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!
Special Education Far Rockaway teacher Daniel Alicea, the major organizer at EONYC, is doing the kind of work the UFT should be doing, following up on EONYC's enormously successful monthly Zooms on Tuesday with probably the most important issue we face:
What Should Next School Year Look Like?
The link to sign up. He has assembled a fantastic panel:
Panelists Set for EONYC May Forum: What Should Next School Year Look Like?
Our stakeholder panelists include parents, education activists, educators, and leaders from our various teacher caucuses We
are just days away from our May 11th online forum where we will gather
with expert panelists that include parents, education activists,
educators, and leaders from our various teacher caucuses. We hope to
also be able to lean on the expertise of a local medical doctor, as
well.
As this school year of hybrid learning in a pandemic winds
down, we as educators and stakeholders have begun to reflect and
formulate questions about what the next school year should look like.
At Tuesday evening’s event, we hope to share our collective thoughts,
ideas, and demands for what should be prioritized in the upcoming school
year.
Last month EONYC held a panel that included reps from every caucus and interest group in the UFT, including Unity Caucus and attracted hundreds to a webinar discussion of the UFT Mayoral Endorsement process, which is basically 3 people in a room.
Eterno pointed to how important these type of open discussions have been in his ad for the April event.
Everyone guesses the UFT will endorse Scott Stringer with some
believing Maya Wiley has a chance to be second. Is this the right
decision? Is the UFT top-down endorsement process fair?If you are
looking for a real discussion on the mayor's race and the Union's
involvement, you will most likely be out of luck at the DA as it will
more than likely be tightly controlled by Mulgrew.
This was a day before the UFT special DA where they did endorse Stringer but did not choose Wiley or anyone as a second choice. I wrote about the Stringer story a few days ago: UFT
Sticks with Stringer.
Here's more from EONYC:
Please
join our next Educators of NYC monthly meetup, on Tuesday, May 11th, at
7 PM, as we discuss: WHAT SHOULD NEXT YEAR'S SCHOOL REOPENING LOOK LIKE
IN A COVID WORLD?
We
are just a day away from our May 11th online forum where we will gather
with expert panelists that include parents, education activists,
educators, and leaders from our various teacher caucuses. We hope to
also be able to lean on the expertise of a local medical doctor, as
well.
As
this school year of hybrid learning in a pandemic winds down, we as
educators and stakeholders have begun to reflect and formulate questions
about what the next school year should look like. At Tuesday evening’s
event, we hope to share our collective thoughts, ideas, and demands for what should be prioritized in the upcoming school year.
RSVP now!!! ... as our slots to participate will go quickly.
We,
also, encourage you to take the pre-forum survey here if you haven’t
and you can also view the preliminary results. Almost 4k individuals
have responded already: http://educators.nyc/maysurvey
Lastly, if you have registered we will send you a Zoom link as the forum event approaches.
The forum event will also be live-streamed via Facebook Live our public Facebook page and private page.
Please share this with those in your education networks and circles.
Rising followed up the day after with Krystal focusing her aim on MeToo political hits, including the guys who primaried Nancy Pelosi and Richard Neal when fake stuff was leaked at a strategic point that made it impossible to recover. And that was my main beef and suspicians about Jean Kim who waited 20 years until just the right moment. Now people have been telling me I jumped the gun because more women may come out against Stringer. We may have to vet every woman he ever dated. Krystal, coming from the almost hard left, as does the Interecept reporter Ryan Grim, are important voices even though they risk cancellation.
WARNING! WARNING!! NORM ABOUT TO ENTER CANCELLATION TERRITORY
Claims by Scott Stringer Accuser Unravel as Progressives Flee New York Mayoral Candidate. New
details about Jean Kim’s role on Stringer’s 2001 campaign and her
relationship to the candidate paint a very different portrait of the
power dynamic at play....Wiley at the time recommended “assessing the accused’s credibility
and response to the allegation in comparison to the credibility of the
accuser and supporting evidence.” .... https://theintercept.com/2021/05/04/nyc-mayor-scott-stringer-jean-kim/
Video: D.C. bureau chief of The Intercept, Ryan Grim, digs into sexual harassment allegations against NYC mayoral candidates, Scott Stringer and finde major discrepancies in Jean Kim's story - Rising, The Hill https://youtu.be/qSy2d6Nq4EI
As former prosecutors and attorneys deeply concerned about respecting
the survivors of sexual assault and protecting the rights of the
accused, we believe that justice requires a more nuanced approach than
we are seeing in the current debate. We approach this, as we would any
the report of any crime, through the neutral lens of investigation.... Maya Wiley, May, 2020. https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/joe-biden-tara-reade-steps-can-provide-full-accounting-metoo-ncna1203006 {MUST READ}
5 days ago — Stringer denies the accusations claiming he and Kim had a consensual relationship for a brief period of time.
May 5, 2021, Report from a white privileged {old} male
Don't you love so-called "progressives?"
I'm so glad I've never had any power - especially in my own home.
The Intercept report and great reporter Ryan Grim's appearance on Rising yesterday might be too late to save Stringer, but I never gave him much of a chance of winning anyway. White males are not kosher this year. The way Yang is courting the Hassids, he may be the kosher one in the race.
UFT Endorsement holds
Don't get me wrong. I liked Stringer at times over the years but even he has links to Bloomberg though Micah, Lasher, his campaign manager, who many of us fighting ed deform have found to be despicable. Stringer wasn't my first choice - but actually none of them are. Much loved by the left Diane Morales once took a job in the Joel Klein anti-union pro-charter administration. But the left can conveniently forget when it needs to - except if you made a dumb tweet when you were in the womb - then cancellation for life.
The UFT endorsement with Stringer the only choice looked like another failure in UFT mayoral races. At the very least, given some high level UFT officials' support for Wiley, I figured her as second choice and viewed not doing so as a mistake.
Now with the Intercept report Mulgrew is not looking as bad - imagine if Wiley was second choice and screaming for Stringer to drop out practically before Kim got the words out of her mouth. I'm sure teachers could rely on Wiley for support for due process if they are accused of something. Anything.
Were the charges against Stringer an outcome of the UFT endorsement which gave him legs? Do I suspect the Yang camp? Maybe not him but never forget Bloomberg fave Bradley Tusk, a major POS, is Yang's handler. If Stringer had been in single figures in the poles we would have been spared this drama.
But the UFT reaffirmed its commitment to the Stringer endorsement while MORE
Caucus called for the UFT to rescind. Naturally. Some people find it funny when
unionists want to throw away due process, but having been denied the
same when I was drummed out of MORE, I'm not surprised that the idea of
due process is forgotten when politically inconvenient.
Fuck due process:
MORE-UFT Stands with Survivors and Calls on the UFT to Rescind the Endorsement of Scott Stringer Immediately
-
In light of recent allegations made against Mayoral candidate and New York
City Comptroller Scott Stringer, we call on the UFT to immediately rescind
their..The UFT Endorsement process was undemocratic to begin with. Rank and
file members had very little decision-making power nor understanding of
the process....... LOL when MORE talks about democracy in the UFT
MORE clearly is pushing Morales but have they actually taken a democratic vote of all MORE members like they are asking of the UFT? They won't officially endorse Morales but are trying to shame the UFT into doing it. The left in the UFT is voting Morales and maybe some will be for Wiley. Stringer threatened to take some left votes.
I don't often love Mike Mulgrew but not backing down from the UFT choice of Stringer is gutsy in a way. I wonder if Stringer didn't give Mulgrew a heads up on the Intercept story. I'd put a few bob on that.
I may make Stringer one of my votes and will give no votes
to amy candidate that called on him to leave the race. Actually, that condition may leave Stringer as the only candidate left for me. I stand for due
process for teachers - and everyone else. I'm pretty sure Morales, whom I was considering, also asked for Stringer to drop out -- hooray for due process.
The Stringer case has bugged me from the start. Compare to the Cuomo story - I believed all the people charging him. The use and abuse of power accumulates over time. Have we heard of much Stringer stuff over the past 20 years? And don't forget, he stopped Eva Moskowitz' political career -- believe me if there was dirt the Moskowitz machine would have thrown it -- which actually leads my conspiracy laden mind to think how bad for Eva it would be if Stringer became mayor ----- Hmmmm. Did the charter ed industrial complex have a role in the exposure of Stringer? Does the PR firm Kim works for have any connections? This stuff hit just after the UFT endorsement gave Stringer campaign legs. Put The Intercept on that case. And by the way - here is this little tidbit about her firm from their story:
Since 2015, TLM has
represented the American Petroleum Institute, Bank of America, and a
slew of other corporate, nonprofit, and developer clients. Stringer, as
comptroller, led the largest divestment from fossil fuels in the world.
I had some issues with Tara Reade's Biden story due to no other women coming forth -- I assume if Biden did what he did to Reade a man with power would do it to more women. So that counts. But there is still an element of truth in her story. In some ways her story holds up better than Jean Kim's.
But the same conditions apply to Stringer. I don't see women coming out of the woodwork making charges like we hear about Cuomo. Maybe more women will emerge but they better have their ducks in a row given the holes in Kim's story. The Intercept story in full below catches her in lie after lie - I mean real lies with written records.
It's still going to be touch and go. If no one else emerges to say he groped or propositioned them, even if Stringer loses, Mulgrew looks good for standing by him. On the process they used for mayoral endorsement - not so much. Unity claims they sent out 10 billion emails and millions of UFT members, including the ghosts of dead members, took part in the process.
I smelled a rat with Jean Kim's account from the moment I heard it based on the exquisite timing. Wait 20 years until weeks before the election, when there would be little time to vet her. It looked like a hit. And it looked like it worked. I see Stringer as dead in the water and would bet on Adams being next mayor, based on rise in crime. A black ex-cop will have leeway to do certain things that will rile the left. A black Giuliani?
Stringer has been attacked for jumping on the story that Kim had petitioned for her friend Esther Yang using a petition with Andrew Yang on the same page and when the Stringer camp brought it up they were attacked. The Stringer campaign went too far in accusing Kim of working for Andrew Yang but her claims ring false about having no connection to Andrew Yang and she was just petitioning for her friend Esther and Andrew "just happened" to be on the same petition. Not that her friend Esther had anything to do with Andrew Yang, especially when his campaign put out this call for volunteers:
Join us in Door to Door knocking for Andrew
Yang and Esther Yang! Canvassing is the best way to spread the word
about Andrew, Esther and their policies and ...
I guess Jean Kim had no idea her good friend Esther was aligned with Andrew. Note to Esther - Jean Kim was once Scott Stringer's friend. Watch your back.
One of my favorite reporters is Ryan Grim at the left-leaning Intercept and he appears often on Rising. Yesterday he was on the Jean Kim case as he explained to Krystal and Saagar in some detail about his investigation. (See video below).
Intern is the magic word
Stringer and Kim were part of the same social circle and they all volunteered for his campaign. She was 30 and had a job but initially claimed she was an intern - a bald-faced lie - and her explanation he told her it was an intern-like environment was bullshit as they actually had real interns. The Intercept talked to people who knew them and reported their relationship fell into the "friends with benefits" category.
In today's climate we're automatically expected to believe a female accuser, and often they are proven right. But sometimes with vetting, there are doubts. Witness the Biden accuser, Tara Reade, whose credibility was doubted over months of vetting her past. Some people still believe her and in some ways her story is much worse than that of Stringer's accuser.
Wiley Hypocrisy on Biden and Stringer: Fuck Due Process II
Note how Wiley gave Stringer less
than 24 hours before calling for him to resign from the race.
Progressives. People calling for Stringer to quit should also demand
Biden resign. That's a joke - but hypocrisy, rear thy ugly head. I had
considered listing Wiley on my ballot but she now joins Andrew Yang in
Norm's "ballot hell." I give Wiley the Norm Scott POS seal for standing
up for her principles of "protecting the rights of the
accused.
But Maya Wiley was quick to hold off judgement on Biden in an essay she co-wrote in May 2020.
That means that step one after accepting Reade’s allegation is to
investigate it. Because her allegations occurred long enough ago that
the statute of limitations bars any possibility of prosecution, law
enforcement agencies don't have jurisdiction to investigate, and
investigation funded by either Reade or Biden would likely be viewed as
lacking objectivity. But there is a vehicle for investigation — the
independent press, where investigative journalists are highly motivated
to seek out details and witnesses and where competing views will be
aired.
Now watch how Wiley and crew cast shade on Reade for showing support for Biden many years after the incident:
Reade has praised Biden for protecting women from sexual assault. As recently as 2016 or 2017, Reade, under the name Tara McCabe, tweeted praise
for Biden’s efforts to address sexual assault and retweeted the
accolades of others for his efforts. In one tweet, Reade said, “My old
boss speaks truth. Listen."Reade has also changed her story about the reason she left her job at Biden’s office,
Scott Stringer was on Brian Lehrer and he was really grilled by Bryan, and not in a totally fair way. Like even if they were dating, what about the power relationship - holy fuck, we must assess our power relationships before dating. Maybe we need an online form to fill out before getting permission or else expect 30 years later to be charged with something. Or male teachers -- Did you ever tell a female student she looked pretty?
Here's the Rising video
D.C. bureau chief of The Intercept, Ryan Grim, digs into sexual
harassment allegations against NYC mayoral candidates, Scott Stringer.
Are there signs the pressure from retirees is having an impact on UFT leaders?
Unity
has used retirees as their main instrument of control of the UFT and
have received 85% or more of their votes in UFT general elections and
about 80% in retiree chapter elections (where most people are not aware
of an election so don't vote). They have always made sure retirees are
well treated - there are goodies.: Ridiculously cheap classes, refunds,
trips and a good healthcare plan. OOPS! It seems risky for them to
alienate retirees. Don't think they won't be watching the numbers in
the upcoming chapter election. If they saw some serious slippage it might even affect
how far they are willing to go in this health care fiasco.
May 4, 2021, 1:30 PM - in the middle of the Mulgrew-retiree fest.
The above is can excerpt from my post below where I argue that pushing back might have an ability to shake the UFT leadership. Alienating UFT retirees? Maybe not a good idea.
A debate broke out on the Retiree Advocate listserve Monday following the amazing webinar RA held on Sunday where 450 registered and 300 showed up. I will post the video when it's available. A key was that we had speakers from every angle and caucus and even had a doctor. But I'll say more about that another time.
I presented at the webinar and had originally supported a rally at the MLC HQ on Water St. (Municipal Labor Committee) which is meeting tomorrow - Wednesday - to possibly vote on the proposal or at least reveal whether Emblem or Aetna won the big money sweepstakes - and believe me, it's BIG MONEY - for them - and LESS MONEY for us. A poll held at Sunday's meeting indicated the majority who voted were not prepared for a rally. We also began to see that an effective rally would require more preparation and that may still happen.
Some people wanted to hold a rally ASAP and one target was a protest of sorts during Mulgrew's event today. I pushed back against holding a rally today in this email to the group and echoed James Eterno's push to flood the meeting with questions.
Monday, May 3, 11PM
Compliments to the many excellent points made so far. People should
begin to come together to facilitate areas of common interest. I'm
speaking for myself here and not RA/UFT or ICE/UFT.
I
wanted to address some assumptions being made on the retiree advocate
google listserve that attending the Mulgrew info session is a waste of
time and we'd be better off having a rally at UFT at the same time.
One
of the reasons Mulgrew is even holding a town hall is due to the
pressure not only by Retiree Advocate but by hundreds if not thousands
of retirees as they get informed. RA organizing has been around
spreading information and .the webinar was an outgrowth of that
organizing. And we only learned of these proposed changes a few weeks
ago from people in PSC. The UFT has used stealth to try to sneak this by
us.
RA was in position to reach out due to
the consistent educating and organizing over the past few years - even
decades - as the only group in the retiree chapter pushing back against
Unity. But this year we were able to meet more often due to zoom -- a
pandemic benefit and we have focused on getting a messy email list in
order, working on the FB page and expanding outreach for the chapter
elections. Fundamentally, RA has been putting out newsletters aimed at
retirees over these decades.
This year we
reached out directly to many retirees who had been active in the UFT to
run with us and that has been the basis of getting the word out. When we
submitted almost 130 candidates last month - including almost every
opposition presidential candidate since the 1970s --- the largest slate
ever from what I hear - the Unity machine took notice. I'd bet today, a
month later, we'd be able to fill all 300 slots in the election.
All
indications are that the pressure we have been applying is having an
impact. The very fact Mulgrew is holding this meeting is an outgrowth of
that pressure. He had people tune in to our webinar and don't think the
450 registrants and 300 attendees goes unnoticed.
Rally Confusion -- Retiree votes have been key to keeping Unity in power
I'm not sure how the idea to rally Tuesday at the UFT during the Mulgrew town hall came about.
Nor the idea that attending the Mulgrew meeting was meaningless. The very opposite was presented at the webinar by James Eterno.
I
get the negative history of our dealings with the duplicitous
leadership. But this may be new territory for them and the opposition.
Unity
has used retirees as their main instrument of control of the UFT and
have received 85% or more of their votes in UFT general elections and
about 80% in retiree chapter elections (where most people are not aware
of an election so don't vote). They have always made sure retirees are
well treated - there are goodies.: Ridiculously cheap classes, refunds,
trips and a good healthcare plan. OOPS! It seems risky for them to
alienate retirees. Don't think they won't be watching the numbers in
this election. If they saw some serious slippage it might even affect
how far they are willing to go in this health care fiasco.
RA only considered a rally on Wednesday at MLC not UFT
Retiree
Advocate at no time considered a rally at the UFT on Tuesday. That's
why James Eterno was asked to do a presentation at the webinar on why we
should flood the Tuesday Mulgrew meeting with attempts to get questions
answered. James' presentation pointed to why we should try to be there.
Numbers count and leadership notices them. -- flood Mulgrew's meeting
and try to get through the screeners
to ask a question. There may be
thousands of people on the call who are frustrated - I think some may be
more willing to come to a rally AFTER being turned back at Mulgrew's
meeting. From what we are hearing, Unity will be watching the number of
people who sign on tomorrow - they know they have to tread carefully
with misinformation because that will come back to bite them.
Our
man on the Ex Bd Mike Schirtzer asked questions tonight at the meeting
about letting people get their questions in. (iI has been incredibly
valuable having Mike on the EB because no opposition retirees can get
elected due to Unity winner take all.) Mulgrew said it would be open --
we'll see. Mulgrew referenced the upcoming retiree chapter election to
try to throw shade on RA: "Not making any decisions yet. If we have to blow it up, we will.
[GASLIGHTING] Lots of bad information out there. There are always factions." What bad information since they've given us none?
Reports
coming in point to the fact they may be in front of thousands of
attendees -- which was James' point and we should not miss the
opportunity to chime in if we can- and if we can't and questions aren't
answered or they are blowing smoke then many people will go away being
more pissed and open to our message. And if people try and are shut out
we make a big deal about it.
Rally? I can
only focus on one thing at a time at this time in my life. For the
record, in my webinar presentation I put forth the Retiree Advocate fall
back position on a rally that since MLC is meeting Wednesday we should
hold a rally at noon at their headquarters. Even with a flawed poll it
was disappointing to see the outcome. I was hoping for more than 35. And
we know that slippage might lead to less actually showing up. It seems
most are not ready to venture out to a rally at this point but maybe in a
week or so of increasing agitation, they might be. RA is ready to help
organize with many of you for a rally that is well thought out and
organized.
Based on the back and forth so
far, especially the email from Jose with some great organizing
tactics, a successful rally takes some time. I hope Jose jumps on board
to assist with his expertise.
I do want to
point out that there are activists in the retiree chapter who do not
believe in holding protests at any union facility because they feel it
feeds into the general anti-unionism we face and if a rally is held at
the UFT some will not attend. I've always been willing to demo at UFT
but in the interests of small u unity, there seem to be plenty of other
targets.
A rally idea should be tackled
after tomorrow for sometime in the near future if there is enough
interest. But consider that numbers actually do count. A weak showing in
a union of 70k retirees sends a message we may not want to send.
Here is Eterno's blog post tonight about the Mulgrew meeting tomorrow and reports of tonight's ex bd.
61% of Harlem families have made the choice to keep their children in remote schooling (D4 = 60%, D3 = 64%, D5 = 61%) for the remainder of the school year. The KSO movement is led by privileged white caregivers who have repeatedly used the experiences of Black and Brown families as props for their agenda to rush fully reopening of school buildings. This group has spent the past year demonizing and blaming New York City teachers for the broken response by Mayor de Blasio, and the former Trump administration. They have also allied with known segregationists and right-wing racist groups who oppose Critical Race Theory and anti-racism. Now they’ve enlisted the support of problematic Mayoral candidates Andrew Yang and Kathryn Garcia. ..... Parents for Responsive Equitable Safe Schools (PRESS NYC)
I'm venturing out to Harlem for my first public event since March, 2020.
There are two rallies occurring at the same time and place today at Wagner Park in Harlem (120th St between 1st and 2nd ave)
A "Keep schools open no matter what and fuck those lazy teachersand who cares if kids get sicksince they are more likely not to be white" rally of mostly white wealthy parents
A counter rally in support of teachers and parents who still feel it unsafe to go back into schools at the same location is being led by Kaliris Salas Ramirez, parent activist supreme who we worked with in the successful battles to get rid of an abusive principal at Central Park East a few years ago. Kaliris and parents at the school backed teachers who were rubber roomed and pretty much saved their jobs. (Parents at Central Park East 1 Issue Press Release Calling for Removal of Principal Monika Garg).
Mostly Upper west side parents, led by people who have been linked to anti-vax and anti-mask groups, are holding the rally in Harlem - an in your face move, given that parents of color have been more unwilling to go back into schools than higher income white parents. This group has also engaged in attacks on the UFT and on teachers in general. But despite that, they are advertising that mayoral candidates Garcia and Yang will be speakers.
Here is the press release of the group pushing back:
CONTACTS: Kaliris Salas Ramirez , Liz Rosenberg
MEDIA ADVISORY
For immediate release
Public school families & educators of Harlem, along with allies, demand school planning be
rooted in community concerns and priorities for safety & equity; Denounce Keep Schools Open
mayoral candidate rally (happening simultaneously) as cynical exploitation, unrepresentative of
the community
WHEN: Saturday, May 1 beginning at @ 10 AM
● Gathering
● Rally With Speakers
● Community Conversations/Teach-ins
WHERE: Gathering and rally -- outside Wagner Playground, E. 120th St (between 1st & 2nd Aves), Manhattan
Community conversations/teach-in -- The Harlem Art Park E. 120th between 3rd and Lexington
WHAT & WHY:
61% of Harlem families have made the choice to keep their children in remote schooling (D4 = 60%, D3 =
64%, D5 = 61%) for the remainder of the school year. The KSO movement is led by privileged white
caregivers who have repeatedly used the experiences of Black and Brown families as props for their agenda
to rush fully reopening of school buildings. This group has spent the past year demonizing and blaming New
York City teachers for the broken response by Mayor de Blasio, and the former Trump administration. They
have also allied with known segregationists and right-wing racist groups who oppose Critical Race Theory
and anti-racism. Now they’ve enlisted the support of problematic Mayoral candidates Andrew Yang and
Kathryn Garcia.
On May Day, a day that we are supposed to honor labor activism, for mayoral candidates to stand with
those who have actively demonized teachers for their own private interests speaks volumes. We are not
your props!
We say NO to the racist KSO movement
We say NO to Andrew Yang
We say NO to Kathryn Garcia
We say NO to Ray McGuire
We say NO to Maud Maron
WHO WILL SPEAK:
● City Councilmember Diana Ayala
● City Council candidate Cordell Cleare
● Community Education Councilmembers from Harlem
● Harlem community students, parents, educators
● Citywide ed-equity advocates
Representatives from the organizations listed below will also be available to speak to the press.
Racially Just Public Schools (RJPS) @ny4rjps
Alliance for Quality Education (AQE) @AQE_NY
Movement of Rank and File Educators (MORE) @MOREcaucusUFT
Parents for Responsive Equitable Safe Schools (PRESS NYC) @safeschoolsny
Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF) @cacfnyc
Teens Take Charge @TeensTakeCharge
BLM at Schools NYC @Blm_edu_nyc
NYC Opt Out @NYCOptOut
IntegrateNYC @integratenyc
East Harlem Preservation @virtualbarrio
Justice Center en el Barrio @JusticeCenterNY
Friends of Art Park Alliance (FAPA120 on FB)
Young Buck Sports (YoungBucksSports on FB)
RA/UFT is sending the following letter to the Municipal Labor Committee:
To: Harry Nespoli, Chair, MLC
CC: Michael Mulgrew
The members of RetireeAdvocate/UFT strongly object to the lack of
transparency over the process in awarding contracts to one of two
finalists in the proposed transfer of 250,000 retirees out of Medicare
and into a privatized Medicare Advantage plan.
Until
there is complete transparency regarding the process, with full
information to those affected by this decision, RetireeAdvocate/UFT
calls for the Municipal Labor
Committee to declare a moratorium on this move due to the deleterious
effect it will have on NYC retirees.
RetireeAdvocate/UFT
I've been part of Retiree Advocate/UFT Organizers. We spent the past few months preparing a platform and a slate to challenge Unity Caucus in the upcoming UFT retiree chapter elections (ballots go out in about 10 days - if you are a retiree check the Retiree Advocate slate). We have 130 retirees running and could have had 300 to fill the entire slate but were running out of time.
Then a few weeks ago, just as we were meeting the UFT deadline for sending in our leaflet that will be sent out with the ballot, we began hearing about these negotiations going on behind our backs about pushing us all into a privatized version of our much beloved Medicare - which everyone should have but is opposed by our unions and the Democratic Party which are so tied to privatized insurance corporations that I sometimes wonder what they are getting out of it -- well, the Dems get massive donations but exactly what are the unions getting? I'll let you speculate on that in your spare time.
Once we were able to gear up and zoom meet - between our doctor appointments - possibly soon to disappear when our docs don't take the Advantage plans -- a plan of resistance began to formulate - and we forsee the battle continuing even if they make this change because we expect they might make things look good initially before the chopping block comes when people are no longer watching.
Someone in another union sent us a missive from the MLC chair Nespoli that MLC washolding a steering committee meeting Monday, May 3 and a full committee meeting on Wednesday May 5. It is not clear if they will actually vote. Hearing this sparked our moratorium letter to Nespoli and the MLC.
Then we hear that Mulgrew is holding a meeting for retirees on Tuesday May 4 -- hmmmmmm.
COMRO Objects
A similar letter to ours was sent to the MLC on March 14 by COMRO -- what is COMRO? The Council of Municipal Retiree Organizations which includes the UFT which is represented by one of the UFT founders George Altomare who we assume was involved in sending an open letter published in the Labor Press
An Open Letter to Mayor de Blasio and the Municipal Labor Committee:
The Council of Municipal Retiree Organizations (COMRO) has learned that you are in the process of awarding a highly
lucrative contract to a major health insurance company to take over
administering health insurance for over 200,000 Medicare-eligible
retirees effective this July 1. You released an RFP and have eliminated
two of the four responders. Your technical committee is evaluating the
two finalists and will shortly send their recommendations to you for a
final vote.
Nowhere in this process have you consulted with the 200,000 people
and their families to determine how it will help or harm us. Medicare
Part B works very well for most of us. We contributed to Medicare during
our years of employment with the tacit understanding that we will have
the hard-earned entitlement when we turned 65. Now we are dependent on
the kindness of strangers to maintain our health and wellbeing without
additional cost. We are duly concerned that these types of managed care
programs have a history of making it difficult to choose doctors and
specialists by introducing bureaucratic hurdles.
The lack of transparency in your rush to change this program is both
insulting and frightening to those of us who have collectively worked
millions of years serving the people of New York City. How can we trust
our very health to a backroom deal based on a dubious assumption of cost
avoidance?
Before this contract is awarded, you must include actual Part B
recipients in the evaluation process to ensure any change in Medicare
Part B will not harm us.
RA Sunday night (May 2) Info/Action Zoom at 7 PM
We expected 35 or so but so far registration has gone over 100 and we may have to buy an extended ZOOM package or stream live to FB for the overflow. You can still register:
Make sure to register early for our Zoom event this Sunday.
...the
most important fact to keep in mind is that insurance companies are in
business to make profits. The more the better. So after all the
expenses of doing business they have, they have to keep the shareholders
happy by having great profits. Their customers have to pay for
profits. The medical costs they are responsible for paying is not a
happy event for them. ---- Facebook correspondent
Their all in cahoots - add unions
My wife worked in the medical billing field for decades and always pointed to Medicare govt run plan as being the most efficient and cost saving while private companies delayed payment and had lots of people working there who were not as capable as the professionalism of medicare people.
The thing to understand is that Medicare Advantage plans are private but have created purposeful confusion by taking the medicare name and attaching a new label. And they pay less than public medicare so many doctors won't take advantage plans. It's very like the old HIP which we always had an option to take but most of us didn't because of the permissions, limited docs, etc.
Here's what I wonder - if we had medicare for all this issue wouldn't even be on the table but the unions like the UFT are adamantly against it. So what is the advantage to unions to support a plan that fucks up so many people? Is there some sort of quid quo pro for the leaderships from private insurance since it seems like such a no brainer to end the profit system of health care?
I saw this on FB and it's not the first I heard of delays on getting to
doctors when having to go through the primary physician gatekeeper who
can stop you in your tracks if he doesn't approve.
I’m
married to a man who is a retired NY teacher, so this change will
impact me.
Having been covered by a Medicare Advantage plan before we
married, I can tell you the blah blah corporate speak is baloney.
Here
are some facts to think about.
Administering
the Medicare program costs 2%, while private insurance companies pay
between 12 and 18% to administer their programs. The insurance
companies also have the expenses of paying executives high salaries and
bonuses, country club memberships and expenses, and whatever other perks
they get, and paying dividends to their shareholders. How can they
possibly claim it will cost the insured less? Less of the premiums paid
will go for medical care, that’s for sure.
When
the people negotiating the programs say the retirees will have better
medical care, that is like sprinkling fairy dust on our brains. You
can’t call a specialist and make an appointment. You have to see your
primary care doctor and get his approval to do that, and he has to give
the doctor you want to see a referral. Some offices are less efficient
than others, and your referral may not get to the specialist.
You can’t
go to a hospital without going through the same thing unless it’s an
emergency situation. You can’t get a test or procedure or surgery or
anything out of an ordinary office visit without getting a referral.
The specialist cannot order these things for you. It has to be your
primary care physician, who is not an expert in anything.
My
late husband and I had a Humana advantage plan, and I’m convinced it
caused his death.
He became ill with a cough and his physician treated
him for post nasal drip. He was getting worse instead of better. We
wanted to go to a pulmonologist, but specialists cost the primary care
physicians money (a great incentive to keep costs for the insurance
companies down), so he wouldn’t approve it. Finally, when we were in
the office one day after several months of worry, I loudly, with a
waiting room filled with patients, shouted, “My husband is getting more
and more sick and is losing weight like crazy, and I don’t see any
concern from you. Look at him! He has to see a pulmonologist!” The
doctor said “His lungs are clear.” I said “I’m sitting 10 feet away
from him and I can hear him wheezing from here! Don’t tell me it’s post
nasal drip!” He listened to his lungs with a stethoscope and finally
agreed to give him the referral. Of course, when we went to the
pulmonologist, they hadn’t received it, but their staff made a phone
call and had it sent over. But that kind of stress is what we had to
deal with when we were dealing with lung cancer. And that wasn’t the
end of it. My husband had many, many scans, endoscopies and biopsies
without finding a single cancer cell, all while he had advanced lung
cancer and his chest kept filling with fluid.
Don’t let them subject you to this. You deserve better, which you have now.
A
former senior adviser in the Obama administration was arrested Tuesday
on charges that he stole more than $200,000 from a network of charter
schools that he founded and used the money to get a lower interest rate
on a mortgage for a Manhattan apartment, federal prosecutors said. The
founder, Seth Andrew, 42, is accused of taking money from bank accounts
controlled by Democracy Prep Public Schools, which teaches mostly
low-income students of color in New York and other states, and used it
for the purchase of a $2 million apartment, prosecutors said. ..NYT, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/27/us/seth-andrew-fraud-money-laundering-charter-school.html
Now I know about good old Seth since he started the Democracy Prep charter scam in 2005 when the public floodgates opened to charters. He even left some whiny comments on some of my blog posts over the years. And of course Obama, the ed deformer in chief, hired him to deform education around the nation. He spent a few hours teaching in Korea before becoming an ed expert in his early 20s.
Now while Democracy Prep claims they were the victims, it is actually the public that was the victim since the money Seth stole really came from public funds. And it further exposes the charter scam that it is about making money, not about the kids.
As always, Ed Notes was on his and Dem Prep's case> Here are a few articles I wrote about Seth Andrew, including a visit I made to a public school housing one of his schools.
All I see
every morning and evening is this tall man dressed in bright clothing
yelling at the parents every single day since school started... parent at Democracy Prep
DP founder Seth Andrew - or Eva Moskowitz in drag
Oh the joy in this comment on another beloved crooked charter, especially with today's news (see Perdido)
about Eva Moskowitz and her move to the financial district - call it
"Wall St. Empire" - which might make a good HBO series to follow the
gangster-ridden "Boardwalk Empire" - with Eva playing a gun moll who
makes Steve Buscemi's character look like a nun.
all the teachers at this charter
school are white and from out of state. The school's administrators did
manage to get two coaches that are African-American from the New York
City area. They are the two in charge of the detention room. Is there
something wrong with that picture?.....
his teachers were directed to video
tape him in every classroom. One of the teachers according to him
followed him with a camera into the lunch room when he went to pick up
his lunch, followed him up the stairs into the hallway and continued
videotaping him while he was eating lunch.....
It's time to examine the police state structure of some of the charter schools model in the minority community in New York... Former Democracy Prep mother
Ahhh, that ole' plantation mentality at Democracy
Prep. Message to Seth Andrew: Don't tick off a parent who is a
professional journalist.
Gary Rubinstein pointed out just how bad the Democracy Prep (relative to
public schools despite their significant advantages) test scores were
in this post: Petrilli’s Desperate Attempt To Save Democracy Prep’s Reputation. Now,
as Gary says, I don't view school success and failure based on test
scores. But if charters are going to make big claims based on the
scores, then die by the sword. Especially when they set up a regressive
"zero tolerance" situation (when there are so many progressive means of
discipline, like restorative justice.
another parent who removed her child from Democracy Prep (from their point of view: mission accomplished).
Extracting high test scores at Success
And even with these policies they still had horrible
test scores. Eva is smarter at extracting high scores I guess. Has
anyone checked to see if kids at Success
Academy schools still have their fingernails?
Here is the article from the Times:
Former White House Adviser Is Charged With Stealing From Charter School Network
Seth
Andrew, who served in the Obama administration, stole more than
$200,000 to help him buy a $2 million Manhattan apartment, prosecutors
said.
I'm closing my eyes and trying to imagine how nice it
would have been to ask what an RFP is. Or how smooth and sexy "white
glove concierge service" feels (while you're bleeding dollars and trying
to find a specialist).
Or to have screamed "Medicare Advantage? Are you
kidding me?!!!"
But alas, it's just a fantasy because, incredibly, after thirteen months
(that's 13) there is still ZERO member interaction during remote RTC
meetings.
ZERO.
NADA.
NOTHING.
Thirteen months and a lifetime of Zooms.
Thirteen months and the UFT IT
department at your disposal. Still too complicated I suppose; haven't
worked the bugs out.
Don't worry kid, that color TV is just around the
corner.
No motions, no good and welfare, no resolutions, no chat, no debate, no
questions, no answers, no satisfaction, no nothing.
Just one big
infomercial.
The retiree natives are restless as the wires have been burning up since the news broke over proposed changes that would force medicare recipient retirees into an HMO where they would be forced to use only those doctors with all other kinds of paperwork bulwarks to treatment. I mean you don't save billions by INCREASING services. With UFT retiree chapter elections coming in a few weeks I wonder if word would spread enough about the union's betrayals to increase the Retiree Advocate/UFT Caucus votes this time? In the winner take all system, Unity gets all 300 delegates to the DA while we get NADA. Oh, we asked for a courtesy 5 delegates so at least our voters get some representation and were refused. UFT dues without representation. And I would extend that idea that we get no representatin at the AFT and NYSUT in their winner take all where they elect 750 and even if we got 49% would still get nothing. It seems there is a potential law suit about paying dues without getting representation but as I've preached in the past, first show you can get near 40% of the vote and then sue.
The negotiations are taking place in
virtual secret. This lack of transparency is happening with the full
knowledge of the various union leaderships, including the UFT. Retirees
of the Professional Staff Congress (PSC), just this week, their
Delegate Assembly passed a resolution calling for a moratorium on these
negotiations and for ”voices of municipal retirees to be heard”.
We're hearing from UFT retirees who haven't been in touch as a
horror film of sorts unfolds for all municipal retirees under Medicare (65 and above) which can lead to them losing access to their doctors and paying high fees. The important thing to understand is that our own union leaders have been engaging in secret negotiations and are about to spring it all on us. At the most recent retiree chapter meeting, our Retiree Advocate/UFT caucus that is challenging the retiree Unity Caucus in the upcoming retiree election, had the item put on the agenda and Mulgew was one of the guest speakers.
Here are two reports from the UFT Retiree Chapter meeting, April 14, 2021:
Unity
seems a little shaken that the MLC/Medicare negotiation is out of the
bag. So, according to Mulgrew, anything the MLC negotiates will be the
best thing ever, because anything he touches turns to gold. He is very
smart! And according to Sorkin:
Yes,
a Medicare Advantage plan is on the table... but don't you worry,
you silly people! This is not yesterday's old-fashioned, crappy Medicare
Advantage plan (the kind we always told you scary stories about); this
is today's shiny!, brand new!, awesome! Medicare Advantage plan! What are you, an old fogey? Get with the program. This is modern! This is a "White glove, concierge service!"
What's more, the plan is more of a PPO, rather than HMO plan. (You got that? The letters are different!)
Part B & IRMAA reimbursements are not on the table. Who told you that? That's a pernicious rumor. Pinky swear.
Do you feel reassured yet?
No I don't feel reassured. The other retiree added:
Mulgrew also said: Two years ago, we decided to be
active consumers. We want access to the same or better health care! But
now, because of the RFP, I can't talk too much. (What the f is a RFP? He
used these initials a few times but never said what it stands for. Or
did I miss something?)
If we do anything, you'll be in a better place! We
will make it better. I guarantee. We will fight for you...Blah blah,,
that's as far as I can go with the RFP....
Then Jeff Sorkin continued to "address some rumors that are out there".
Report above describes the main points he made. I especially chocked when he spoke of the Access to lifelong concierge services- assistance, guidance to manage chronic conditions. But it's not a Gatekeeper...
Some additional points I heard him say:
"You will be able to retain your current doctors". and "You'll have access to all doctors that take Medicare"
Can't this be contradictory??
"Nothing is finalized" Right. But it will be without any input from membership.
[Tom) Murphy ended with options, choices, enhancements.
looking forward. The history of the UFT with the MLC is to enhance
benefits, save money.
"Guarantee to keep your benefits or enhance them:
Now I know we're all reassured!
And an old friend commented:
Leave it to the municipal unions to agree back in 2018 to cut medical
expenses for the city by $2 billion or so dollars by the end of the
contract in 2021 and it looks like they are planning on turning us
into a medicare advantage plan as opposed to regular medicare . This is a
disaster for retirees - once it becomes an advantage plan you must see
doctors in their network - kind of like the old HIP and every procedure
will be looked. Dr. Mark doesn't take med advantage plans nor do lots of
others because they pay doctors less then medicare does. I assume you
know about Mike's (Schirtzer's - Retiree Advocate) resolution for the DA. They will sell it to the
members as a benefit just like the ads on radio and TV do - lower
premiums, eyeglass and dental coverage, etc. Of course what they won't
say is that there will no longer be Part B reimbursement checks each
year to cover medicare and also no more IRMAA for those paying a higher
medicare premium because they earn over the threshold. It's really all about IRMAA - for recent single retirees who have
retired with a pension of 80,000 or so and social security of 20,000 and
TDA annual RMD's of lets say 40,000 they pay about $1800 for regular
medicare and another $1800 for IRMAA so they would lose $3600 in rebates
a year.
This is what RA sent out to members:
Retiree Advocate/UFT is sounding the alarm to all retirees and in-service members of a pending change to our health care. The
City and MLC (Municipal Labor Committee) are in negotiations to give
the administration of our health coverage over to a private insurance
company. Two companies , Aetna and Emblem Health, are among the
finalists. This would transfer the 250,000 municipal retires from our
current traditional Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan (a privatized
Medicare). NYC has called for more savings not for retirees but for
itself.
Retiree Advocate/UFT called on Tom Murphy to place the issue
before the Retired Teachers Chapter meeting last month. He did but we
received a superficial explanation. Last week Retiree Advocate was
fortunate to have Mike Schirtzer, a UFT Executive Board member, put a
Retiree Advocate initiated resolution to the April 14 UFT Delegate Assembly. The
resolution, one of many, was placed well into the agenda thus ensuring
that President Mulgrew did not get to it, thereby delaying
action on this vital issue.
This article from The City is setting off alarms among retirees with some calling for a rally or even a die in at MMC headquarters. I was thinking of a rally with our walkers, like The Producers. There are ineresting and alarming details in this article
Retired City Workers Recoil at Coming Cost-Saving Medicare Shift
Impending move to privately managed
health plans could save taxpayers as much as $600 million annually — at a
high cost to retirees, who may have to pay more for less care and fewer
doctor choices, some warn.
Nearly 250,000 retired New York City employees and their spouses could have their health insurance changed to “Medicare Advantage” plans managed by private insurers as soon as July 1, New York Focus has learned.
Retirees, who are pushing to delay the switch, say they
are worried that a switch away from their current Medicare plan could
lead to dramatically higher out-of-pocket costs and a smaller network of
providers.
“It’s a little frightening,” said Jane Roeder, a retired
city administrator. “The word on the street is that these Advantage
plans are fine as long as you don’t get sick, as long as you don’t need
the chemotherapy that my friend is having right now, or radiation
treatment, or infusion treatment, or skilled nursing.”
The proposed switchover follows a June 2018 agreement
between the Municipal Labor Committee, a group that represents retired
New York City employees, and the city Office of Labor Relations.
Under that pact, both sides agreed to reduce health care
costs for retirees by $600 million a year relative to 2018 forecasts,
starting in 2021. Switching to Medicare Advantage, also known as
Medicare Part C, was one of eight possibilities proposed at the time.
Under Medicare Advantage, the city projects it would save
that sum by paying a fee to a private insurance company to manage a
Medicare plan. Documents reviewed by New York Focus indicatea deal is being negotiated between the city and private insurance companies seeking to administer the coverage.
The
city currently reimburses retirees the cost of their premiums for
Medicare Part B, which covers outpatient care, and also pays for a
supplemental “Medigap” plan to insure for services not covered by traditional Medicare.
Premiums for Medicare Advantage are often lower than in traditional Medicare,
but involve trade-offs that could affect retirees’ health and finances:
a smaller network, and higher out-of-pocket costs, said Naomi Zewde, a
professor of public health at CUNY who is a Roosevelt Institute fellow.
“The city is going to save money by making seniors pay
more for their health care,” Zewde said. “These are people who worked an
entire career under the promise that they would have good health care
later on.”
Fewer Physicians
City retirees currently have access to the vast majority of physicians in New York. Medicare Advantage plans generally have fewer options: A 2017 national study from the Kaiser Foundation found that on average, Medicare Advantage plans offered access to just 40% of physicians in Queens.
Contract-related documents made public by the city Office
of Labor relations suggest an increase of as much as $6,000 annually in
potential out-of-pocket costs per retiree could be in store. Such costs
are currently capped at $1,053 per year, according to Len Rodberg, a
retired CUNY professor and health policy expert who would be affected by
the potential change.
The documents show annual out of pocket costs could reach upwards of $7,000 for an individual — approaching the maximum allowed by Medicare under law.
“Basic city workers in the $30,000 to $50,000 [salary]
range, their Social Security payments are smaller, their pension is
smaller; they’re going to get hit badly by this,” Rodberg said.
Some budget watchdogs have highlighted retiree health care savings as necessary to bring $2.2 billion in annual city benefits spending under control.
“Health
care savings are important. They’re essential to getting the city on
solid fiscal footing, due to the rate at which these costs grow,” said
Ana Champeny, director of city studies at the fiscally conservative
Citizens Budget Commission. “It’s important to come to a consensus about
how to control the costs, and how to possibly reduce the retiree health
costs too.”
But retiree advocates say the deal in the works is too high a price for members to pay.
“Somehow you’re going to save $600 million, and the
200,000 Medicare retiree recipients are going to somehow get no worse
and maybe even better service?” said Stuart Eber, president of the
Council of Municipal Retiree Organizations.
‘People Don’t Know’
The city Office of Labor Relations received eight
proposals for Medicare Advantage plans, now winnowed down to two
finalists: Aetna and Empire BlueCross BlueShield, multiple retirees said
they’ve been informed by their unions.
Cost-cutting employers have been gravitating toward
Medicare Advantage, created in 1997 under then-President Bill Clinton.
As of 2018, 39% of New York State’s Medicare beneficiaries were enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans.
“Employers have been gravitating towards Medicare
Advantage plans to save money on their retiree health obligations,” said
Tricia Neuman, executive director of the Kaiser Family Foundation’s
Program on Medicare Policy. “New York is not alone.”
Neuman notes that Medicare Advantage plans rely on a list
of in-network doctors. “They’re likely to be more limited in their
provider network than traditional Medicare coupled with a Medigap
policy,” Neuman said.
Some union officials have attempted to obtain information
on their future access to services such as lab tests and rehab
facilities, to little success.
“We haven’t gotten specific answers to those questions,
and because we’re not privy to the negotiations, we don’t know that
they’re not an issue,” said Neal Frumkin, a retiree leader with DC 37,
the city’s largest public employee union.
‘Fewer Services’
Achieving the $600 million savings could involve
requiring pre-approval from insurers for certain procedures. “That would
mean fewer services that would be covered by the plan, potentially,”
Neuman said.
More than half
of Medicare Advantage participants are enrolled in plans that require
prior authorization for ambulance rides, mental health services,
inpatient hospital stays and other services, according to a Kaiser
analysis.
CUNY retirees are mobilizing against the Medicare
Advantage shift, at least until more details are known. At the end of
the April 5 meeting, over 93% of attendees voted to request a moratorium, saying that retirees “have not been provided adequate and timely information” about the details of the proposed change.
None
of the unions represented among the Municipal Labor Committee’s
officers responded to requests for comment, nor did the city Office of
Labor Relations. They include the United Federation of Teachers, the
Uniformed Sanitationmen’s Association, DC 37, the City Employees Union
and the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators.
Frumkin said that DC37 president and Municipal Labor
Committee co-chair Henry Garrido voiced his support for the proposed
change at the union’s March executive board meeting.
“Garrido’s position is that it’s a must do because that
savings is necessary to stabilize the health benefits for the entire
city of New York; the city has to be able to afford to do what they’re
doing,” Frumkin said.
“The argument that Garrido makes is that the city
fiscally is in a dangerous place, therefore we are trying to come up
with savings to enable them to get over this financial problem that they
have.”
