The Los Angeles Times (5/11, Goldmacher, Mishak) reports that California police arrested "65 protesters in the state Capitol on Monday evening when they refused to leave after the building had closed," after "the first day in a week of statewide protests planned by the California Teachers Assn., which is opposed to cutbacks in education funding." A police spokesman said that most of those arrested "appeared to be college-age students who passed the time by dancing." He added that "most teachers exited before arrests began."
The Sacramento Bee (5/11, Oritz) reports that the union "revved up its faithful Monday to lean on state lawmakers to extend current tax rates – and eventually increase them. The daylong rally by the California Teachers Association kicked off a week of budget lobbying, press events and teach-ins by the union." The protest came amid "concerns that some activists might stage Wisconsin-style sit-ins at the Capitol or commit other acts of civil disobedience. Although law enforcement officials said the crowds were generally peaceful, they arrested about 65 protesters after warning them to leave the Capitol rotunda after the building closed at 6 p.m. They were charged with misdemeanor trespassing." The Bee estimates that around 1,000 protestors "began in the morning, urging lawmakers to immediately pass a tax extension to avoid deeper cuts to education budgets around the state. After that, they want a tax hike put before voters." The Ventura County (CA) Star (5/11) runs a similar report.
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