Hundreds of people are gathering in Washington, D.C., today to protest ongoing cuts to education spending and the lack of investment in youth employment. Activists from across the country will march from the U.S. Department of Education headquarters to the U.S. Department of Labor building where they are expected to meet with Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis. The activists will also meet with Rep. Bobby L. Rush of Illinois, who recently introduced a bill to provide $6.5 billion for youth employment. New York City high school student, Tariq Greene, is among those headed to Washington, D.C.

Tariq Greene: “When we go to D.C., we’re calling for our government to invest more in the youth, to give our schools more money rather than taking money from them. We’re also calling for there to be more jobs available in the Bronx or nationwide, where these people are on public assistance for the simple fact that there are no jobs for them to occupy.”

Education budgets have been slashed dramatically in the face of budget shortfalls, while nationwide youth unemployment is at a record high.