“Pre-ci-pi-ta-tion at-mo-sphere, pre-ci-pi-ta-tion at-mo-sphere.” Hybla Valley music teacher Carla Okouchi helped fourth grade students count out beats for a cross-discipline lesson on music and weather.
Hybla Valley Elementary School students in Megan Sidari’s (right) second grade class teach Virginia Secretary of Education Anne Holton (rear left), FCPS School Board Chairman Tammy Derenak Kaufax (rear center) and 44th District Delegate Scott Surovell (rear right) their “Shark Attack” song. Photo by Tim Peterson.
2016
Oct. 25, 2016 - Anne Holton in Las Vegas with Randi Weingarten
The Las Vegas Review Journal published an editorial critical of Randi Weingarten in 2021, featuring a photo of Weingarten with Anne Holton as they participated in a roundtable on higher education at Nevada State College, Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2016, in Henderson. (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
CREATION OF VIRGINIA LEFTIST COALITION
2017
Virginia Grassroots Coalition founded
Twitter handle @VGC4Change describes itself as: “The Virginia Grassroots Coalition was formed in April 2017 and is made up of more than 40+ Indivisible, Swing Left, Huddle, Our Revolution, and other groups.”
Welcoming Immigrant Neighbors of Northern Virginia
Westminster Democrats, Lake Ridge, Va.
Feb. 17, 2017-Present – Anne Holton on Virginia Board of Education
Virginia Board of Education – Bio, retrieved Feb. 11, 2023
Appointed to first full term – February 17, 2017
Date of Expiration – June 30, 2021
Reappointed to second full term – July 1, 2021
Date of Expiration – June 30, 2025
Anne Holton was appointed to the Board of Education for a four year term in 2017 by Governor Terry McAuliffe. She was reappointed for a second four year term in 2021 by Governor Ralph Northam.
Anne Holton helped integrate Virginia's schools as a child when her father was Virginia's governor in the early 1970's and has been a champion for public education ever since. Ms. Holton served as Virginia’s Secretary of Education from 2013-2016. She served as First Lady of Virginia from 2006-2010, during which time she worked to reform the foster care system in Virginia. From 1998 to 2005, she served as a Judge on the Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court for the City of Richmond, and was chief judge of the court from 2000 to 2003. Ms. Holton is a professor of education policy at George Mason University, where she served as Interim President in 2019-2020.
Ms. Holton graduated from Princeton University and earned her J.D. from Harvard Law School. Ms. Holton and her husband, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, live in Richmond, VA. They have three adult children, all of whom attended Richmond Public Schools.
2018
Apr. 26, 2018 – “The Red for Ed Movement, Two Years In”
Red for Ed has also brought about important changes in the political arena. Perhaps the movement’s most important win has been to change public perceptions of the crisis facing education. Only a few years ago, the mainstream media as well as leading Democrats and Republicans routinely scapegoated educators and championed a billionaire-backed “education reform” agenda, focused on privatization, high-stakes testing, and union busting.
The strike upsurge has succeeded in pushing the national and statewide political conversation in a new direction. Low wages for teachers and the systematic underfunding of schools are now the most commonly cited explanations for public education’s travails. To cite one example, Time magazine went from publishing laudatory cover stories about privatization advocates like Michelle Rhee to running a September 2018 cover story titled “I Have a Master’s Degree, 16 Years of Experience, Work Two Extra Jobs, and Donate Blood Plasma to Pay the Bills. I am a Teacher in America.”
Oct. 3, 2018 – Virginia Beach Education Association: Wear #Red4Ed
Virginia Beach Education Association, the local chapter of the National Education Association, one of the two largest teachers’ unions in the United States, rallied for the #RedForEd movement.
Virginia Educators United is a grassroots coalition and caucus made of educators, parents, and community members who are fighting to ensure that students have access to highly qualified experienced teachers, improved/healthy educational environments, and fair compensation for all educators throughout the state of Virginia.
Contact Carla Okouchi for more information or to get involved
The leader was listed as Carla Okouchi, a teacher in Fairfax County Public Schools, according to the school district website at https://terracentrees.fcps.edu/staff/carla-okouchi, retrieved Feb. 11, 2023.
Where: Richmond, Virginia. Starts at Monroe Park (620 West Main Street) and finishes at the Virginia State Capitol (1000 Bank Street Street)
Why (from the website):
VIDEO with Karen Corbett Sanders and Randi Weingarten
Jan. 30, 2019 - AFT promoted a #RedForEd march in Virginia
On Jan. 30, 2019, @AFTHQ on YouTube, the union promoted #RedForEd, writing:
The #RedForEd movement has spread to Virginia where educators, parents & students are fighting for funding of their public schools. They're raising their voices and connecting with community to demand the schools our kids deserve. #virginiaeducatorsunited
The Grassroots Campaign of #redfored and Virginia Educators United
Red for Ed and Virginia Educators United are grassroots movements started by parents and teachers as a way to stand up for Public Education in the state of Virginia and across America.
Virginia Educators United, is closely aligned with Red For Ed in the fight for the resources our students need. VEU has outlined five main goals.
Restore full funding for public education.
Improve pay for Virginia teachers and school staff to at least the national average-instead of the bottom tier when compared to all other states.
Recruit and retain high quality and diverse educators.
Help local school districts address infrastructure needs.
Ensure every school has adequate professional support staff (counselors, nurses, social workers)
This is truly a grassroots effort. No one group, individual or organization is doing this alone. This is a collaboration of many stakeholders.
Please join in wearing red on Wednesdays throughout the school year to support fully funding public education.
Here are some key dates:
Wear Red for ED
Jan 10th and every Wednesday for the the remainder of the school year Aft Members and allies across America will wear red that day to show solidarity with UTLA members and their efforts to bargain a contract that is good for students and teachers-one that will strengthen, not destabilize, our public schools.
Following last year’s inspiring wave of victorious teachers’ strikes, West Virginia teachers again took to the picket lines—this time in a political struggle to stop the state’s efforts to privatize education through the spread of charter schools. My own experience as a charter school teacher in Arizona—the “wild west” of education—helped lead me to the ideas of revolutionary socialism, and I’m not the only one.
The former teacher noted the critical role of “socialists” to resist private education, writing:
In the fight against the privatization of education and the spread of charter schools, the growing examples of class struggle can inspire teachers and workers from all sectors of American education—including workers at charter organizations—whose working conditions are under constant attack. It is up to socialists to engage with these struggles with a program that can win over the next generation of class warriors for the revolutionary transformation of society. The real-world experience of life under capitalism is what radicalized me and why I drew the conclusion that, along with a desire to be an educator, fighting for socialism in my lifetime is my calling.
The International Marxist Tendency is a growing organization of workers and youth, with sections around the world, and branches across the US—with many more to come. We fight for the overthrow of capitalism and the establishment of a workers’ government in the United States and across the world, which will require the revolutionary transformation of society.
Based on the ideas of Marx, Engels, Lenin, and Trotsky, we are actively building a national organization of trained Marxist cadres to fight in the broader movement for a revolutionary socialist program.
In this epoch of world crisis and revolution, the need to build a far-sighted and committed Marxist leadership for our class has never been more urgent. We are looking for new members to help build stronger branches where we have them, and to help build new ones where we have not yet established a presence.
The capitalist system is at the root of the poverty, racism, instability, violence, and humiliation the exploited and oppressed face every day. To solve these problems, we fight for a workers’ government based on the program below. Join us in the fight for socialist revolution in our lifetime!
RISE OF PAKISTAN-ALLIED ANTI-INDIA, ANTI-HINDU HATE
July 21, 2019 – Rafi Ahmed promoted Pakistani political party
Like other Pakistani leaders, former Prime Minister Imran Khan made it a priority to claim the state of Kashmir from India, supporting militant groups engaging in violence across the border.
2019 - #RedForEd founder named to Virginia Asian Advisory Board
She is listed as a member of the Virginia Asian Advisory Board since 2019 at the website: https://www.vaab.virginia.gov/board-members/, retrieved Feb. 11, 2023. She didn't return a request for comment.
The profile states:
Carla Okouchi was appointed to the Virginia Asian Advisory Board in 2019 for a four-year term and serves as the Chair for the Education Subcommittee.
Carla is a Music Educator and Choral Director in the Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). Over the past two decades, she has served as lead building mentor guiding high school aspiring educators and new music teachers. Within FCPS, she has served on the Equity Stakeholders Committee, Teacher Evaluation Task Force, Fine Arts Coordinator Selection Panel, and the Budget Task Force. She also served on the School Board Human Relations Committee.
Carla is an active member of the National Education Association (NEA) and was recently elected to serve on the Resolutions Committee. She is a member of the Asian American Pacific Islander Caucus, Arts Caucus, and the National Council of Urban Education Association. As an education advocate she co-leads grassroots organizing campaigns that focuses on public education funding at the state and national level.
Carla grew up as a military child residing in multiple states: Hawaii, Alaska, Maryland, and Virginia. After graduating from Auburn University with a Music Education degree, she returned to the school district that inspired her to enter the field of Education. She currently resides in Fairfax, Virginia with her husband and two school-aged children.
NEU was started by a group of educator leaders of statewide activist groups in AZ, CA, IN, KY, NJ, OK, OR, VA, WA, WV, and other states. After launching on December 14th, 2019, we now have thousands of members and our nationwide network is growing fast.
Replace charter schools, education reform, standardized testing, scripted curriculum, and the corporatization of education with fully-funded, democratically operated neighborhood community schools with that center racial equity and social justice
2021
Feb. 12, 2021 – Editorial: ‘Board made the right call on Dar Al-Noor’
Inside Nova editorial supported Rafi Ahmed’s work to expand the Dar Al-Noor mosque on Hoadly Road in Manassas, Va.
It wrote:
We do not hesitate to criticize the Prince William Board of County Supervisors when we think it has gone astray. It is therefore only fair to give the supervisors credit when we think they got something right.
Although the community debate around the mosque’s expansion may have been unnecessarily contentious – and no meeting should last until 4 o’clock in the morning – the mosque has a well-conceived plan and has taken significant steps to ensure its growth has minimal impact on surrounding neighborhoods.
The mosque’s expansion is ambitious – going from about 12,000 square feet to 88,000 – but will enhance the quality of life for the many residents in our community who worship there and provide new opportunities for schooling and other services. In addition, for years the mosque has been a tremendous community partner – holding, sponsoring and supporting events and other efforts that benefit not just its members but the community at large.
In fact, when InsideNoVa needed a venue for a political debate several years ago, the mosque not only threw open its doors, but went above and beyond – ensuring everyone felt welcome and even providing an unexpected dinner for attendees.
June 25, 2021 — Democratic activists: disinformation webinar
At 19:30 in the webinar, the white presenters spoke about “digital blackface.”
Demcast (https://demcast.com) provided another instructive workshop on social media, Avoiding the Disinformation Rabbit Hole, which focused on recognizing and countering disinformation on social media. Facilitated by Lori Cole (Co-Founder and Director of Strategies) and Jamie Carter (Director of Partnerships) this workshop provided an overview on the mechanics of disinformation (algorithms) and how responses, positive and negative, augment the distribution and impact of disinformation. They reviewed the origins of disinformation and automated and non-person postings (trolls) and included an interactive exercise on how to identify troll-based posting, such as hoaxed events and profiles that lack person information or localized/community content. Interestingly, Demcast pointed out that trolls can appear to project a seemingly credible and more liberal view designed to gain trust/followers and then manipulate their audience by creating doubt or division. Given the large number of Americans, especially youth, who rely on social media as their primary source for news and information, disinformation can be a very effective weapon. Disinformation preys on desires, biases, and behaviors and typically offers a clear, action-oriented message (e.g., stop, combat, save). Demcast offered ways to combat disinformation (do not repeat, ignore, block, report to platform) and guidance on how to create counter messaging with positive tone, accurate and sourced information that appeals to your values and focuses on positive outcomes. They advised against arguments and confrontation. Most importantly, they emphasized the importance of repeating your positive message over and over again, “tell the truth until you are sick of it”.
May 21, 2021: Criticism of AFT leader Randi Weingarten
The Las Vegas Review Journal published an editorial critical of Randi Weingarten, featuring a photo of Weingarten with Anne Holton.
But last week, Ms. Weingarten reversed course. She called for a return to five-day-a-week in-person instruction next fall. “Conditions have changed,” she said. “We can and we must reopen schools in the fall for in-person teaching, learning and support. And we must keep them open fully and safely five days a week.”
The timing was curious to say the least.
June 16, 2021 - “AF is a thing in Fairfax County”
GROWING ACTIVIST HATE OF PARENTS LIKE SUPARNA
Oct. 12, 2021, 9:49 AM - Activist Vanessa Hall targets Suparna Dutta
Vanessa Hall is a Fairfax County, Va., Democratic political operative who uses the @V_TheClash account to troll for the Democratic Party in Virginia. Ironically, her profile touts her commitment to “truth,” while she led a character assassination against Suparna Dutta.
Note the intended chilling effect these loud exhibitionist protesters cause. Many people that are afraid. Specially since these same protesters have been comfortable coordinating w/ orgs like "America First". IMG from 21-Oct-2021 @ADL info about some AFhttps://www.adl.org/resources/backgrounder/groyper-army-and-america-first
Thank you @GovernorVA @GlennYoungkin Today the leadership of Virginia Council of Muslim Organizations met with Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin. We thank Governor Youngkin for keeping his promise of meeting with us regularly
1992, Suparna Dutta arrived in the US from India. 2020, she spoke to our Fairfax County VA school board. They ignored her. 2021, she helped Glenn Youngkin win. 2022, in a sari at his inauguration, she said, “God bless the United States of America!” Wait for her air fist pumps! 👏🏽 https://t.co/HGkVtlpAh5
GROWING ANTI-HINDU HATE, ANTI-YOUNGKIN HATE
Sept. 23, 2022, 4:05 AM - “Indian Muslims to Prevent Genocide”
On Sept. 23, 2022, at 4:05 AM, Rafi Ahmed @Rafiuddin1963 posted a tweet, with a poster for an organization, Justice for All, with a dinner fundraiser: “UNITED FOR INDIAN MUSLIMS TO PREVENT GENOCIDE,” on Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, at 6 PM at the Falls Church Marriott Fairview Park in Falls Church, Va.
Abdul Malik Mujahid, the leader of an organization, Sound Vision, the Burma Task Force and Justice for All;
Rafi Uddin Ahmed, described as Justice for All director of outreach, Dar Al-Noor mosque executive director, Virginia Council of Muslim Organizations chair;
Hena Zuberi, Justice for All director of DC operations, Daily Muslim News anchor, chief editor of Muslim Matters, a media outlet that promotes the fundamentalist Salafi interpretation of Islam.
But, Wesley Hedgepeth, a Social Studies teacher at the Collegiate School in Henrico County, said "curriculum should not be solely through the lens of those who created and continue to benefit from American cultural institutions."
Sept. 23, 2022 - Vanessa Hall @V_theclash attacked Dutta
At 8:39 AM, Sept. 23, 2022, Vanessa Hall wrote:
She is the much maligned VA Board of Education appointee who wants to rip up Virginia History and ignore pedagogical standards. Her only qualifications for this position were as host of the Educators for Youngkin series and her anti-public education stance.
Virginia Grassroots Coalition hosted a “Friday Power Lunch” on education issues, with Democratic state senators who would vote against Suparna Dutta after character assassinations by activists included in the “Power Lunch,” including Marianne Burke.
The January 13, 2023, Friday Power Lunch hosted the Virginia Grassroots Coalition’s Press Conference on their priority legislation for the 2023 General Assembly. LUISA BOYARSKI, leader of the Coalition, moderated the press conference. She was joined by Coalition working group members who presented their priority bills to support and oppose. Then SENATOR JENNIFER MCCLELLAN, SENATOR JENNIFER BOYSKO, and DELEGATE SAM RASOUL gave an update on some of the bills they were sponsoring this session and answered questions…MARIANNE BURKE, a member of the Education working group and co-founder and executive team member of 4 Public Education. (https://www.4publiceducation.org) discussed Education legislation.
At 14:36, Burke said activists needed to speak up against the “loud minority” at school board meetings.
The thread included an attack on Dutta for criticizing the Fairfax County School Board for its anti-Asian changes to the admissions policy at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology.
Suparna Dutta’s term expiration 2024. whose child goes to private school in D.C. and who was part of a disruption of the FCPSSB in March 2022. The woman filming and chanting racist is Dutta.
On Jan. 30, 2023, at 11:48 AM,Jorge Torrico @JorgeATorrico replied to @Red4EdVA with anti-Republican partisanship:
The names and tactics being employed by the @VA_GOP & @GlennYoungkin, as well as the agents he's chosen to further the Massive Resistance 2.0 should be noted and their self-serving monetary gains made known.
Which America is Virginia? An enlightened one in which a brave immigrant mom, Suparna Dutta, is confirmed to the VA Board of Education? Or a racist one in which a notorious anti-Asian troll Vanessa Hall @ V_theclash smears Suparna to block her nomination?
Suparna is the right person for the VA Board of Education. We should all denounce the bigotry of Vanessa Hall @v_theclash - and her bullying tactics denounced by a young college student in a recent FCPS board meeting. Does @4pubicedva condone Ms. Hall's behavior?
VA Senate Privileges and Elections Committee: 14-0 for Suparna Dutta
At a meeting of the Virginia Board of Education, Dutta dared to go toe-to-toe with a board member, Anne Holton, whose husband is Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine. Holton reprimanded Suparna for her meeting “hygiene,” an ironic choice of words — and a microaggression, in the words of equity activists — considering the racism against Hindus as a “dirty” faith.
It is bc Asra is a paid operative for billionaires. She works for IWF/IWN and the Federalist. She is conducting a disinformation campaign on their behalf. This mom told the unvarnished truth at a school board meeting. Our jaws dropped...then we applauded.
On Wednesday, at a business meeting of the Virginia Board of Education, on Feb. 2, 2023, Anne Holton reprimanded Dutta for her meeting “hygiene,” an ironic choice of words — and a microaggression, in the words of equity activists — considering the racism against Hindus as a “dirty” faith.
Yes, it is. It looks like Suparna Dutta offers the idea that the audience is a bunch of "sheep." BTW, Asra claims the room is with her, but it is just 6 people. No one wants to stand with her, but those who benefit from her crazed stunts.
10:25 PM - @Red4EdVA: “Suparna Dutta’s rally with America First”
On Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023, at 10:25 PM, @Red4EdVA, the official Twitter handle of Virginia Educators Union, which self describes as a socialist organization, posted a defamatory tweet against Dutta, stating:
Tomorrow the VABOE nominees will be debated on the floor. Enjoy some of nominee Suparna Dutta's rally with America First
Military Mom / History Teacher @Mrs_Wld_History, “Stay-at-home Mom, FCPS Parent, Military/Teacher Spouse. Committed to a better future for all the children of Virginia. All tweets are my intellectual property.” This is an account that has actually been run by a Fairfax County Public Schools teacher, Mark Witzel, accordign to internet records.
@ZaRdOz420WPN - Progressive Democrat Cat Lover SinglePayerSunday ¤ Medicare For All ¤ Pro-Choice ¤ Abortion is Healthcare ¤ Expand Social Security ¤ ADHD ¤
Kathy Beery, M.Ed. @lvstodance - Retired Middle School Teacher and Reading Specialist, parent and Nana. Forever advocate for equitable opportunities for all children.
This is one of the symbols used at the sacking of the US Capitol building on January 6, 2021. Was this the “rally “ where they spoke of PizzaGate coming to Fairfax School Board (Alex Jones’ InfoWars big lie that led to a man driving from NC to shoot up a DC store)?
For those who cannot see, Suparna Dutta is on the left under the America First flag. Students, parents, and teachers were greeted by the blare of Infowars on a loudspeaker and the America First sigil, reminiscent of the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville. #VoteNo on Dutta
Kathy Beery, M.Ed. @lvstodance - Retired Middle School Teacher and Reading Specialist, parent and Nana. Forever advocate for equitable opportunities for all children.
Sujatha Hampton @SujathaHampton - Author of AS IT WAS WRITTEN; Education Chair, Fairfax County NAACP; Fairfax County Library Board; this is my *personal* Twitter and I said what I said
Stay-at-home Mom, FCPS Parent, Military/Teacher Spouse. Committed to a better future for all the children of Virginia. All tweets are my intellectual property.
RT Katie Sponsler @KatieSponsler: Mother, Advocate, Former NPS ranger, USAF veteran, and just a human being that some people follow because I ran for office, but they are disappointed usually. Colonial Heights, VAkatiesponsler.com Joined February 2017
So Republicans want someone like this on our state BOE. This was before a local county school board meeting. Anyone rallying with these folks should be disqualified from serving our communities.
Quote Tweet
Red4EdVA @Red4EdVA
·Feb 5
Tomorrow the VABOE nominees will be debated on the floor. Enjoy some of nominee Suparna Dutta's rally with America FirstShow this thread
We're disappointed by the Board’s decision to proceed w/ @VA_Supt's Jan. History SOLs. We're also outraged by some Board members' comments suggesting that the 50+ people who testified last Thursday in support of the Collaborative Standards don't represent everyday Virginians.
I am an immigrant from Bolivia who believes in the American Dream: access to education + hard work, not lies/propaganda. Suparna Dutta wants to maintain OBSTACLES to a whitewashed American Dream. OPPOSE her. @VASenate @VASenateGOP @VASenateDems @ChapPetersen @eltiempolatino
She is screaming at all, and says she is the one being intimidated? Let her own video be witness.
7:25 AM - Wesley Hedgepeth shared VirginiaGrassroots.org campaign
At 7:25 AM on Feb 7, 2023, Wesley Hedgepeth @wehedge, president of the National Council for the Social Studies, which had been lobbying for the Northam administration curriculum changes, shared the virginiagrassroots.org campaign and wrote:
Virginians! If you’re a constituent of Senators Morrisey or Petersen, make those calls today to tell them to vote no on Dutta’s confirmation. We do not need another anti-public education activist on our BOE! Remind them that @SalimVASenate and @lashrecseaird can replace them!
Tuesday afternoon, far-left activists were lobbying to sabotage Dutta’s nomination with an amendment introduced to the floor of the Virginia Senate — united in this unholy alliance with illiberal religious clerics.
Feb. 7, 2023, 9:32 AM - Forward Albemarle pushed the anti-Dutta hit
At 9:32 AM, on Feb. 7, 2023, Forward Albemarle@4wardAlbemarle wrote:
We need EDUCATORS on the BoE, not extremists. The folks at Virginia Grassroots made it super easy for you to heed this Call to Action. Do it today!
At 1:48 AM on Feb. 8, 2023, activist and Accenture programmer Jorge Torrico @JorgeATorrico mocked and attacked any defense of Dutta:
@AsraNomani's mad... spent quite some time w/ her coloring markers, taking out her frustration on a perfectly good shirt. Did Suparna Dutta remove her child from the magnet school her @coalitionforTJ is suing? Is she still an FCPS parent? #NotFitforDuty
Suparna Dutta had NO experience or education to be on the VA Board. Additionally, her clear contempt for Virginians, including reknown scholars and parents, who spent 2 years creating the August history standards disqualified her. Virginians are not "defective."
Senate Dems voted to remove a member from the State Board of Education who, in 2020, led the fight against admissions policies at her son’s high school that aimed to boost Black and Latino enrollment and resulted in fewer Asian Americans being admitted. https://richmond.com/news/state-and-regional/govt-and-politics/senate-votes-to-strip-youngkin-appointee-to-state-board-of-education/article_ec2a080c-a711-11ed-9c1b-33cf5a66cf66.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share…
WATCH: Virginia Democrats, including @timkaine's wife @anneholton, slandered an immigrant woman of color as a "white supremacist" because she criticized communism and called the Declaration of Independence and Constitution "remarkable documents."Show this thread
