Catholic schools maintain spirit of EDSA 'remains alive'

The Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) on Saturday maintained the spirit of the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution "remains alive today."

This, despite Malacañang declaration of the annual event as a non-working holiday.

However, in defiance the President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s proclamation removing the historical event from the list of annual special holidays, more than 20 schools, including schools that are members of the EDSOR Consortium (Immaculate Conception Academy, La Salle Green Hills, Saint Pedro Poveda College, and Xavier Schools) and members of the Congregatio Immaculati Cordis Marian-Philippine Schools Network (Maryhill School of Theology, Saint Louis University, Saint Mary's University), announced class suspensions on 25 February.

In a statement, CEAP stressed that the spirit of EDSA "remains alive," when we:

• Speak of truth and fight the normalization of lies, dishonesty, and disinformation

• Struggle for solidarity amid the many differences that divide and polarize us

• Take courage to fight for what is right and what is just

• Protect our democracy and resist the destructive power of patronage and self-centered politics

• Choose faith and hope amid fear and desperation over our nation's future

"The EDSA spirit is a shining moment in our life and history as a people. It showed the world what is best in the Filipino, how we can transcend ourselves and sacrifice for our country, how we choose peace over violence," CEAP said.

"We urgently need to re-ignite this spirit today, especially in the upcoming May elections, and in our daily exercise of our rights, freedoms, and responsibilities," the association added.

With that, the CEAP urged more schools to hold eucharistic celebrations, suspend classes and work on 25 February, and commemorate conference and fora related with the EDSA People Power Revolution.

The Ateneo de Manila University and the University of the Philippines Los Baños said they would implement an alternative mode of learning on 25 February.

It also urged schools to hold alternative classes and hold reflection sessions and conversations as well as community outreach and socio-cultural events related with the event.

"The 1986 EDSA People Power revolution shall always be a constitutive dimension of learning of our students. Philippine and Catholic education shall never be without it. CEAP shall push back all attempts to deny, distort, downgrade, and devalue it in our schools, in our communities, and in our life as a nation."