Written and edited by Norm Scott:
EDUCATE! ORGANIZE!! MOBILIZE!!!
Three pillars of The Resistance – providing information on current ed issues, organizing activities around fighting for public education in NYC and beyond and exposing the motives behind the education deformers. We link up with bands of resisters. Nothing will change unless WE ALL GET INVOLVED IN THE STRUGGLE!
Important analysis from Marc Kagan and a message to Mamdani who was one of Marc's HS students. His substack is: The Labor Movement is a Mess... and What We Can Do About It
In fact, Mamdani identifies Marc as his favorite teacher and they still have a good relationship. I was concerned that Marc would treat his former student with kid gloves. This piece belies that, in a very honest assessment as he gives Mamdani performance grades, the most significant being:
On public sector workforce, a D.
Now, let’s be fair to Mamdani. He has to live within his budget. If
he chose to shower public workers with money, then that’s money that
can’t be spent on reducing class sizes, or building playgrounds, or
subsidizing affordable housing. Even after we have real socialism, those
tensions will continue to exist.
But what I hoped Mamdani would do is to quickly fix outstanding inequities.
The gross underpay of Paras. The gross underpay of Emergency Medical
Techs. I want him to put his thumb on the scale for job security for
CUNY Adjuncts.
I wanted – and want – him to tell the
Office of Labor Relations (OLR) – where he reappointed the same
commissioner who’s been in that office since Bloomberg (ugh) – that her
job is to fix problems, not stonewall. I want him to tell agency commissioners that part of “efficiency” is mandatory discussions with workplace-level union reps.That
they will be graded and assessed on their ability to reach mutually
agreeable solutions to problems – worker problems as well as agency
ones.
Instead, the City’s labor relations seem like business as usual. I was not wholly dismayed when he answered my question in April about collaborative bargaining
by saying ‘I need to talk to my people about that.’ That’s was not an
illegitimate answer, although a socialist should have labor questions at
the top of their list of issues to address. But who did he talk to -
the same OLR that is the problem?
I think contract negotiations, given the budget issues, will be a downfall for Mamdani. A socialist whose main agenda is affordability, money for labor should be a priority but the pressures for him, facing the enormous enmity of so many groups, that will be a hard pull. Mamdani has made a few errors and as time goes back a mayor's popularity fades.
For Mamdani lovers, beware.
And Yes, for Mamdani haters, Julie Menin is running for mayor. And her alliance with Mulgrew has already born fruit for the millionaire.
United Federation of Teachers boss Mike Mulgrew threatens
“all-out war” if the mayor vetoes the bill to award the cash, but the
mayor owes the UFT nothing — and it’s his duty to the general public to
say no.
No city union should ever get a raise outside the collective-bargaining process: Since City Hall can’t cut union pay in other ways, it’s robbing the taxpayers if it doesn’t make labor negotiate for any hike.
Menin, in fact, should feel ashamed
of letting the giveaway go ahead — this simply shows that the council’s
incapable of being more fiscally responsible than even a declared
socialist.
Ha. Just watch the NY Post pump Menin over the next few years. Imagine the Post supporting the collective bargaining agreement. And if Mamdani, as he should, gives the paras a permanent, pensionable large raise so they can afford to live in the city, the Post will slam him.
The 10K was designed to counter the Fix Para Pay election win and it did in the election last year where we had hoped there would be a big turnout against Unity, as an ABCer one of my expectations that we had a chance to win that election. As the ABC crew has been pointing out, the one time only 10k will fade. What's needed is contract guarantees.
Mayor Mamdani has argued that it is illegal for the Council to
allocate money to improve public workers’ wages (or benefits) – that all
money issues must be collectively bargained. “The Council’s passage of
this legislation is in direct violation of the Taylor Law,” he says.
There is some discussion that the City’s lawyers will challenge this legislation in court.
Now there is some irony in Mamdani reversing himself on the 10k and claiming it violates the Taylor Law, the same excuse Mulgrew has been using to oppose the retiree protection 1096 City Council bill. When the RTC delegates finally got the floor in 1096 at the last DA, Mulgrew ruled it out of order on those ground.
While Mulgrew is wrong, Mamdani may prove to be right. In essence he issued a challenge to Mulgrew to solidify the gains for paras in the upcoming contract negotiations.
As Marc points out,
Mulgrew is a center/right Democrat, as is Weingarten and the entire UFT/AFT apparatus, despite some progressive rhetoric and Randi's resignation from the DNC - a purely "finger in the air" move. A leader of the DNC lives in my building and rolled his eyes when Randi's move came up and called her a political opportunist - she should wear a sign.
As explained and itemized in this article by Educators of New York City,
in the most recent contract round, Mulgrew made various concessions
that gave him $450 million to allocate as he saw fit, above and beyond
the “pattern” raise that all city workers received. Mulgrew could have
allocated it to increase Para salaries. Instead, he used most of that
money to give an additional $1000 to each member. I think this EoNYC
image really sums up the UFT’s “Teacher’s first” decision:
Daniel has been doing yeoman work on the para issue:
For roughly sixteen years under Michael Mulgrew’s leadership, there
was no fundamental effort to restructure paraprofessional salaries.
Aside from modest improvements to longevity raises in the 2018 contract,
paraprofessional pay remained largely governed by the same pattern
bargaining that had left many struggling to survive.
The UFT leadership continues to
be in bed with the establishment political machine that often is not
aligned to our values and not held accountable for making decisions that
affect us. The uft is the democratic establishment and Mulgrew will try very hard to keep the Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Grace Meng, Hilary Clinton, Randi weingarten etc etc etc power going along with his own.
Sunday, June 28, 2026
Before I get into thoughts on the recent election, tonight is a Fix Retiree Benefits Zoom. Stop by and check it out. The goal is to do one hour from 7-8 but it might run a bit longer. I need to write a lot more on what's going on in the retiree chapter and might get a chance at the zoom tonight.
Congrats to all my still in-service friends on the end of the school year and another step to retirement. But I should point out that a number of my colleagues in ABC ended the school year writing about how much they still love teaching ever two decades in.
I'm about to head out to a DSA celebratory beach party that will last all day.
Tuesday I speculated on the election outcome. I expected a closer race in 7 where Reynoso had the advantage of the Nydia Vazquez and his own machines, which turned out to be barely machines at all, a sign of the deterioration of the Dem Party generally and how non-competitive it has been nationally. National and local media were going nuts in shock over the big 3 wins by Mamdani as all losing candidates were backed by the Dem machine led by Hakeem Jeffries. And if Mamdani had allowed Chi
Ossi to primary him, guess what?
Jeffries will face a primary next time
and if he was smart he would take a run for Chuck's Senate seat, though
DSA will probably go for that, though I'm not sure there is enough DSA
muscle to win a state race. Or Jeffries might just do a turn around if he's a good politician. But DSA should also keep its discipline and talk of a 2028 candidate is fantasy at this point, though Ro Khana is beginning to look like an acceptable candidate along the lines of Brad Lander has been. Not as left but not center.
It was a smashing victory for DSA which also elected 16 members at the state level and is spreading outside NY.
Reynoso was more embedded in traditional
backroom political dealmaking and backed by the low-expectations wing of
the labor movement, in which politics is mostly a matter of making safe
bets on electing and reelecting traditional corporate Democrats — even
in cities and neighborhoods where it’s clear that the horizons have
shifted in a more expansive pro-worker direction. That approach to politics was decisively defeated.
Center Dems don't seem to have enough of a ground game left, relying on endorsements and ads but not enough of a GOTV game.
I would apply the same idea to UFT elections where the only way to defeat Unity is with a ground game, which the oppo has never developed.
I've been a fringe member of DSA
for about 8 years even when I disagree with a bunch of their positions
but love the energy and organizing ability. I attended South Brooklyn
branch meetings until the pandemic. They live up to the democratic label
with extreme democracy at local levels. I get to vote on so many issues
and leaders. Recently I've hooked up with a group of DSA in Rockaway
and we canvased for Mamdani. They are even having an all day beach party
in Rockaway today.
Tuesday was also a smashing loss for the UFT/Unity leadership. Look at this graphic:
An ABCer on FB commented:
Michael Mulgrew and the UFT leadership not only once again backed a losing political candidate, they did so:
a)
when every single poll had him behind the candidate that ultimately won
— at one point Goldman was polling nearly *thirty points* behind
Lander, and
b)
without a vote from the Delegate Assembly, the only body in the UFT
with the authority to make political endorsements (unless the Delegate
Assembly votes to kick the decision to the Executive Board, which to be
clear in this instance they didn’t)
Three out of four lost, though I liked the Bores endorsement which was interesting since the UFT endorsed Micah Lasher last time for the state assembly, as I wrote about a year ago:
What happened I wonder for them to abandon Lasher? Maybe the Tier 6 issue stuck?
Mulgrew endorsed every one of the three losing Congressional candidates. The
UFT endorsed Goldman over Lander without an endorsement vote from the
Delegate Assembly while Mulgrew lied, claiming NYSUT endorsed Goldman.
Which means someone somewhere in the union (guess who?) made a
decision to undemocratically exercise their political prerogative over
the members. Doing this not only violated the UFT
constitution, but more importantly it’s flat-out wrong and selfish, and
made all the more so when you consider that whoever this presumed
"expert" was backed a candidate that lost by nearly 30%.
The union leadership continues to be in bed with the establishment political machine that often is not aligned to our values or not held accountable for making decisions that affect us.
DSA has been a hot item in the mainstream press with the emphasis on the growing threat to the Democratic Party by both the right and the so-called "moderate" Dems, which is really corporate/AIPAC friendly. James Carville positively lost it, joining Trump in seeing a threat to the nation by DSA wins.
Think of the Corp Dems calls for DSA to stay out of the Dem Party and form their own party. The James Carville off the wall comments. Imagine they replaced the Green Party in a much more effective manner and ran a third party presidential candidate, thus making the Dems a sure loser. Oh the howls of protest for them doing exactly what they are being told to do if they did not be part of the big tent?
Most Dems still say the party is big-tent even with the extreme views expressed by some winning candidates. Now never forget that our own beloved UFT/Unity leadership are very much part of the anti-left Dem Party going back to the Shanker roots of supporting the Vietnam War. The Mamdani endorsement was forced on them by the stark choice of him or Cuomo - and the clear direction of the momentum. But make no mistake, the UFT fundamentally is where it was politically in the Shanker years.
The UFT leadership engaged in a vicious red-baiting attack on DSA as recently as January, 2025:
Well I was wrong on that as it was clear Cuomo was going down and give Mulgrew credit for hopping on board with a winner, though it may not help much in upcoming contract negotiations.
The Unity crowd toned down their critiques of MORE and ARISE with the rise of ABC, a big tent group that both ARISE components and Unity see as a bigger threat, as it proved in the election with their 32% compared to the ARISE 14%.
How come the DSA crowd centered in the 14-year old MORE Caucus has failed to develop a ground game in the UFT,
as evidenced by the 14% vote in the 2025 election for the ARISE slate?
Remember, the other two caucuses in ARISE are retiree RA and the mostly
retiree New Action, so MORE was expected to carry the load and clearly
failed. The failure of DSA people in the UFT compared to the success of
DSA on the larger playing field is worth exploring in a follow-up but
here's my initial view: MORE began in 2011 as a big-tent operation but
post-2016, the DSA/ISO (now defunct) leadership decided to narrow the
tent with a move to the left that pushed out even fellow-leftists, many
of whom have drifted to ABC.
One of the keys has been the hemorrhaging
of MORE members who leave teaching or jump out of the intensity of the
regular classroom. Or jump from school to school. I came into my new
school after 3 years of teaching when I got my full appointment as the
resident big mouth radical and turned many people off. It took me 5
years to begin to gain the trust of my colleagues and yes, I modified my
big mouth radicalism. I heard Hasan Piker last week make the point that
newly organized often go over the top and it takes years to learn to
temper things as you work with people not of your views.
The internal big tent vs narrow tent struggle in MORE was between the older lefty ICE people and the younger International Socialists who at one point according to internal memos, considered giving up on the MORE project until they came up with the idea of going to DSA to recruit teachers into MORE - and they were so successful they were able to dominate by 2018 and push the ICE people out, this cementing MORE as a hard left caucus, which meant they could never win a UFT election on their own, as they found out when they ran alone in the 2019 election, thus forcing them into alliances with United for Change in 2022 and ARISE in 2025, with increasing alienation from a strong minority that either doesn't want to run in elections or doesn't want to compromise with other groups that don't adhere to their rigid ideology.
Big tent vs narrow tent
Unlike the DSA in the big tent Dem Party, the DSA faction in MORE believes the caucus must remain small tent pure. I contend that if the original MORE as big tent that included people from ICE had been adhered to, MORE would be a contender. Let me give you one example of a hard-core MOREista I was friendly with a few years ago. She texted me asking where I stood on Israel about a year and a half ago and I replied I was still working things out due to my growing up in the post-holocaust era. I was Done. Ghosted.
The DSA has proven it can be a major force on all levels of politics with a big-tent approach in the Dem party and internally there is some room for a variety of caucuses to operate. Is that a perfect solution to democracy? I had offered that type of idea at the very first meeting of MORE -- let ideas compete in an open way. But that's not the way of ideologues.
In my final days in MORE I
proposed they were more of a club or advocacy group in the UFT, which I
was fine with - just not a caucus in UFT elections and I have been
proven right. My advice is to not run as a caucus in UFT elections but
to be open to whatever members who do want to be involved do so. ABC
would be the perfect place for them to land. If MORE followed my advice,
ARISE would be dead, it it already hasn't died and we would have one
group facing Unity head on, with an actual chance to win in 2028. But
don't expect practicality to win out.
The New Socialist Revolution: Zohran Mamdani's remarkable night
Mamdani cannot impose his will on the Democratic Party like
Trump has on the Republicans. The moderate, institutional Democratic
faction lucked out; they will not, for now, be driven to extinction.
They will not suffer the fate of all the Republican politicians who
stood against Trump over the last decade. Luck,
though, comes with caveats. Within the five boroughs—this beating heart
of Empire—they are going to have to fight for their life.
This special election, like many before it, has felt manipulated by the controlling caucus. Let me be clear, I have nothing personal against John Kamps. This is not about one person. This is about fairness and democracy. We have seen that in this election alone, emails were reportedly sent out within the paraprofessional chapter structure asking for para reps and district coordinators to identify schools and paras that had, received ballots, who voted and who voted for John Kamps. How can we call this a democratic union election when things like this are happening?.. Alyson Monzon
Tuesday, May 19, 2026
There's a para election for an open seat going on. Remember that two years ago, Fix Para Pay won 8 seats with 75% but this election seems to have come in under the radar. Alyson Monzon sheds some light. The Mulgrew machine countered with a push for a non-pensionable 10k for every para and it worked in the 2025 UFT election as many paras bought into it - yet so far no 10k. Unity attacked those who pointed out the limits of this offer as opposing increases in para pay when in fact the FPP group, aligned with ABC, has been leading the way to urge the UFT to Fix Para Pay. Does anyone believe even the 10k deal from Unity would have happened if FPP hadn't won those 8 seats in 2024, just like the win by the oppo in the Retired Teacher chapter forced Mulgrew to back off his push to remove us from Medicare? If the Unity candidate wins overwhelmingly in this para special election, it will take the pressure off to push for the 10k. If Unity wins back the retired chapter next year just watch a new version of medicare for all emerge.
My
name is Alyson Monzon, and I have been a paraprofessional in Queens for
11 years. For six of those years, I also served as a para
representative. Like so many of us, this work is personal to me. I
decided to become a paraprofessional because I grew up seeing the hard
work, dedication, and love my mother poured into education as a teacher.
I also saw how important paraprofessionals were to her classroom and to
her students. They were never extra help. They were essential.
My name is Alyson Monzon, and I have been a paraprofessional in
Queens for 11 years. For six of those years, I also served as a para
representative. Like so many of us, this work is personal to me. I
decided to become a paraprofessional because I grew up seeing the hard
work, dedication, and love my mother poured into education as a teacher.
I also saw how important paraprofessionals were to her classroom and to
her students. They were never extra help. They were essential.
Education
runs deep in my family. My mother is a retired teacher, all of my
siblings are paraprofessionals, and my cousin is a social worker.
Working for NYC Public Schools is not just a job to us, it’s part of who
we are. Over the years, I’ve worked with students from pre-K through
fifth grade, and I’ve heard countless stories from middle school and
high school paraprofessionals as well. No matter where we work, the
message is always the same:
Paraprofessionals do not get enough
credit for everything we do, and we definitely don’t get paid enough. I
know it’s not about credit, but too many of us feel the same way. This
isn’t made up, it’s our lived experience.
Many of us work two or
three jobs just to survive. Many of us are caregivers at home after
spending all day caring for students in school. We help students
academically, emotionally, behaviorally, and socially. We step in
wherever we are needed. Yet somehow, we are still treated like an
afterthought.
Despite all of that, I continued pushing myself
forward. With the help of the Career Training Program, I was able to
finish my bachelor’s degree in psychology and continue my education
further. I earned my master’s degree in social work. Having both
classroom experience as a paraprofessional and a background in social
work has allowed me to see the many gaps that exist within our union and
within the systems that are supposed to support us. That is part of why
I started becoming more vocal.
Many
of us work two or three jobs just to survive. Many of us are caregivers
at home after spending all day caring for students in school. We help
students academically, emotionally, behaviorally, and socially. We step
in wherever we are needed. Yet somehow, we are still treated like an
afterthought.
Despite all of that, I continued pushing myself
forward. With the help of the Career Training Program, I was able to
finish my bachelor’s degree in psychology and continue my education
further. I earned my master’s degree in social work. Having both
classroom experience as a paraprofessional and a background in social
work has allowed me to see the many gaps that exist within our union and
within the systems that are supposed to support us. That is part of why
I started becoming more vocal.
I was planning a run for 2nd Vice
Chair because I believe paraprofessionals deserve stronger
representation and leadership that listens to members. However, I was
declared ineligible because I returned from a leave less than two years
ago. Two of my union brothers decided to pull out of the race as well,
but stay tuned, we will be back, because this is bigger than one
election.
Speaking of elections, I think many paraprofessionals
are tired of pretending everything is okay. This special election, like
many before it, has felt manipulated by the controlling caucus. Let me
be clear, I have nothing personal against John Kamps. This is not about
one person. This is about fairness and democracy. We have seen that in
this election alone, emails were reportedly sent out within the
paraprofessional chapter structure asking for para reps and district
coordinators to identify schools and paras that had, received ballots,
who voted and who voted for John Kamps. How can we call this a
democratic union election when things like this are happening?
On
top of that, members know almost nothing about the other candidate
except for a 75-word statement that came with the ballot. Many
paraprofessionals have reached out to the union asking questions and
expressing concerns, only to feel rejected, dismissed, or told that the
election is being run fairly and properly. We have also been told that
the so called election committee has someone on it, WHO DIDN’T EVEN KNOW
THEY WERE ON IT! How could that be? So they just moved forward with
what they had, instead of ensuring they had a properly constructed
committee. Shame on them!
At some point, we have to ask ourselves: When is enough, ENOUGH?
Paraprofessionals
deserve a union that welcomes questions, not one that shuts them down.
We deserve transparency, respect, and real representation, and we also
need to start organizing now around our upcoming contract negotiations
because paraprofessionals deserve real respect. Not a disrespectful plan
to throw us a $10,000 check and pretend that fixes the actual issue.
No
one is saying paraprofessionals should turn down money. We deserve more
money, period, but real respect means fighting for permanent
improvements to our salaries, pensions, benefits, working conditions,
and professional recognition, not political gestures that disappear
while the real problems stay the same. Many paraprofessionals are
already struggling to survive in New York City. We need solutions that
build long-term stability for our families and futures, not temporary
headlines.
Most importantly, we deserve to realize the power we
have together. I want to continue the conversations. I want to continue
meeting paraprofessionals across the city who believe change is
possible, because I truly believe we can build the paraprofessional
chapter, and the union, that we want and deserve.
It will only
happen if we organize, speak up, and stand together. We have the power
to bring real change for paraprofessionals. So, I’m asking, who’s with
me? Who’s with us?
I attended the March 3rd (my birthday) Retiree Teacher Exec Bd meeting on Tuesday after rushing back from a weekend jaunt to attend The Philadelphia Flower Show, the nation's oldest and largest horticultural event, held annually since 1829. Most people I know think that I'm nuts and after attending the meeting I agree with them.
There was an election taking place and I wanted to be there to stand up for the candidate I favored in a 4 way race. (She didn't win.) The RTC constitution gives the EB the right to replace any elected position, though when we try to replace the dozen delegates (out of the 300 we elected), the UFT says we can't -- you know, because they say we can't. We were told by a former Unity delegate that when they ran the chapter and had vacancies, Tom Murphy just replaced them. They make rules up as they go along.
The lack of aggressiveness by the RTC leadership only emboldens bullying by the UFT/Unity leadership. I think it goes beyond that and detect some fear by the ideologues in RA of adding new delegates who might not be pure enough ideologically --- but that's only my guess. One RTC Exec Bd member pointed out that adding a new batch of delegates would invigorate our contingent at the DA which has been shrinking to the point of irrelevancy, perhaps the major failure of the RA hierarchy.
There was an opening on the RTC Executive Board due to the resignation recently of Daniel Harkavy due to an illness - cancer that seemed to escalate quickly. We found out on Tuesday that he died on February 20, a real shock to many of us who had enormous respect for Daniel for his sense of humor, smarts, and judicious non-partisan advice. I wanted to touch base with him after he resigned and am kicking myself for failing to do so. Daniel taught chemistry at Brooklyn Tech for 26 years.
At the RTC EB meeting last Tuesday, Arthur Goldstein, who got to know Daniel, paid an impassioned tribute to Daniel and followed that up with this post.
I'm not sure how Daniel came to be part of the RTC EB - I didn't know him before. He tried to steer a neutral course during the UFT election follies last year, signing petitions for both ABC and ARISE, and attempted to run with both slates but was made to choose by ARISE. He ran with ABC because he felt ABC had the better chance to win but remained cordial with everyone.
When ABC had a petition signing in Bayside, where Daniel lived, he showed up and met Arthur and was introduced to one of our officer candidates who is also a chemistry teacher who graduated from Brooklyn Tech a year before Daniel began teaching there. He was thrilled to meet her.
For someone I barely knew, his passing was especially upsetting because when he posted he was in the hospital I intended to touch base with him as a fellow cancer patient who went through some tough days over the 6 months of chemo. To have been stricken with a deadly cancer at such a relatively young age - he was 63 but count the time leading up to it - is so sad and makes me feel relatively lucky at having reached 81 recently and still be fairly mobile and active.
I barely knew him but will miss him.
Daniel was open and respected for openly saying that if he felt ARISE had the better
chance he would have run with them. The ABC crew respected him for that view and we felt that if he would
have been allowed to run on the ARISE too, he would have gotten 46% of the
vote, the highest total of any non-Unity person in history.
I
advocated running hundreds of people on both slates and might have
actually sneaked a few people in. At some point the people who made that
decision for ARISE need to be held accountable. Actually, the entire
leadership of ARISE.
As to the election for his replacement, as I said, my favored candidate who also ran with the ABC slate did not win and lost to someone who had no connection to the movement we built among retirees over the past 5 years. A very nice guy, by the way. But a message was sent by the New Action/Retiree Advocate dominated RTC EB and the result is not a positive development for a united front in the 2027 RTC chapter election. Details next time.
=======
The Texas Primaries
I'm a political nerd and follow both mainstream and alt media.
On the broader political front, I get some of the best political analysis at breaking points, an alt media outpost that includes the left and the right, with the great reporter Ryan Grim and Krystal Ball representing the left. But it's always good to see what the right is thinking, though this is not MAGA right.
I've been getting about 10 messages a day from Talarico -- I want to send him some money, but then I will get 20 messages a day.
Not knowing enough beforehand, I did not have a dog in the race, other than the sense that Talarico had a better chance to win than Crockett, whose performance-based political acts has never resonated with me. Some view her as squad-oriented but and someone said to me she was like AOC. Far from AOC or the squad, she is more cultural than economic left. And in fact it turns out according to the analysys below that Talarico made the better economic left case.
Mainstream media painted the race as the left (Crockett) vs the center (Talarico) and therefore a lesson for Dems to stay to the center. This analysis actually paints Talarico as a sort of left because he ran an anti-corporate Bernie type campaign, albeit with some religious twists while Crocket despite her performativeness actually avoided the wealthy vs the rest of us and was more of a Dem cultural
Republicans already spent more than $71 million
to try to push Cornyn over the finish line, according to AdImpact, a
media tracking firm. But all that money got him to only 42% in the
primary against Paxton, who has been impeached, indicted, and rocked by multiple cheating scandals.
Cornyn, still the establishment conservative, raised roughly sixty-nine
million dollars; Paxton just four million. In the final stages of the
primary, the incumbent, still trailing in the polls, released a spot for
the ages, which opened, “It’s voting time, so let’s cut through the
bullshit. Crooked Ken Paxton cheated on his wife. She’s divorcing him on
Biblical grounds.” Paxton’s camp deployed the candidate’s daughter in a
last-minute response ad, and called Cornyn “a desperate shell of a man
clinging to power.” But, on Tuesday night, neither candidate managed to
get fifty per cent of the vote, which means they’ll face off again in a
runoff, in May. In theory, Republican voters might have been ready to
throw out the last vestiges of the pre-Trump party. But not for Ken
Paxton. At least not yet.
Crockett’s challenge to Talarico had less to do with ideological
difference than with style—a somewhat repetitive January debate between
the two candidates kept returning not to policy but to the question of
whether it was better to establish common ground with some conservatives
in the hope of winning their votes (Talarico’s position) or simply to
rally your side by making clear what you opposed (Crockett’s). Crockett
seemed to see enemies everywhere, and closed her campaign lashing out at
certain political consultants and reporters. The congresswoman’s team
expelled Elaine Godfrey, who’d published a critical profile of the candidate in The Atlantic,
from an event for being a “top-notch hater.” The resulting
back-and-forth on social media, between the campaign and its liberal
critics, consumed much of the race’s final days.
Who's Winning the Iran War? A surprising view differs from mainstream media from the left and the right.
Watching the Republicans leap up for joy at every Trump lie and bit of misinformation at the SOTU brought echoes of recent UFT Delegate Assemblies where we see a similar reaction from (fake) jocularity from the Unity Caucus cheering committee. The longest SOTU and most boring speech in history reminded me of some of Mulgrew's long-winded reports at the DA.
There was no better example than the Feb. DA where the main item was the endorsement for TRS of Unity candidate Tom Brown as one Unityite after another rose to give praise - and oh the cheers when the vote was taken to endorse him. Oppo people, like the Dems at the SOTU sat on their hands. There just weren't many of them and even for those who were there, there was no coordination. More and more oppo people are just not bothering to attend -- a boycott of sorts, like the Dems who stayed away from the SOTU.
The only group that had a strategy - sort of - was ABC people, but I was lukewarm to not opposing Tom Brown on the grounds he was one of 3 Unity shills who would do whatever Mulgrew tells him to do. The argument for David Kazansky is that he would now be an independent voice - and yes, for 9 years he was a union leadership voice - publicly - but I suspect behind the scenes he was willing to ask questions about the fees we were paying, the role of private equity and investment strategy.
MORE on the whole has never felt the DA was an important venue. And the vaunted 300 Retiree Advocate delegates that replaced the Unity 300 in the June 2024 supposedly game-changing election which has not changed the game very much have been disappearing from the DA in droves, thus negating the impact of that election. MORE claims 100 DA. members but few show up, so the Unity staff and loyalist CLs dominate the room. Remember ARISE? No signs anywhere that they are alive since the embarassing 14% vote in the 2025 UFT election.
Even I, an over 50-year DA attendee, even when I wasn't a delegate, no longer see it worth it to hand out leaflets. I like to attend for social reasons to schmooze and hang out with my pals.
The real changes in the UFT are happening underneath the covers and I am glad to be part of the various fragments of people connected to ABC.
Mulgrew helps build the new opposition in the UFT
What the hell is happening at the UFT that 2 former pension reps are challenging the Unity candidate for TRS rep?
Former UFT special rep Frank Panebianco is joining former 9-year Teacher Retirement System rep David Kazansky, pushed out of the job by Mulgrew two years ago and fired last June, in the race for TRS rep against Unity loyalist Tom Brown. Panebianco was among those staffers fired by Mulgrew.
Is
he a plant by Unity to divide the oppo vote? The guess is he is not but
genuinely pissed off at the leadership. Is Unity cheering his candidacy
against David? I'm thinking not as he is popular and may well draw
votes from Unity and turn this into a 3-person race. And of course David
is popular in Untiy and will also draw votes. In a secret ballot, no
matter the pressure from the leadership, there will be defections. Unity
may punish district reps who don't turn out the vote -- we get a
post-election report on the vote breakdown for every school. The key for
Kazansky is to build a strong network of schools that will vote for him
- right now there are 6 weeks to get 1000 signatures for each
candidate. He has a shot at winning no matter what, but even if Brown
wins the network built in the campaign can be used in the future.
That two long-term Unity pension experts have challenged Unity candidate Tom
Brown is indicative of the same kind of cracks we have been seeing in
Uniy over the past few years. The massive retiree and para oppo wins in
the 2024 chapter elections were clear indicators - the removal of Amy
Arundell from Queens started a trend and her ability to bring some
serious elements of Unity along with her in last year's union election
has created a potential new oppo block in ABC outside the usual caucus
suspects.
Despite the firings by Mulgrew last June, while scaring some
of Unity back into the fold, has still left some people seething. (One
well-known school-based Unity recently declared privately "I'm done with
them." Are they ready to be openly part of an oppo group like ABC? That
may take some time and also depends on how capable ABC looks over the
next few years. And don't forget that Unity 54% vote in the election. It
takes some time for people who have been in a cult to wean themselves
off.
This look good for Unity - short term on the surface - but many of these
people have actually learned some organizing skills, albeit in the
rigid confines of Unity. But once freed, the creativity flows and
excitement at the freedom grows. It is up to the legacy oppos to figure
out how to join forces if they want to defeat Unity. There is a soft
strucrure in place within the ABC coalition by the alliances built in
last year's election and ties that bind continue to be built.
The Mulgrew reign of terror may work to keep staffers in fear and in line but the firing of well-liked and competent people also sends a message and degrades the structure from underneath. The firing of District 30 rep Ashley Rzonca has riled chapter leaders and rank and file in the district and is creating a cloud of resentment that will ultimately morph into open opposition. I never knew Ashley until she was fired last June and have come to see her abilities in various strategy sessions.
Then there is Pissgate where a photo of Amy was placed in a men's room urinal at the Delegate Assembly and the culprit wasn't found despite months of investigation by an outside lawyer and despite cameras.
There is a lot of residual fear and loathing of Mulgrew and his administration throughout the ranks. LeRoy Barr's retirement and the flippant way he announced it at the January DA that surprised Mulgrew won't help as he was able to keep many of the troops in line. Will LeRoy loyalists begin to jump ship too? He is still in charge of Unity Caucus so he will be a factor. Some say the simple solution for Unity is to replace Mulgrew and some see the Mike Sill rise as a solution. BTW- Mike was once a protege of Amy Arundell who was his boss.
The woim toins.
Do
you want to build your caucus or do you want to win an election? That
was a question asked of leaders of the RA caucus and unfortunately it
looks like caucus first. The same with NAC and MORE -- they will gladly
take 14% of the vote forever as long as they can control their caucus.
At a recent meeting one non-UFT person told me "it's all about control -
having power in a small fishbowl."
If the legacy caucuses wake up and join a movement like ABC, Unity would be in trouble.
“The delicate assembly.” It sure is delicate. A bunch of “snowflakes” in Unity Caucus. Anyone who asks their dear leader a question is “rude.”Or a liar. That’s their favorite adjective. .. Comment of a not delicate Delegate
Is a cornered party as dangerous as a cornered rat? We
should be sober: the political winds are blowing hard against the
"ruling party". Unity is staring at a meltdown...
defections may mount and internal chaos spreads throughout leadership. ... Tom Hartmann
the attorney’s letter states they will sue each UFT member individually, for having publicly stated we are UFT members.
Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025 -- Delicate Assembly Day - Ho Hum
Mulgrew and crew have been rehearsing, probably all day, for the DA so he knows where to point for the required sneak attack Unity reso to start the new motion period. But he has to act like this is all spontaneous, and he was absent for the acting lesson. One of the fun things is to pick out their reso from the stack. The goal is to waste as much of the 10 minute New Motion time as possible. And monitor how much speaking time goes to staff or Unity apparatchiks.
Frankly, I'm getting a bit bored by the DA, but the chance to engage with Unity slugs is too delicious to miss plus seeing lots of old and new friends. But I need an umbrella to keep from getting wet from the snowflakes.
The answer by authoritarians when cornered is repression and increasing attacks to try to suppress voices of opposition. Or just put a photo of the leading oppo candidate for president in a urinal in the mens room at the UFT during a delicate assembly: Misogyny at the UFT Delegate Assembly
We are sure to hear bragging today on how effective they are on the para pay issue which has been locked up in the city council, thus forcing them to hold "massive" protests in front of the Adrienne Adams' office, who was scared to death at this turnout.
Now this is organizing.
PissGate Report
The union issued a report of its 6 month investigation of Piss Gate, (see here), that led to nothing. Apparently some strange guy they cannot identify was hanging around the men's room that day but the cameras can't seem to identify him. Probably just prostate problems.
They are actually trying to pin it on me or someone from ABC - I think I was the only man from ABC there that day - because, you know, Unity people have such integrity.
I was told to go in and check the bathroom around 6PM after the first photo at 5:12 was found and I removed it so they can claim my fingerprints are on it. Like there's no Unity hack capable of doing this? There is video footage and there were only so many guys at the meeting. I shared my suspicions of the possible culprit with the lawyer.
I entered the men's room to find the photo in the urinal, the second one that day and extracted it after taking a photo. I still have it and the investigator wanted me to turn it in so they could check for prints but I wasn't giving them the evidence unless I could observe the taking of the prints.
Unity motion to muzzle chapter leaders
Don't forget this gem from the Nov DA where they wanted to gag school chapter leaders like they gag CLs of functional chapters, notably Bennett Fischer of the RTC. This was their sneak attack reso.
It was voted down by a slim margin, which means even some Unity CLs voted against it, which must really piss them off since the clicker we use allows for anonymity, something we didn't have in the past as the District reps had their CLs sit near them so they could monitor how they voted.
Fighting for the right to put lit on the table
I got a call from a union official that an HR complaint had been filed over my confrontation with a Unity hack over the restriction of needing LeRoy Barr's permission to put lit on the tables in. the lobby. She should have filed the HR complaint against LeRoy who gave her such a ridiculous assignment.
Historical note: We had a table for non-official UFT lit for 25 years until the increasingly authoritarian LeRoy Barr barr-ed the oppo table and any lit he doesn't want displayed on the official table. When asked why, be first blamed Covid and then enemies of the UFT. You see, if you dare to criticize their worships you are an enemy -- Trumpism comes to 52 Broadway.
Fact is she has been nasty and arrogant (confirmed by others in the UFT) and she complains to UFT HR about me? As if I work for her and the UFT when in fact she works for me. But the UFT leadership act as if the membership works for them, so maybe they are confused.
Talk about delicate snowflakes. She goes whining because an 80 year old 58 year member of the UFT spoke to her in a loud voice? If she can't deal with that she need to get a new job. These are the people who are supposed to defend us against Trumpism?
Unity views ABC as the real threat, the legacy oppo as supplemental - but they need to find ways to stay relevant
.... where I made the point that the biggest threat to Unity hegemony is coming from within the caucus, as the numerous defections to ABC in the last election proved. ABC only existed for months but garnered 32% of the vote while the 3 legacy caucuses, with 100 years of combined experience, of trying to organize in the UFT, got only14%, thus not constituting a threat to Unity, but a necessity for Unity to keep around as a counterweight to ABC. Thus, the "Unity light" label applied by some to elements of ARISE - remembering that for a dozen years, New Action was Unity light.
A key to the vast difference between ABC and ARISE was, I believe, the infusion of defecting Unity CLs who brought their staffs along to vote for ABC. Since the ARISE coalition will never get Unity defectors en masse, the demonstrated ability of ABC to do so is what makes ABC such a threat and has led to the constant attacks in Unity lit -- look for another one today at the DA.
Unity threatens to sue ABC and all its members individually
Thus, the latest round is threats and more threats for daring to say ABC is an active group in the UFT, while other groups that use the UFT logo are ignored. The geniuses at the UFT in full force where
the attorney’s letter states they will sue each UFT member individually, for having publicly stated we are UFT members.
The letter from the lawyer also states:
“Further, throughout your website and on your social media, you refer to the A Better Contract organization as "A Better Contract - UFT" and "A Better Contract - UFT Members," signaling that the organization is a faction within the UFT when it is not.”
Mulgrew should look up the word faction -
a small organized dissenting group within a larger one, especially in politics.
On the other hand, Unity Caucus using the UFT logo is fine:
And how about MORE?
Here is the ABC post where you can get details of the threats.
Michael Mulgrew and Unity UFT leadership, a political group that has
controlled our union for more than sixty years and who continue to
preside over diminishing returns for educators across the city, have
hired the corporate law firm Norton Rose Fulbright to threaten legal
action against A Better Contract (ABC-UFT). Their claim is that we, the
committed educators and proud UFT members of ABC, do not have the right
to refer to ourselves as UFT members.
This is not the first time
Mulgrew and Unity UFT have used our dues money to threaten UFT members.
In June 2025, Unity UFT hired the same law firm to file a complaint
accusing A Better Contract of infringement for referring to themselves
as UFT members. That complaint was rejected by an independent
arbitrator, who determined that ABC-UFT’s statement of being UFT
members, which we are, is legitimate and protected.
Rather than using dues to improve working conditions or strengthen our
union, Mulgrew and Unity UFT leadership have chosen to use those dues to
attack UFT members who are advocating for a more democratic and
responsive union.
When Mulgrew lays on his phony tough guy shtick, it does have an
air of wannabe third-rate mob boss. It's pretty ineffective, though. I
don't feel intimidated at all. Maybe it's working better with UFT staff
at 52 Broadway. They all seem to be running scared.
