ABSTRACT
The Washington Badassed Teachers chorus, the dance at the demonstration, the costumes and papier-mache images at the demonstration, and the descriptions of art in the classroom—the examples can nourish imagination to respect and conceptualize a new vision of humanity and education. Julianna was an elementary school teacher in a city just southeast of Seattle. She grew up not far from where she taught, in the south part of Seattle. She helped plan and then attended a large rally they held in Washington, DC in 2011. Becca was the computer teacher for her middle school in a medium sized city southeast of Seattle. In an abstract sense, Julianna, Becca, and Susan inspire hope in dark times. Every story that reaches the public about teacher efforts to organize and resist the new testing agenda provides a counter narrative of teacher courage and agency. Throughout the United States, teachers are organizing and engaging in collective action for democratic change.
