LANSING –
A heated battle on the floor of the Michigan Senate Oct. 7 left State Sen. John Gleason (D-Flushing) so outraged that he spent Thursday night locked in the office of Senate Minority Leader Gretchen Whitmer (D-East Lansing).
In an interview, Gleason announced he planned to carry the protest on into Friday and is called on citizens to join him Friday night in the Capitol as well to protest the Republican-dominated Senate's failure to pass a long-delayed anti-bullying measure.
"I made the decision when the other side was laughing as they got up to explain their 'no' votes," said Gleason. "That's supposed to be the family values and Christians?"
During debate on a bill lift the cap on the number of charter schools in the state, Democrats offered up amendments to the state school code that would mandate anti-bullying policies in the schools. The first amendment, offered by Sen. Glenn Anderson of Westland would have amended state law to include enumerated protected classes required in school policies statewide. Democrats tend to favor the enumeration legislation, saying that by identifying protected classes they are protecting all schoolchildren.
