 鈥擱obert Willett/ Raleigh News & Observer via TNS