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March 15th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda The protest came on Wednesday after school officials issued layoff notices to more than 9,000 teachers to try to compensate for reductions in educational funding across California.
Teachers, however, say the mass layoffs would cripple California’s education system.
“One forth of teachers in LA Unified (School District) have received the pink slips. That completely demoralizes the staff. This school board does not respect its own employees and does not respect this community,” Jose Lara, a protesting teacher, told Press TV.
Teachers, who say the layoffs will destabilize schools and inflict severe emotional turmoil on employees, have called on officials to be more realistic about ways to cut costs.
“If the district would go ahead and actually lay off 9,900 people, it would destroy this district and will destroy education in Los Angeles,” Warren Fletcher, a member of United Teachers Los Angeles, told our correspondent.
School district officials say the cuts are necessary in order to reduce the $550 million budget deficit, adding that they can reduce the number of layoffs if the community agrees to pay more taxes.
In addition to the layoffs, school officials also plan to cut adult education, elementary arts and early childhood programs.
Protesters say these programs are vital for hundreds of thousands of students in the city.
A final version of the budget must be completed by June 30. School officials say further cuts may be necessary if voters fail to pass a tax initiative in next November’s local elections.
DB/MB/MA
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