MILWAUKEE -- Vandalism and protests greeted Gov. Scott Walker Friday at a Milwaukee Catholic school.
Police said one protester was arrested, accused of battery, and school officials said they're outraged about the damage to their building.
A couple of hundred protesters rallied outside Messmer Catholic Preparatory School in Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood. They spoke out against Walker's cuts to public education and collective bargaining rights.
"Recall Walker," protesters chanted.
A crowd filled the sidewalks outside of Messmer Prep School, with a message for Walker.
"Hey. Hey. Ho. Ho. Scott Walker has got to go," protesters chanted.
The governor was at the school Friday to read to students and promote his third-grade reading initiative.
But when word of his of his visit got out Thursday, police said a vandal tried to shut down the school by gluing the doors' locks.
Messmer's president said he was outraged that someone would vandalize the school because the governor was visiting.
"There's nothing political about this. He's coming here to read. That's it. There's no award we're getting. There's no money we're getting. He's coming to read," Messmer President Brother Bob Smith said.
Inside, the governor's reading time with students went off as planned, but outside, the protesters spoke out against him.
"The public schools are suffering. I was a teacher, and it's terrible what's happening to the public schools," protester Margaret Aho said.
"He's claiming he's bringing in jobs, but they're low-paying jobs. They're jobs that don't have any benefits. The guy's a fraud," protester Spike Bandy said.
At one point, one of the protesters challenged Smith about the governor's appearance here.
The governor told reporters afterward that he has no problem with the protests, only the vandalism.
"That's extremely frustrating. What's great about America is that people have the right to have their say. They have the right to protest, whether it's 25, 2,500 or somewhere in between, but they don't have the right to vandalize," Walker said.
This was the second day of the school year for Messmer students.
Police said the lone arrest happened during the protest, but they are searching for the person who put the glue in the door locks.
It happened around 11 p.m. Thursday night. There is surveillance video, but police said it's too grainy to identify the vandal.
The school's president said alarms sounded and that may have prevented further damage to the school.
Police said one protester was arrested, accused of battery, and school officials said they're outraged about the damage to their building.
A couple of hundred protesters rallied outside Messmer Catholic Preparatory School in Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood. They spoke out against Walker's cuts to public education and collective bargaining rights.
"Recall Walker," protesters chanted.
A crowd filled the sidewalks outside of Messmer Prep School, with a message for Walker.
"Hey. Hey. Ho. Ho. Scott Walker has got to go," protesters chanted.
The governor was at the school Friday to read to students and promote his third-grade reading initiative.
But when word of his of his visit got out Thursday, police said a vandal tried to shut down the school by gluing the doors' locks.
Messmer's president said he was outraged that someone would vandalize the school because the governor was visiting.
"There's nothing political about this. He's coming here to read. That's it. There's no award we're getting. There's no money we're getting. He's coming to read," Messmer President Brother Bob Smith said.
Inside, the governor's reading time with students went off as planned, but outside, the protesters spoke out against him.
"The public schools are suffering. I was a teacher, and it's terrible what's happening to the public schools," protester Margaret Aho said.
"He's claiming he's bringing in jobs, but they're low-paying jobs. They're jobs that don't have any benefits. The guy's a fraud," protester Spike Bandy said.
At one point, one of the protesters challenged Smith about the governor's appearance here.
The governor told reporters afterward that he has no problem with the protests, only the vandalism.
"That's extremely frustrating. What's great about America is that people have the right to have their say. They have the right to protest, whether it's 25, 2,500 or somewhere in between, but they don't have the right to vandalize," Walker said.
This was the second day of the school year for Messmer students.
Police said the lone arrest happened during the protest, but they are searching for the person who put the glue in the door locks.
It happened around 11 p.m. Thursday night. There is surveillance video, but police said it's too grainy to identify the vandal.
The school's president said alarms sounded and that may have prevented further damage to the school.
