Social Media Scorns Alexandria Teachers For 'Day Without Women' School Closures

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Teachers and staff members in the city's public school system drew lots of flak Wednesday on social media for the abrupt one-day closure of the city's public schools in connection with the "Day Without Women" protest.

The Alexandria City Public Schools decided to cancel classes Wednesday after more than 300 school staffers asked to take the day off. School leaders said it would be difficult to hold classes in the system's 17 schools if so many teachers and staff members were absent.

The unusually high number of requests may be attributed to the observance of International Women’s Day, also called "A Day Without Women," and school leaders apologized if the decision caused problems for parents who had to find child care at the last minute.

On Twitter and Facebook, the school closure stirred up mostly negative comments. One observer tweeted: "Great message to little girls: 'if you're mad, ditch your responsibilities!"

Another person on Twitter called the action a "Trump Tantrum," while someone else tweeted that it hurts the school system's minority students.

The school system's official Facebook page drew dozens of negative posts about the closure, though many apparently came from people who don't live in the city or don't have children who attend the Alexandria City Public Schools.

The comments section was filled with calls for teachers to be fired, and complaints that the closure hurts working-class parents who had to take a day off from their jobs to care for their children.

"If this were happening in my school district, I'd be talking to my lawyers about initiating a class action civil suit against the school board for supporting such action," one person wrote.

"Great job showing women or men that you are unwilling to put politics aside and educate them to be strong in their own skills," someone else wrote.

Another comment: "I love how the school's motto is 'Every student succeeds' which is clearly portrayed by shutting down the school so the teachers can have a day off ... the best way to show your employer how reliable you are is to miss work causing a shut down ... good job!!"

But several people who posted on the ACPS Facebook page supported the teachers. "Very proud of our school system and the example they set for our community and our children," one woman wrote.

"To all of you complaining about being inconvenienced: that is exactly the point," another woman wrote, "Without women in the workforce, this would be the norm. Women perform many vital tasks and perform many vital services. ... It is only one day, and who of you has never taken a day off from work for reasons less important than supporting working women everywhere?"

The Protest's Organizers

The “Day Without Women" campaign is led by the same group that organized the D.C. women’s march, which drew massive crowds in January to the National Mall the day after President Donald Trump’s inauguration, radio station WTOP reported.

The campaign encouraged women to take the day off, to avoid shopping and to wear red to recognize “the enormous value that women of all backgrounds add to our socio-economic system — while receiving lower wages and experiencing greater inequities, vulnerability to discrimination, sexual harassment, and job insecurity,” organizers wrote on the effort’s website.

ACPS Superintendent Alvin L. Crawley said on the school systems' website that the decision to call off classes was based solely on the district's ability to provide sufficient staff to cover all classrooms, and the impact of high staff absenteeism on student safety and delivery of instruction.

"It is not based on a political stance or position," Crawley said.

"We understand that when schools close there is an impact on families, who may have to find unanticipated childcare," he said. "We apologize for this unforeseen burden on parents and thank you for your patience and understanding."

Two other school systems in the Washington, D.C., region also closed their doors Wednesday. In Maryland, the Prince George’s County Public Schools decided late Tuesday that they would shut down for the Day Without Women event, WJLA-TV Channel 7 reported.

Around 1,700 teachers and about 30 percent of transportation staff had requested the day off, Prince George’s School superintendent said. With around 130,000 students in the school system, the superintendent added, it would not be a safe and productive day with the absence of so many workers.

In the District, Center City Public Charter Schools, a network of six campuses, announced on Facebook that it would be closed Wednesday because of “the large number of staff requests for the day off to participate in A Day Without A Woman,” WTOP reported.

In Alexandria, Wednesday will be designated a teacher work day for school staff, in addition to the teacher work day scheduled for Friday.

Students will not be required to make up the missed day, since the mild winter has left enough days in the school calendar to close without missing the state-required number of teaching days.

What's open on Wednesday at Alexandria schools:

• All Campagna Center Early Childhood Programs (Head Start, Early Head Start) and Campagna Kids After School programs operate on the normal schedule.
• All Rec programs at schools will continue to operate as usual.
• All ACPS scheduled after-school activities will continue as planned.

Image: Patch