7 march 1968 & teachers demand higher pay

OTD Wednesday 7 March 1968 Teachers, organized by the Washington Teachers Union (WTU), staged a walkout and went to the Capitol building to demand a pay raise from Congress. According to WTU, half of the 7,500 teachers refused to work today and most of them participated in the lobbying.  One of the teachers was Teresa Covacevich, who taught at Boys Junior and Senior High School. William A. Simons was WTU head and Charles Cheng was his assistant.

Teachers wanted the pay scale to increase from $5,840--$10,730 to $7,000--$13,400.  Mayor-Commissioner Walter Washington favored starting pay for teachers at $7,000, while advocating $8,000 for police officers and firefighters.

Please comment below. Did you participate in the walkout and/or lobbying? Where did you teach? Do you remember Teresa Covacevich? Do you remember William A. Simons? Do you remember Charles Cheng? You may comment privately here.

Photo source: Courtesy DC Public Library Special Collections. Bernie Boston, photographer.