Alckmin closes daycare center at USP and employees react with occupation.

Da Forum Magazine - Last Monday (16), during the holidays, a moving truck was removing furniture and equipment from the West University of São Paulo Preschool Creche building. Employees occupied the site and are resisting closure.

Read here the statement signed by the Open Daycare Occupation: 

NOTE FROM THE OCCUPATION OF THE WEST NURSERY AND PRESCHOOL AT USP (University of São Paulo)

We are writing now from inside the West Preschool Nursery of the University of São Paulo, a place that, at this moment, according to orders from the USP Rectorate, is closed and dismantled. Employees of the educational establishment were surprised at 1 PM on Monday (January 16th), during their vacation, with a notice that a moving truck would be removing all the furniture and equipment from the building, starting at 2 PM that same day. Faced with the threat of eviction and the lack of dialogue, we remain mobilized here.

To the closure of this daycare center, which accommodates more than 100 children, we say NO! These children WILL NOT BE LEFT WITHOUT DAYCARE. USP, which also includes us – regardless of the policies of Rector Zago and the State government – ​​will not be left without daycare. Occupying this space was our last resort to keep it running.

The political act of occupation seeks to preserve a model early childhood education program, recognized internationally. It preserves the children's right to education; the right of their mothers and fathers to study; the right of employees to work and to be recognized as educators. It preserves the public character of the university, guaranteeing access to education for the sons and daughters of its community, given the lack of places in the municipal public education system. It preserves the inseparability of teaching, research and outreach, bringing together professionals, students and researchers from various university units and receiving thousands of external visitors. It preserves the tangible and intangible heritage of USP, defending 35 years of experience in early childhood education.

It was not for any reason that the University Rectorate acted when summarily decreeing the eviction of the West Daycare Center, in an authoritarian and irresponsible manner, without planning or discussion. The order comes after the University Council's (CO) decision to fill the vacant spots in the USP daycare system. These spots have existed since the entry of new children was prohibited, without justification, at the beginning of 2015. The Council's decision was a harsh defeat for Zago, who intended to quickly close the daycare centers once the last children left. Thus, he now intends to manipulate the CO's decision, removing spots by dismantling the entire building. We will not accept such a maneuver.

Zago's defeat was no easy feat. It is the result of two years of direct struggle against the dismantling of the program, as well as a historic fight for the recognition of the teachers as education professionals (today they are classified as "educational support technicians"). On this point, Zago failed to comply with a court order to recognize these professionals. He responded by closing the daycare centers and attacking the entire USP social assistance network (Hospitals, Restaurants, and Housing) – calling it a "perk." It is an entire university model that is being implemented, disregarding its community and the interests of society. Over the past two years, we have requested dialogue, taken legal action, contacted the USP ombudsman and the Legislative Assembly, produced technical reports, held protests, and spoken with each faculty, obtained numerous motions of support from USP units, and fought to include the issue on the agenda of the Council… Today, we have the USP community on our side, as demonstrated by the Council's decision. Nevertheless, the university administration remains intransigent and increasingly aggressive.

Our demand with this occupation is quite simple: We want the CO's decision to be fulfilled: that the vacant places existing at the time of the decision (157) be filled, which implies the return of the children enrolled in the West Daycare Center to their place of origin and the entry of new children into all five daycare units of USP. For this, we need the Rectorate to open a dialogue. We want transparency and democracy! We want the threat of eviction from the West Daycare Center to be withdrawn immediately.

We count on the support of all defenders of public education, education workers, parents, and children to join in organizing this new struggle!

Open Daycare Occupation