In Los Angeles, over 30,000 public school teachers went on strike Monday, many of them braving the pouring rain alongside their supporters as they marched through downtown Los Angeles. Teachers are demanding smaller class sizes, higher pay, the regulation of charter schools and more nurses, counselors and librarians. The strike is the first such action in nearly 30 years. The strike, organized by United Teachers Los Angeles, has effectively shut down the nation’s second largest school district. This is Toby Smith, who teaches up to 200 students a day.

Toby Smith: “We are pinned up against the wall. We have no other choice. If we don’t, they’re just going to keep cramming us in to classes. They’re going to cram the kids in like sardines. They’re going to starve us out, and then charter schools will be the only schools. So, it’s now or never. It’s do or die for us.”

We’ll have more on the Los Angeles teacher strikes after headlines with strike leader and teacher Cecily Myart-Cruz and author and journalist Eric Blanc.