I was wrong - UFT/Unity HAS NOT YET Endorsed Jackson/Vasquez Contest, UFT Staff Director Memo on Senate Race

....while no one is expected to make any financial contribution to Angel's campaign, we recognize that there are those of you who will choose to show him your support.  If you voluntarily elect to contribute to Angel’s campaign you must make the contribution by check, mailed from your home (or other non-UFT mailbox) directly to Angel’s campaign headquarters. You may not hand Angel a check on UFT premises or during UFT work hours. --- Leroy Barr, Anthony Harmon, Staff memo, March 10, 2022

Isn't the very presence of Angel Vasquez deep in the halls of UFT power an ad for his campaign? When trolling for funding, the very fact he is so close to Mulgrew increases his fundraising and dampens Jackson's.

Saturday, March 19, 2022

Reading the above, oh the horrors. I don't love most politicians but with Robert Jackson, what's there not to love? Three years ago I went up to Albany with Leonie Haimson and a crew for some hearing and after we had some time to kill waiting for the train and Jackson graciously invited us to his office to hang out. You can't find a more pro-teacher/education anti-ed deformer than Jackson. Which may explain the actions of the UFT/Unity leadership. As James Eterno says - Jackson is too pro-teacher. I'll get into how the leadership of the largest teacher union is fundamentally anti-teacher another time.

But I jumped the gun. I was wrong in assuming the UFT has endorsed Angel Vasquez instead of Robert Jackson. But if you read the memo below which should have expressed horror at UFT employees supporting Jackson's opponent you can guess why I had that assumption. But I still feel like the UFT/Unity leadership is playing the role of Norman Bates toward Robert Jackson.

Robert Jackson

I got a call from someone in the UFT media department

Robert Jackson Challenges IDC Slug Marison Alcantara - Stringer Endorses Him

It's time to get rid of the Independent Democrat Caucus traitors who caucus with the Republicans. Who better than Robert Jackson who has been in the fight for public education for decades.

 www.VoteRobertJackson.com/donate

And we'll always give Scott Stringer an edge because he appointed Patrick Sullivan to the PEP - the only one to stand up to BloomKlein and their hench people - who by the way are embedded all over the nation inside the ed deform movement.

Stringer to Back 2 Candidates Challenging Breakaway Democrats in Albany

A campaign to unseat eight state Democratic senators — members of a renegade group that has helped empower Republicans to rule the Senate in Albany — will receive a significant boost from the city comptroller, Scott M. Stringer.

Mr. Stringer on Thursday will endorse two Democratic challengers trying to topple members of the group, the Independent Democratic Conference, in the September primary.

“When you run for office as a Democrat and caucus with the Republicans, you are not acting like a Democrat.” Mr. Stringer, a Democrat, said in an interview. “This has gone on for too long. I want to break the dam.”

The cooperation of the eight-member body has helped allow Senate Republicans to control the chamber even though they are outnumbered by Democrats.

Mr. Stringer will endorse Robert Jackson, who is challenging Marisol Alcantara in Manhattan, and Jessica Ramos, who is challenging Jose R. Peralta in Queens.

Full article at: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/29/nyregion/stringer-idc-senate-democrats-endorsement.html?smid=fb-share

Scott Stringer, the city comptroller, will become the first citywide official to back primary challengers to members of the Independent Democratic Conference.

Here is another message from one of our faves - Janine Sopp:

As you may not have known, it was Robert Jackson who facebook livestreamed our NYCOO press conference on Tuesday. He has been a strong supporter of public education for decades, and standing with parents and students is nothing new for him. What is timely is that he is running for state senate, after his long held position on the city council and serving his community and our city for years. If there was ever a time to throw your support behind a candidate, now is the time. He is running against Marison Alcantara, who caucuses with the IDC, so it is very important to remove her from this position. RJ is someone who can do it! The IDC may have the money, but we have the people power and votes, and having the money will help expand this vote. Please consider giving a donation to RJ's campaign and know that he values the activists who are a part of all these advocacy efforts.

This is my personal pledge, so thank you for letting me share this as someone who believes strongly that the more we can put people with strong characters to do good in these positions, the more likely our views will be taken seriously.

Big news this morning: City Comptroller Scott Stringer, who grew up in the Washington Heights section of this district, represented the Upper West Side portion and has been a leader for reform in Albany and New York City, today endorsed Robert Jackson for State Senate.

Now with the end-of-quarter fundraising deadline Monday, we need every one to step up and keep the momentum going.  Can I count on you Janine to click here and chip in to end Republican control of the State Senate and make Andrea Stewart-Cousins the first woman Senate Majority Leader, breaking up the so-called “three men in a room?” I would not ask if it were not so important, and we cannot do it without your help. We promise not to bother you through the holiday weekend, so if you can, please donate today!
In endorsing Robert, Comptroller Stringer said:

“Robert Jackson is a proven progressive fighter, who has time and again stood up for the people against the powerful.  From his landmark suit to fund our public schools, to fighting for tenants, small businesses and justice, Robert Jackson has fought with integrity, courage and passion for our values and gotten results. Robert understands the diversity of the District and we can count on him to be there, fighting side-by-side with us for the change we so desperately need in Albany. I’m proud to endorse Robert Jackson today and will work hard to help him win.”  

We must defeat the rogue Democrats – the IDC - who continue to put their own perks and power above serving the people. We must fully fund our public schools, pass New York’s single payer health plan, reform our loophole ridden, landlord written rent laws and protect LGBT rights, women’s rights and immigrant rights. And we can do that together.
It doesn’t matter whether you can give a little or a lot. Every donation helps us build our people-powered campaign. In the last filing, we set a state record for the amount of people who were part of it.  We want to keep that momentum going now.

Here is the link: www.VoteRobertJackson.com/donate
We thank all the many people who have already contributed. Your help and support means so much to this campaign and it’s what's going to help us win. 
Very grateful,

Willa Hahn

Jackson for Senate 2018

Finance Director

P.S. If you prefer to mail your check, please send it today to: Jackson for Senate 2018, PO Box 765, New York, NY 10033.

Paid for by Jackson for Senate 2018

Jackson for Senate 2018
P.O. Box 765
New York NY 10033 United States

NYS Senate candidate Micah Lasher Has Been a Dishonest Slug Since High School

Robert Jackson is the obvious choice over Lasher and other candidates. But for me Lasher, former head of Students First, is as despicable as Trump. And a chorus of people agree with me.

Retired Stuyvesant HS teacher charges Micah Lasher charged with ageism, dishonesty and crookery going back to high school days.

Posted to FB group “Upstate Manhattan: Inwood and Washington Heights” by a retired teacher at Stuyvesant HS.

"I have had a chance to know Micah Lasher, since he was a teenager, when I taught at Stuyvesant High School. He was not in my class, but his reputation was notorious as editor of the school newspaper, and, even then, he was a despicable human being, a hack in every way. Unfortunately, the principal at that time let him get away with so much that she would never let other students get away with. The worse was when he slandered a teacher, the academic adviser for the Student Union, on the school newspaper, who was very well respected and popular with both students and his colleagues. However, when this teacher thought he was going to get the backing from the principal, she sided with him, so I blame this principal, as well as others, for enabling this unforgivable hack. 

Since then, he has demonstrated that he has no morals and will slander anyone if it helps advance his career. Starting from the cartoon of Freddy Ferrer kissing the behind of Al Sharpton and circulating it to voters in the Upper West Side for Mark Green to negative campaigns against long time activist, Sylvia Friedman, to cause her to be unseated by Brian Kavanaugh for the Assembly race, calling her an Albany insider, even though she was only in office for a few months, and making fun of her age and then working for Students First New York, the hedge fund-backed charter school lobby that only cares about measuring student success through standardized tests.

 Micah Lasher cannot be trusted. His ageist campaign against Sylvia Friedman unfortunately is what he used do to the older and more experienced teachers at Stuyvesant, whom he called "dinosaurs". There are teachers, current and retired, who still despise him. Former staff members for Eric Schneiderman, when he was State Senator for this district, came to me to express their disdain for him and told me how much they do not trust him. Unfortunately, Eric Schneiderman, whom I have always had a great deal of respect for, have also either failed to see his character or just do not care. I also blame the staff at Working Families Party, whom I am also a proud member of and have served as a ranking officer for, who have also given him a free pass because he volunteered for them since he was 16. WFP has remained neutral in this race. I am equally upset that the Times has also endorsed him, too, but, unfortunately, I am not surprised."