Huge budget cuts announced to schools by Adams - Ed Deformers want to degrade public and promote charter schools

Damn, just looked up my school and our budget is being cut by about $1.2 mil

 

My school is going from about 37 million to 31 million. Large school, large budget

 

Just saw my school is losing about 800k. We won’t have the money for that 3rd first grade class we really need.

Eric Adams’ literacy overhaul slashes number of NYC reading coaches https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2022/6/6/2315

These are reports I began to see last night as people checked their budgets. Cutting school budgets is part of the strategy to drive people out of public schools and into charters. Which will lead to bigger cuts in public schools. Just in time for the contract. Watch Adams follow the Bloomberg strategy -- no contract without deep givebacks.

They are relentless. 

• NYC public schools set to lose $215 million from budget cuts & will cause class sizes to increase
  

Leonie sent this along. 

Yesterday, school budgets for next year were released, and many if not most schools are facing MILLIONS of Dollars in Cuts compared to this year. 

You can find out how much your school’s budget has been cut by plugging its 4 digit DBN code into the DOE webpage here; and compare your school’s total Galaxy budget from 2022 to 2023 by scrolling to the bottom of the page and checking the Grand Total. (If you don’t know your school’s 4 digit code, you can find it by putting its name on the school search page here.  The first letter refers to the borough; then there is a three digit number that follows.)  Some schools, like Fort Hamilton HS in D20, will be cut by as much as $8 million; Forest Hills HS by $4 million.

If enacted, these cuts will make class sizes increase sharply and cause the loss of essential services to kids.  Clearly, neither the Mayor nor the Chancellor are planning to abide by the language or the intent of the new state law passed last week requiring smaller classes.    Meanwhile, it has been reported that the Council may announce a budget deal with the Mayor as early as this week that would cement these cuts in place. 

What can parents do?

1. Call your Council Members today and tell them to vote against any budget deal that includes these egregious cuts, and to let the Speaker know now that they will vote against a city budget that contains them.  These cuts will tremendously hurt schools and the kids in their districts, and especially in light of the new state class size law, they are potentially illegal. You can find their phone nos. here.
2. Then call the Speaker Adrienne Adams and leave the same message: 212-788-6850.
3. Then ask your principal if they are willing to talk on or off the record to me or a reporter about the likely impact of these cuts. So far, many teachers are expressing their outrage on twitter, but so far, I’ve seen no principal speak out. If they are willing, have them email us at info@classsizematters.org Their confidentiality will be protected.

But please make those calls today!

Thanks, Leonie

Stop UFT/Unity Persecution of Christina - Sign an Open Letter re: Christina Gavin & May 23rd UFT E-board Meeting

Christina Gavin, who has produced a 71 page list of election complaints which we are sending in to the UFT today, has by her activity inspired the enmity of the UFT leadership, which has made her a focus of retaliation as I reported:

 

Christina Vs The Unity Caucus Machine - At May 23 UFT Ex Bd

 

The UFT leadership engaged in an attack on Christina at the April 11 Ex Bd meeting without letting her know so she could not be there to  defend herself. She did ask for time a few weeks later. She is relentless and won't just accept a trial by none of her peers. When I start posting the 71 pages of the complaint you will see why she has become their target.

Open Letter re: Christina Gavin & May 23rd UFT E-board Meeting

UFT members have written an open letter to Michael Mulgrew and the UFT's leadership to protest their treatment of Christina Gavin, a dedicated UFT Member, and their refusal to allow Christina's supporters - also UFT members - to attend the Executive Board meeting on May 23.

You can read the letter here with a description of the incidents in question: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1A318fT0dmLCJPw_bbn1iOk_zc1Av-1SDTsmyKr_8yD8/edit?usp=sharing

Also printed below:

 

Please sign & spread among other UFT members to show your support for Christina! We will add names to the letter as they are submitted through the form.

http://bit.ly/openuft

Dear UFT Leadership, 

We, the undersigned UFT members, are writing to share our deep concern, frustration, and disappointment with the UFT’s leadership in regard to the election complaints targeting Christina Gavin, a committed school librarian and UFT member, as well as your refusal to allow many of Ms. Gavin’s supporters access to the UFT Executive Board meeting on May 23rd that should have been open to all UFT members, according to the 2015 UFT Constitution. 

Ms. Gavin has been a dedicated school librarian, special education teacher, and UFT member for the past 10 years. As part of the recent UFT election, Ms. Gavin has also been diligently documenting and submitting election violations on behalf of the United for Change caucus. It is not a coincidence that Ms. Gavin is being accused of 2 acts of misconduct in light of her work for the opposition coalition that attempted to unseat current union leadership. Singling out a UFT member over the course of several Executive Board meetings is unprecedented, wildly inappropriate, retaliatory, and unreasonably petty – not to mention a waste of our union’s time and resources when there are other far greater concerns to attend to that affect all UFT members. 

The complaint relating to the Google group that Ms. Gavin created does not violate any LMRDA directives about electioneering. Similarly, Ms. Gavin’s actions on March 25 at Bar 47 did not violate any LMRDA laws; Mr. William (“Bill”) Woodruff’s actions however are in violation of LMRDA as Ms. Gavin submitted to the UFT on March 28. Mr. Woodruff had repeatedly apologized and taken ownership of his actions, a recording and transcript of which statements exist. Nevertheless, Mr. Woodruff, Ms. Maria Lopez, Ms. Sheila Romero, and Ms. Mary Perez — all UFT members, including a UFT District Representative and UFT Chapter Leaders — subsequently worked together to file a false complaint against Ms. Gavin, despite a witness to the contrary of all the falsehoods they reported.

Surely since both incidents do not violate any electioneering laws on the part of Ms. Gavin, they could have been resolved through private peer mediation through the UFT and not in a public forum wherein elected union officials have slandered the character of a union member that they have been elected to represent and protect. 

Additionally, many supporters of Ms. Gavin – approximately 70 in total – were planning to attend the Executive Board meeting on May 23rd. Ms. Gavin & Mr. Daniel Leviatin, who submitted the names of all UFT members who wished to attend, complied with Mr. LeRoy Barr’s requests to submit names in advance. This denial of numerous UFT members was a result of either intentional gatekeeping to bar Ms. Gavin’s supporters from entering or gross ineptitude. In any case, many UFT members waited for over 30 minutes to be allowed entry to the meeting; many members were not allowed into the meeting in time to hear the complaints targeting Ms. Gavin, if at all. This is inexcusable – and the exact opposite of the kind of transparent and democratic leadership one-third of the electorate were calling for during the election. 

At the May 23rd Executive Board meeting, Secretary LeRoy Barr claimed that we are a union of one. Though Mr. Barr is the UFT’s Director of Staff, instead of holding a staff member, Mr. Woodruff accountable, Mr. Barr effectively minimized and refused to acknowledge this employee’s unacceptable behavior. Mr. Barr also went on to comment about the importance of setting the record straight and honestly facing history in relation to Mr. Marcus Garvey, a long-dead individual who was never a member of the UFT, but refused to do the same for Ms. Gavin. These actions by UFT representatives do not convey a message of unity or demonstrate the solidarity that is the spirit of unionism. 

To that end, we are asking UFT leadership to address these issues with the following actions: 

1. We ask that you dismiss the complaints against Ms. Gavin and issue a formal apology for targeting Ms. Gavin. 

2. The video recording of the open mic portion of the Executive Board should be made available to all UFT members who requested to attend but were not allowed in time to enter the meeting.

3. To avoid any further issues with admitting UFT members into Executive Board meetings, we are requesting that the Executive Board set up a pre-registration process for Executive Board meetings, so that members can be verified in advance. No UFT member should be denied entry. 

We are committed to building a stronger union, and we believe that UFT leadership must take these next steps to make that happen.

Signed,

UFT Election 2022 Results - Districts - How many voted

We finally got this info we had asked to be tracked before the election. We also asked for individual school data but Unity turned that idea down. I got the feeling that some of them were nervous about being held accountable for not getting the vote out. I was interested in our own people seeing how well they were doing in getting the vote out. There's lots of speculation on the data. Why re retiree votes in districts? I was a D00 while my friend was a D27 where she taught. Makes no sense. Note: this is not a reveal of how people voted, just on how many. And we were not given data which I believe we should be on how many were sent out in each district. The UFC braintrust is mulling it all over and I will request the data on how many were sent out which would give us a per centage of returns. In fact that was what was agreed to initially. Just gives us the numbers sent out and we will do the %.

 

 

 

Just like MulgrewCare - The Lever- Biden Hikes Medicare Prices And Funnels Profits to Private Insurers -$47M in campaign contributions buys a lot

Do you ever wonder, If $50 million in campaign contributions from private insurance can buy the Dem Party, what do they do to buy the UFT and other unions?

Medicare’s sturdiness as an American institution is being steadily chipped away by well-connected corporate interests... 

“[The] privatization effort is reaching a frantic state, and Medicare Advantage is going to fail,” said Bill Kadereit, president of the American Retirees Education Foundation, due to the fact that the plans must pay profits to investors, unlike traditional Medicare plans. “The industry is hoping to cover up that failure with taxpayer subsidies that none of the taxpayers understand.”  “ 

Medicare Advantage insurers such as United Healthcare, Anthem, and CVS/Aetna are celebrating record profits in the tens of billions of dollars,” said Dr. Susan Rogers, president of Physicians for a National Healthcare Program. “Their business plan is simple: inflate their Medicare payments by making seniors look sicker than they are, and then pocket more of those Medicare dollars by ruthlessly denying seniors’ care.”

........The Lever

Thursday, June 2, 2022

[Post edit add on: Fred Klonsky -  Will Biden's Medicare cost increases be the final nail sinking whatever chances the Democrats had in the midterms?

Dumb, dumb, dumb.]

These are reasons I would have opposed MulgrewCare even if it wouldn't have cost me a dime or there was no reduction in service with MedAdv. But of course everyone recognizes the truth - except UFT leadership and their apologists.

All Medicare recipients pay premiums for outpatient care, which is called Medicare Part B. That money can be funneled into traditional government Medicare plans, or into Medicare Advantage plans run by private insurers that are incentivized to limit the amount of care that elders receive. The standard Part B premium for Medicare patients is now $170.10 per month — up 14.5 percent from last year, when it was $148.50. 

Once you claim, as Mulgrew did, that we do better with a privatized as opposed to a public plan, you open the door to other areas -- like why public education if private can do it better? Let's sell off the transit and sanitation systems.

Union leaders take us down a slippery slope when they stand against a universal public health system.

Here are a few quick takeaways from The Lever article (which you can read in full below the break:

• Biden officials move forward with a jolting 8.5 percent hike in payments made to private insurers under Medicare Advantage plans next year.
• The juxtaposition between dramatically increasing payments to private insurance plans that provide less care for higher costs on the one hand, and keeping seniors’ premiums artificially inflated on the other
• Biden has expanded Medicare privatization by launching the involuntary ACO REACH program and through continuing to promote ever-increasing Medicare Advantage enrollment, and he has also raised premiums for Medicare recipients. 
• So who benefits from the explosive rate increase? The major private insurance companies that funneled nearly $50 million into Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign.
  

This deep dive by David Sirota's The Lever (independent journalism worth supporting) provides insight into the possible reasons behind the push by the UFT and other unions for MulgrewCare by taking us out of traditional Medicare and into a privatized MedAdv plan. Mulgrew initially bragged how a lot of the costs would be picked up by the feds but ignored the fact that much of the money was going into subsidizing private insurers with tax payer money and short changing the publicly managed Medicare system. 

The UFT ideology lines up with the neo-liberal corporate branch of the Dem party which opposes any Medicare for all system which would reduce costs and provide better service - just imagine the savings in admin costs that would go to patient care.

You know, there comes a point where you wonder. If $50 million in campaign contributions from private insurance can buy the Dem Party, what do they do to buy the UFT and other unions?

 

ADDED June 9, 2022: Comment from Julie W:

Agreed it’s an important issue. My biggest concern with unions is that most of them (particularly ours) have horse-traded higher salaries for healthcare for decades and are thus resistant to single-payer in the first place. On top of this, there’s enough opposition to single-payer tax hikes already (e.g. https ….freopp.org / how-new-yorks-single-payer-health-care-bill-affects-the-working-poor-2e242921bbb9). I can’t see UFT — entangled as it is already with the EmblemHealth HMO to the degree that it is — putting even a single toe in the water to work through the details of a viable NYHA.

Before you get to the full article, let's point to some provisions of the NY Health Act which Mulgrew and crew vehemently oppose.

Here are the key provisions of the NY Health Act:

• $5104.1. [The program provides coverage for anything covered by Medicare, Medicaid, Child Health Plus, the state’s public employee program, or any public employee program in the state.]
• 
  
• 2. No member shall be required to pay any premium, deductible, co-payment or co-insurance under the program.
• 
  
•  4.c. Prescription drugs eligible for reimbursement under this article and dispensed by a pharmacy shall be provided and paid for under the preferred drug program and the clinical drug review program.
• 
  
•  5. The program shall not require prior authorization for any health care service in any manner more restrictive of access to or payment for the service than would be required for the service under Medicare Part A or Part B.
• 
  
• The fact that funds from the federal government arrive through the MA program doesn't affect these requirements at all.

Biden Hikes Medicare Prices And Funnels Profits to Private Insurers

Right and Segments of the Left Unite on Ukraine - From different directions - WARNING: This Post is a long and winding road

Before I even get into this issue, what pisses me off the most is how easy it is to keep spending billions on the war without a peep about pay fors from Dems and Republicans. Like where is Manchin, who strenuously objected to Medicare paying for my teeth, eyes and ears. Like we can't have Medicare for all because we can't pay for it but we can pay for endless arms to Ukraine.

Also - if you want to hear a rational discussion on Ukraine, check out the May 31 edition of Breaking Points where Krystal and Saagar get down to issues you never hear in mainstream media. They point out how easy it would be for the missiles we give Ukraine to find themselves landing on Russian territory. Don't forget the nukes.  That Ukraine has a motive to keep us outraged and engaged. Must see on you tube: https://youtu.be/kfCMBF_72y0. And in this segment they talk about the possibility Putin has a terminal illness: https://youtu.be/f3FDlhJZegU

So here is an interchange I had after posting a Tiabbi comment on ICE list:

Matt Tiabbi: Putin the Apostate: We thought he would be our bastard. Then, he became his own bastard. Feb 28 ---

Response: Wow hard to read anything from Matt (Taibbi) after he laughed and dismissed an invasion into Russia. Sorry to knock down your hero there norm, but Matt and greenwald are the darlings of the right for a reason ....

The above interchange represents a split on the left over Ukraine and Putin. So let me state right out front, I am disgusted by the Putin invasion -- he is a right wing thug and this is Russian imperialism. Some on the left focus on American imperialism -- a very real thing -- and explain the rest of the world as reactions to what we do. Now this is not a simple discussion as there are real facts on both sides.
This is a quandary when you see the outrage of the invasion. As you will see below, the right wing Putinists and Orbanists have no compunction about saying let it be. Isolationists from the same strain that opposed our entering the war against Hitler.

The left is more complicated. Remember, the Stalinists opposed our entering the war from the Soviet/Germany non-aggression pact of 1939 until Germany invaded them in June 1941, then suddenly switched gears. This was the major hit the Communist Party USA took -- exposing clearly how they functioned as agents of Stalin.

Here is a must listen historical frame of reference where artist Edwin Sorel recalls how his parents were Stalinists to the end -- True Believers.

Brian Lehrer interview with artist Edwin Sorel:

https://www.wnyc.org/story/new-york-illustrators-personaland-politicallife/

[I WARNED YOU ABOUT THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD]

But there is the reality that the more we arm Ukraine the longer the war goes on and more people die. Our war hawks in both parties don't really care much about that as the goal is not to save Ukraine but to undermine Russia - plus keep up the enormous profits of the military industrial complex. 

The reality is that if Ukraine ceded some territory, the war may end. The argument that Putin will keep taking is not crazy but without an open war with Russia - as we seem to be heading there -- that is the only choice. And let me point out that the entire Dem party is now the war party - while there is a Trump wing of the Republican party that is against us giving support.

Wednesday, June 1, 2022

GOOD MORNING, UKRAINE. I got a call from an old lefty ICEer who wanted to talk organizing. We avoided talking Ukraine because he reps a segment of the left that is vehemently opposed to Ukraine involvement. He and others from the old ICE crew put the blame on American imperialism and while condemning the Putin invasion, also justify it in some ways due to NATO expansion, the profit-making American war machine - military industrial complex, what they term as a 2014 CIA led coup in Ukraine and other factors. 

Fact is, there's a lot of there there. The left has always seen the truth of the CIA in fomenting coups and FBI in disrupting the left. Die hard Stalinists claimed he had to create a buffer zone around the Soviet Union and even make a deal with Hitler because from the day of the 1917 Russian Revolution, there has been a cabal to kill off the Soviet Union. Is that 100 year old idea still operating -- like Bolsheviks may rise from the dead unless we put a dagger through the heart of the Russian state?

I've known this stuff since my history classes at Brooklyn College in the 60s when I had an anti-communist prof refugee from the Hungarian Revolution backed by the CIA but he was fair and had us read both sides -- I was shocked at the left defense of Stalin and didn't agree but it made me think. 

The liberal Dems have always been anti-Russia even after the wall fell. Why push NATO to their borders? The size and the nukes of Russia kept up the aggression and encirclement. Imagine Russia missiles in Cuba? Oh, been there done that. How about Mexico? Would we invade Mexico? Oh, been there done that.

Have we claimed a sphere of influence since the 1820 Monroe Doctrine? Have you read the NYT stories of Haiti and our invasions and take-overs? If you complain about Putin invading Ukraine over supposed claims they have been there for centuries -- see Israel claims to the lands around them.

But the tendency to only view things through the lens of American imperialism and not Russian imperialism can distort the viewer. They often act like Russia is still a leftist nation instead of a hard core right wing bordering on fascist country.

Could the CIA have institured a coup in 2014 in Ukraine? I'm shocked. How about this one just revealed in the NYT great series on Haitian history:

It was Feb. 29, 2004, Before dawn, Luis Moreno, a senior American diplomat, had driven through the large gate of the president’s walled compound and climbed the steps to the front door, accompanied by security officers from the State Department. Mr. Moreno had helped Mr. Aristide return to Haiti after the military ousted him a decade earlier. Now, the opposite was happening: Mr. Moreno greeted the president — and asked for his resignation letter. Minutes later, Mr. Aristide and his wife were taken to the airport, where an American-chartered plane flew them into exile. France’s ambassador to Haiti at the time, Thierry Burkard, said in an interview that France and the United States had effectively orchestrated “a coup” against Mr. Aristide, and that his abrupt removal was “probably a bit about” his call for reparations from France, too. “It made our job easier” to dismiss the reparations claims without Mr. Aristide in office, Mr. Burkard noted. “The threats were clear and direct: ‘Either you resign, or you can be shot!’” Mr. Aristide later said of the meeting. advising him to leave office to avoid a fate like Salvador Allende’s, the Chilean president who died in 1973 as his presidential palace was overrun by the military. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/20/world/americas/haiti-aristide-reparations-france.html

This was only 18 years ago. How many coups can you count that we fomented? If using fingers, you need to take your shoes off. Here are a few posts from my lefty friends.

Here are recent posts from my left pals:

SCOTT RITTER: Phase Three in Ukraine 

• Ukraine is Turning Into a NATO Russia Proxy War | Scott Ritter
  

In February, BLM and "In This House We Believe (in everything but a rising minimum wage)" lawn signs were immediately replaced by "We Stand With Ukraine (and the Azov Battalion)" signs... which is probably just as well, since Patrice Cullours is likely to be indicted in the coming months... Advertising their moral vanity is one thing that liberals excel at...

https://mtracey.substack.com/p/nazis-are-actually-fine-now-according?s=r  

Aaron Mate is a leading proponent, along with his partner Katie Halper on Useful Idiots. Matt Taibbi who preceded him is also a skeptic.

"Funding the Ukraine proxy war, Sanders and the Squad abandon progressives and peace" Aaron Mate 

https://mate.substack.com/p/funding-the-ukraine-proxy-war-bernie?token=

Now here is an interesting point charging the Squad with joining the usual Dem war party -- like where is Bernie pointing out how billions are spent without payfors?

American progressives join the War Party 

Some leftist commentators can barely conceal their enthusiasm for American involvement in the Ukraine war by James Carden May 6, 2022

 https://asiatimes.com/2022/05/american-progressives-join-the-war-party/

US representative Alexandra Ocasia-Cortez is among the Democratic Party members to vote in favor of a Republican sponsored Ukraine war bill. Image: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 And now we finally get to the right wing pro-Putin wing:

Why the Once-Hawkish Heritage Foundation Opposed Aid to Ukraine

May 27, 2022

Catie Edmondson

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/27/us/politics/ukraine-aid-heritage-foundation.html

A Message from Andy: Is NYSUT Protecting MulgrewCare under the disguise of protecing our healthcare

 I saw this from Jonathan Halabi and reprinting as an early warning sign. UFT union leaders want to use our healthcare for their own political machinations which is why they oppose medicare for all. Jon issues a wait and watch signal:

Protect our health care?

May 24, 2022 pm31 11:19 pm

tags: Andy Pallotta, health insurance, NYC OPS Retirees, NYSUT, retirees

I like emails that open with “Protect our health care.” Retirees have recently engaged in a massive struggle to protect their health care – all of our future health care. They fought against New York City, the Municipal Labor Coalition, predatory insurance companies, and Michael Mulgrew.

So I liked this morning’s email from NYSUT

But NYSUT? Andy Pallotta? Works with Mulgrew and the UFT? What do they mean by “Protecting Retiree Health Insurance?

Well, the note says

“a recent court decision potentially limits unions’ ability to protect access to health care for retired public employees across the state.”

Now, if he is referring to the recent decision that made it harder for Mulgrew to force retirees off of Medicare… But is he?

Is there another case that NYSUT is asking us to lobby to fix? Or is NYSUT asking us to lobby on behalf of the MLC, the insurance companies, and Michael Mulgrew?

Protecting Retiree Health Insurance

Unions have — for decades — fought for retiree health coverage in our courts. However, a recent court decision potentially limits unions’ ability to protect access to health care for retired public employees across the state. Our retirees need a legislative fix.

We’re simply asking for the return of the same level playing field that existed prior to this court ruling. Both unions and employers must retain their right to argue their positions around a retiree health care dispute before a court. Our state legislators can guarantee this right and reduce the risk of unnecessary disputes over retiree health insurance benefits. Everyone wins.

Our retirees depend on unions’ ability to fight for them in court. Protecting retirees means protecting this ability.

Take action now!

In solidarity,

I am suspicious – but I do not know. This could be unrelated to our struggle to protect Medicare from Mulgrew.

Can we dig up some details?

 

Christina Vs The Unity Caucus Machine - At May 23 UFT Ex Bd

See Nick Bacon Ex Bd minutes: 

New Action – UFT

What does ‘Unity’ look like?

Two false allegations were presented against Christina as formal

election complaints to the UFT Executive Board.

“UFC (United for Change) used a UFT email group to engage in campaign activity. FALSE - This is not a UFT email group but a group created by Christina herself.

On March 25th, District 7 Representative William (Bill) Woodruff verbally assaulted Christina at a location called Bar 47, which was open to the general public and 75 UFT members were also present. Several other members of Unity caucus also screamed at Christina and called her names, because she was offering UFC fliers to members present. There is an audio of the exchanges.

Christina Gavin has asked for time tonight to reply to the false charges. I spoke at the last Ex bd meeting and touched on some of these issues but was surprised to hear her name brought up without offering her an opportunity to be there to respond. Exec Bd meetings are supposed to be open to all UFT members and even if meetings are on zoom the link should be available to all.

Monday, May 23, 2022

People ask me why at my age I continue to be involved in UFT events. While the goal of chopping into Unity Caucus control of the UFT is always present, as important to me is meeting people like Christina Gavin, who I never would come in contact under ordinary circumstances.

Christina has been one of the lights of this year's UFT election campaign. She is gutsy and fearless and a quick study (she didn't get involved on the election until mid-February as petitions were winding up). 

I hear a lot of people talk about militancy - often they are keyboard militants. Christina is truly militant in action. If more oppo people were like her, we'd be ahead of the game.

Along the way she began to compile complaints about how UFT employees were misusing their time to campaign. In Unity circles this is a no-no and requires retaliation. So they went after Christina in the most nefarious ways.

Before we get into the details of her particular dispute with UFT district rep Bill Woodruff, I think the most outrageous actions against Christina were attempts tby union officials to retaliate for her calling out UFT employees who are being paid by OUR dues by claiming she was doing the same on DOE time. That's not the purview of a union that supposedly represents her.

A most egregious phone call was made to her one Friday afternoon (on school time) by Leroy Barr and UFT lawyer Beth Norton - of course she couldn't talk to them - she was working. But she called them back after school and was shocked to find herself being questioned about what she does during the school day. Like "when is your lunch hour?" NOT THEIR BUSINESS! At times Beth Norton has screamed at 

Christina who can be like a gnat. And a bulldozer. I love gnats and bulldozers who challenge the power structure of the UFT. (I observed at the vote count - don't think Unity operatives aren't buzzing around to try to wean her away from the oppo as they have with others - they do recognize talent and threats.)

But as you will see below, the retaliation escalated when Christina dared cross the threshold of a barely disguised Bronx District 7 Unity election event billed as a social party. Yeah, this had nothing to do with the election. 

Let me say right here how proud I am she had no qualms about going there and counter lobbying for United for Change in the midst of a hostile environment that soon turned toxic with Bill Woodruff screaming at her. 

Where have we seen UFT  guys vilifying a black woman before?

• New Action – UFT Unpacking the February DA - The February DA was a farce, but not for the reasons our leadership would have you think. United for change has a problem: we haven’t been called on durin... 

And

• ICEUFT Blog UNITY ATTACKING CAMILLE'S UNION RESUME AS THIN SHOWS THEY CAN'T EVEN DO OPPOSITION RESEARCH HONESTLY -

Let's get to the details regarding the retaliatory complainst filed against Christina.

Two false allegations were presented against Christina as formal election complaints to the UFT Executive Board as reported by Dan Leviatin, who was present at the incident with Woodruff.

On April 11th, Mr. LeRoy Barr, the UFT Secretary, read the following statement:

“UFC (United for Change) used a UFT email group to engage in campaign activity. Ms. (Amy) Mathis has provided evidence that Christina Gavin used a UFT Google Group, UFT Librarians, to seek assistance with campaign activities, specifically Ms. Gavin sought referrals for inexpensive copying for UFC fliers. The use of this group is an improper use of union resources, namely an email distribution list, and, therefore, the allegation should be upheld, and Ms. Gavin should be instructed to cease and desist this activity.”

The Google Group in question is the one that Christina created in September 2020 and which she has maintained since then. It is not a union resource; it does not belong to the union; no union employees have access to the Google Group.

     

.        

On March 25th, District 7 Representative William (Bill) Woodruff verbally assaulted Christina at a location called Bar 47, which was open to the general public and 75 UFT members were also present. Several other members of Unity caucus also screamed at Christina and called her names, because she was offering UFC fliers to members present.

Following their reprehensible behavior, Mr. Woodruff gave a “sincere” apology to Christina, which lasted 57 minutes & which she recorded, eventually with both his knowledge and consent.

• Two days later - March 27th, Mr. Woodruff filed an entirely false complaint against Christina, contradicting everything that he had said in his recorded apology.

• One day after that - March 28th, Christina filed a truthful report of Mr. Woodruff’s bad behavior and election complaints related to distribution of campaign literature.
  
  
• Three days later - March 31st, Ms. Lopez, one of the Unity caucus members who had been yelling at Christina and calling her names in front of other union members & members of the general public, filed yet another wholly false complaint against Christina.

Christina was never apprised of any of the allegations against her and was not invited to attend the May 9th Executive Board meeting where the complaint was addressed.

On May 9th at that Ex Bd meeting, Mr. Barr read the attached report accusing Christina of behaving in an “aggressive and harassing manner.” I was there and can attest that this is untrue.

Mr. Woodruff also said as much repeatedly:

http://bit.ly/inappropriatebillwoodruffreadalong

http://bit.ly/innapropriatebillwoodruffaudio

^ These are the same audio; one contains a read-along transcript

 See Nick Bacon's report of the Ex bd meeting:

New Action – UFT

UFT Executive Board Minutes 5-9-2022: Election Complaints, PERB, and APPR

Chicago Union Election Today - 3 Caucuses Battle it out - Is CORE in Trouble due to a split?

Sat - 8AM - UPDATE: CORE WINS WITH OVER 50% - NO RUNOFF- 

CTU Site

A CORE defeat will have major labor shock waves throughout the national teacher movement and the labor movement in general. A darling of the left losing an election would be MAJOR. I don't expect that to happen, but a run-off is possible of they don't get 50% running against two opposing caucuses, one from the left and one from the right.

Friday, May 20, 2022

With our own UFT elections over, it is tome to turn to another major union election. Today, Chicago teachers vote for union leadership. Based on the past, I assume voting will be in the schools and will have large turnout - especially when compared to the UFT. Retirees don't vote in Chicago.

Coverage here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?fbclid=IwAR1SEgoa6FL97e-e1WcuRKrzain6AcSAIdE9-sLQXHAiyRATy9AXUxfNXSU&v=GlyBQS4L2QA&feature=youtu.be

Union elections turn interesting when the ruling caucus undergoes a split. CORE, which has run the CTU since its election in 2010, has suffered two defections. 

Members First split for the last election in 2019 and I believe got about a third of the vote -- this was viewed as a split from the right end of CORE:  Chicago Teachers Union CORE Caucus challenged by Members First - Election May 17 - Substance

The most recent split comes from the left: Real Caucus has a number of prominent former CORE members.  https://www.realcaucus.com/. I found many people I knew in CORE running with REAL.

CORE has been the leading light for left progressive unionism around the nation and inspired the founding of caucuses to challenge incumbent center/right teacher union leadership, like the Unity Caucus here in NYC. 

In fact it was the 2010 CORE victory that was instrumental for us here in NYC to transform the non-caucus Grassroots Education Movement (GEM) to become a founding organization of MORE (which also underwent a split in 2018 but has come back strong) whose very name emerged out of CORE.

The original CORE victory was made possible by a split in the then ruling Unity like caucus in Chicago and CORE only got 32% of the vote in the first round with 5 caucuses running. The ruling caucus got 34% but in round two CORE consolidated the support of the other caucuses and won overwhelmingly - classroom teachers going into the boardroom.

My old pal, the late George Schmidt, with his Substance newspaper played a big role in that victory. Yet within a few years, people in CORE tried to purge him over his criticisms of the leadership. Did they become a version of Unity Caucus? That attempt failed but some damage was done. 

The Great George Schmidt is Gone

The architect of the CORE caucus and victory was Jackson Potter, a man I met a number of times and liked very much. He left his job at CTU to go back into the classroom, but has considerable political influence in the CTU. 

[NOTE - Potter was elected VP - so I guess back out of the classroom.]

The current president, Jesse Sharkey, is also leaving to go back to the classroom, leaving the union in the hands of Stacey Gates, who I believe was brought in by the late, great Karen Lewis. Her death has broken a unifying force in the union. If I remember correctly, George Schnidt was not a fan and at the 2010 AFT convention, a few weeks after CORE took power, I went to a CORE party and Karen introduced Gates as a major assistant. George made a comment along the lines of - not a real teacher.

I expect CORE - without really having inside info - but based on instinct - to win. But will they get over 50% to avoid a runoff? If REAL gets into a runoff with them, things might get dicey.

You can find coverage of the CTU - very anti leadership - at George's still running site: http://www.substancenews.net/

 

And here are some old  articles by Mike Antonucci at the anti-union web site this past February.

https://www.the74million.org/article/analysis-the-chicago-teachers-union-election-isnt-until-may-but-already-its-hip-deep-in-drama/

Analysis: The Chicago Teachers Union Election Isn’t Until May. But Already, It’s Hip-Deep in Drama

Chicago Teachers Union strike on Oct. 25, 2019. (Getty Images)

You rarely find news about union elections in the mainstream press. This is understandable, since few elections are contested or in any doubt. Public interest is also low, because it is usually difficult to make the case that a change in officers will lead to a change in the union’s relations with the school district, lawmakers and the citizenry.

Chicago, however, is different.

For decades now, the Chicago Teachers Union has found it easy to make headlines. Its officers are political players on par with the city’s mayor and are often rumored to be mayoral hopefuls. Unlike most teachers unions, CTU has a robust history of internal opposition caucuses that have successfully challenged incumbents for leadership positions.

The latest attempt is by Members First Chicago and its presidential candidate, Mary Esposito-Usterbowski. Jesse Sharkey, the incumbent president, is not running for re-election. Vice President Stacy Davis Gates is seeking the top post.

Members First thinks the strikes of 2019 and 2022 have harmed the union more than they have helped and seem to want a more productive relationship with the mayor and the district. The incumbent Caucus of Rank and File Educators (CORE) counters by pointing to its record of pay raises, class size limits and COVID safety protections.

The all-member election, set for May 20, is already hip-deep in drama. The latest chapter concerns a social media campaign supporting Members First. It is run by Lisa Schneider Fabes, a school board member in Wilmette, a town 14 miles north of Chicago. She oversaw Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s transition team in 2019.

Everyone involved denies any current connection among Schneider Fabes, the mayor and/or Members First. CORE sees it differently. A CTU member discovered the role of Schneider Fabes and the union tipped off the Chicago Sun-Times, which ran a lengthy story on it. CORE called the outside campaign an “obvious and craven attack on our internal democracy.”

The perception that forces allied with the mayor are supporting Members First make it difficult for the caucus to claim it is for, well, members first. Unfortunately for CORE, it has a few problems of its own.

For one, the union reported to its house of delegates that it was running a $3.5 million budget deficit. And Substance News, which has been covering internal conditions at CTU for 30 years, reported this week that CORE has fractured.

A new caucus of former CORE members was just formed and evidently will be running candidates in May. Called the REAL Caucus, its platform-in-progress states that “the current leadership has lost touch with the difficulties that educators face in our schools.”

Katie Osgood, one of the founding members of REAL, posted on Twitter that “the reason many of us have broken from CORE is we see how business unionism & union bureaucracy have crept into CORE’s leadership style. We are trying to propose an alternative that gets us back on the path of REAL rank & file unionism.”

REAL also noted, “We are not here to play spoiler in this election. We are here to win! CTU rules state that if nobody gets 50% of the vote, there is a runoff so the winner has to get more than half the union’s support regardless.”

This is a crucial point, since CORE owes its initial accession to power to the runoff rule. In 2010, four opposition caucuses challenged incumbent President Marilyn Stewart and her United Progressive Caucus. Stewart eked out a win in the first round with 32.3 percent of the vote, but Karen Lewis and CORE were able to unite the opposition in the runoff, which Lewis won easily.

It’s impossible to gauge the overall strength of the opposition in this election, never mind the relative strength of the opposition caucuses to each other, so who can tell if this will lead to a close race?

Regardless of what outsiders think of the Chicago Teachers Union, members should be heartened that they at least get to choose among differing visions for its direction, and have a realistic opportunity to discard one in favor of another. Too many teachers union members never get that chance.

 And another one from his site from January:

https://www.eiaonline.com/intercepts/2022/01/21/why-the-chicago-strike-collapsed/

Why the Chicago Strike Collapsed

Hat tip to Alexander Russo for pointing us to this interview with Chicago teacher Hala Karim in Left Voice.

Read the whole thing, but here are a few points of interest:

* “I can’t name one teacher who disagreed with the vote when it was passed!”

* “I know of at least a couple schools where many staff members had returned by the second day.”

* “So, people want to know, what the hell happened? Well, for one, way too many people were walking through those school doors. As I was looking for parking during the teachout, I noticed that our school parking lot was at least half full. Our union members were going in. Some people stopped responding to our chat after the first day. They needed their paycheck, or they didn’t want to ruffle feathers, whatever their reason, they turned their back on us. This was happening everywhere. Since this wasn’t an official strike, people did not see the problem with going in. The problem is it completely undermined our action! Our leverage decreased with the growing amount of people who went in.”

* “I consider this agreement to be a huge embarrassment for the union. I can’t name a single colleague or friend who voted for it. I believe it is going to be a big struggle to bring our members in for our next action, knowing how played we all felt.”

I assume the union resisted calling their work stoppage a “strike” for legal reasons, but it appears to have backfired. And it’s hard to call something a lockout if a bunch of your members are showing up at school and teaching for pay.

Chicago is an outlier in many ways, but this month’s events proved once again that a union can’t run a major job action on the fly. You have to prep the membership, and a late night online vote the night before won’t cut it.