The Empire Union Strikes Back
James DuganAs someone who is very interested in the state of education and one who believes in the dignity of the American worker as the most essential ingredient to democracy and freedom, I was appalled by the recent Time article Why We're Failing Our Schools by Joe Klein. My friend said it best, “We have to find Klein and ____ (word deleted by my sensitivity though Klein deserves much worst in his insensitivity towards the American teacher and worker) his anti-union ass. If this was the 1970s, we would have driven up to New York to the Time Magazine office and pulled his punk ass out into the street, stripped him naked, spray painted him yellow and covered him in spam and released the NYC rats on him!” Such draconian measures may not seem appropriate with the muck luck being thrown at teachers these days, but I think the sentiment is exactly why teacher unions are fighting back not just for themselves, but for all workers who have had their rights eroded by vogue journalists trying to make a living catering to the elite business interests on the backs of the disappearing American middle class.
Instead of Klein attacking new credit card easements that allow the companies to charge 100 dollars a year for having the pleasure to carry their plastic in our wallets, he decides to attack teachers, who have devoted their talent and time to improve the democracy by upholding the values and information of America. His article is hurtful against the very people that helped him learn the language to write such biased and popular anti –union propaganda. The first problem is that when journalists, business people and politicians decide to set their ire against a segment of the population that has enabled them through a lifetime of sacrifice to achieve their positions, they forget about the good teachers do in helping the future succeed. Did they all have lazy, overpaid teachers who steal taxpayers’ money by teaching math, self discipline, and self worth?
The first argument they use against teachers is the comparison with automobile unions that they believe have made American automobiles incapable of competing. To my knowledge there are still cars being made in America and still good jobs that have been saved by the despicable unions. The corporations and government policies attacked the American worker; first removing them to the South where it was illegal for unions to form, and then taking them off shores to insure the cheapest labor to produce the product. Neither teachers nor union workers destroyed the middle class; it was the politicians who went to bed with the corporations for political action monies that abandoned the American worker. Now it is the government putting the squeeze on the last real collective union because they are stopping progress by their archaic and obstinate modes. Is that what he calls teaching in America? IS that what he thinks of public education?
Klein does not bother to explain the Race to the Top program except in ambiguous glorious terms of money for charter schools. It would be nice if he explained the lottery to get into these super excelling schools and provided data of how the lottery worked, who were allowed in, who was kicked out, and how many phone calls it took to get your child into these private institutions. In public schools, we do not require lotteries and we accept the challenge of educating all kids, not just ones with motivated or politically connected parents. I love the covert racist remarks he attributes to the New York City schools by placing the percentage of African American and Latino children who succeeds in charter schools. I guess he believes the teacher unions are failing the minorities. The fact is that the majority of the children attending New York City public schools are not from Scarsdale. But fine work anyway, Klein, for the negative and unfounded suggestion for a national publication. He does not compare curriculum, though public schools have the latest in curriculum supervisors and educated teachers who develop and write the programs that are used in the charter schools. Charter schools are filled with new teachers who can not find jobs in the public school sector because the government and special interest are replacing them with charter school teaching positions that have no respect for experience, proper and insightful evaluation and the need for cooperation to allow every child to succeed.
President Obama and his friend Arne Duncan used the support for the NEA to get elected because we believed he supported a pro public school agenda. He betrayed this trust by allowing for his signature education program to create more independent, elitist schools that except some students. He is taking money from the ideal of public education to create schools where the students, parents and teachers are at the whim of questionable testing procedures and pressured administration. Obama’s program is eroding the stability of local control by focusing on failing schools and promising school districts and states a ridiculous amount of money if only one school meets the eligible requirements for a failing school. That means the whole school district will be responsible for implementing new procedures even if they are passing and doing well based on state test scores. RTTT is promising merit pay, longer days and school year to some schools, and in the end, charter school eligibility. It was a program designed for Unions to deny because it makes teachers compete against teachers. It is a program that punishes and does not calculate variables of economic backgrounds. It is an overt program to destroy teacher unions and lay to waste another middle class segment.
Ask if charter school teachers get paid as well as public school workers? Ask if they have the same security and benefits? Ask if they have a say in curriculum? Ask if they have recourse against misbehaving and power hungry superintendents and principals that will be gone in five years? Ask if education is better when you have a work force with no experience and no pride? Ask if America is better when you have teachers who do not think for themselves as they become puppets of the next new trend in education? Ask yourself, especially you Klein, if your teachers would have taken risks if they feared their next raised was based on a kid who stays home twice a week or just came to America last month? Ask yourself, if America will be stronger with no public school in a town to take pride in, to remember teachers by, and has no local flavor?
A program developed to force the disintegration of unions by causing fear of public reprisals by the government is reprehensible. For a journalist to attack a good entity that protects and provides a sustainable income while performing an essential and valuable product over an employee’s 35 year career is disappointing. Teachers are professionals who will never get rich, at least I haven’t ever met one that has. So thank you New York Public schools union for defending the right to bargain and say no to the money because it would have put one of your teachers at a disadvantage. You have the courage and faith to protect what is yours and what you believe is right. You are truly teachers Klein, Obama, and Duncan can learn to emulate.
Reader Comments (3)
A colleague told me a while back that the only universal truth of politics is that education and educators will always be the unifying whipping boy of both sides of the congressional aisle.
And even though I believe in a higher level of accountability for teachers and some type of dramatic reform for the entire institution, I am certain that this is not the way. Any self-respecting union should have completely opposed this measure, simply on the grounds that it is so ambiguous. This ambiguity is only enhanced through hack political writers like Klein. The very fact that this issue was addressed in the political arena reflects the sad state of affairs of education. The invasion of education by pompous politicians and ignorant journalists is the very reason why unions were created. I wonder if Klein would appreciate a politician explaining to him how his articles should be written or the topics he should address and then if his readership declines, he would be fired. Now ask him if it he would be willing to accept a readership of people who absolutely loathe reading, are incapable of comprehending what they read or can't read at all due to a language barrier.
Klein is an absolute schmuck! The fact that Time would publish such shoddy writing is despicable! I agree with your friend's sentiments and would love to be invited on his next trip to New York.
Thanks for the fiery lunch!
I appreciate the reply and you make poignant points that add to my argument. I agree we need reform but how about smaller classes and computers for every student. How about all year schooling and pay the teachers all year around salary. These are just a couple off the top of my head that would improve the environment.
Unions have always been hated because they take the power away from the man with the money and place it back to the people. Capitalists do not care if their workers eat or vacation as long as they show up to work with no health problems. Polticians have used the unions to get power with mouth full of gold. But in the end they bend to money to save their personal agendas and the agendas of their party.
I hope unions make a come back, but first we have to have the media stop painting them as opportunistic anti-capitalist trying to turn back time by blackmailing America. The unions are America. We are not leaving unlike the businesses of America. The more they make teaching a powerless job, the less qualified and independent thinkers they will have to teach the future. Then you will finally have your deplorable America.
Thanks
I really had no concept about what teachers deal with until I married one. I learned first hand that it is not simply a "8-3" job. Especially an elementary school teacher. I cannot recall anytime where she does not bring work home at night or during thw weekends. Now with email, she is usually responding to parent inquiries ( as trivial as making sure Suzy's hair does not get messed up during recess) well into the night. Back when we were kids the only interactions our parents had with teachers was at Parent teacher Night or hit a kid with a bat. Bigger classrooms, much more intrusive parents, higher standards, and the fact that this great nation chooses to educate EVERY child, not just the gifted ones unlike other countries, make this profession a calling more than a way to pay the bills.
Now, where I argue with my wife is when it comes to benefits outside of their pay. You are correct Dugan that one will never make a big salary while teaching. Though speaking from someone in the private sector of business...holidays, vacation, benefits and the long lost pension for teachers is a tradeoff not to be ignored. Espectially pensions. There are no corporations or businesses these days that offer pensions anymore so most of us will hope that the money we put into 401Ks and other investments will "pay off". And for women, there are few professions better when you want to have children. Most private sector businesses will hold your job maybe for 6 months for you to stay at home. My wife has the ability to stay at home 2 years if she choose and still be able to get a job back in her district. And here is a situation where the Union is much needed to give them this type of support.
Where I will disagree with you is this: As much as people decry blasting all unions as money-grubbing, lazy workers...I cannot, in my work experience, say that I have not encountered that stereotype of unions ALOT.
It was not until I read Zinn's "A People History of the US" that I learned why unions were such a necessity for the american worker at the turn of the century. Workers demanding better conditions and pay were killed by the National Guard for striking during brutal strikes in the 1900's. had these people not fought for their rights, the greedy owners would have kept these deplorable conditions and pay to further pad their bottom line. I understand that completely. However, in this day and age I have encountered more than few times when unions interferred with projects that they would have little involvement in and halted them to a deadstop to collect their cut from it.
I have had jobsites where work was delayed a whole night because we needed a union electrician to literally put a plug into an outlet. I have had other jobs where we were required to take union carpenter guys into the job site who were nothing more than glorified moving men that would be onsite for 8 hours, work for 7 and get paid for 10. The real work would usually not get done until they left for the evening. I do work in hospitals where the union engineers get paid over $135K/year to literally do crossword puzzles and are amoung some of the laziest workers I have ever encountered. Yet they are protected by their union no matter how little owrk they actually do. These are my experiences with maintenace/enginnering/construction unions and I could write a blog everyday detailing things like this everyday.