Don't Mourn the Election - Organize for the Future

I haven’t posted here in quite a while, but events of the past week have renewed my desire to speak out and restart the forum. I am still processing what the next 4 year will be like, and how best to take on the power structure of this country, both Republican and Democrat. The biggest lift I have had this week was taking part in the Anti-Trump rally in NYC on Saturday Nov. 12, 2016.

I mourned the election results on Wednesday morning, but by midday my attitude had changed from being upset about what happened to figuring out what comes next. Where do we go from here? How do we fight to protect the rights and that have been won, and move forward to a society that provides for the needs of all the people that live here. I found hope in the protests that sprang up immediately after election. Thousands of people across the country have taken to the streets. I have been angered by the more than 200 reported acts of open racism and anti-immigrant intimidation that have taken place in the 4 days since Trump was elected. I have been heartened by the expressions of support that been posted across the internet.

Sitting home is not an answer. At home we get buried in the broadcast news and lose touch with each other. So yesterday I went out to join with other New Yorkers to take a stand against the racism, sexism, homophobia and xenophobia that has been unleashed. I have been to many protests over the years. Sometimes they feel like just a large group made up of the members of many smaller groups. I have been in marches where almost all of the signs are what I call “.org” sign. Pre-printed with a group’s website on the bottom. That was not what happened yesterday.

News report put the crowd in NYC at 20,000-25,000 people. To me that means it was probably closer to 50,000. Fifth Avenue was filled from sidewalk to sidewalk for ten blocks. It was huge. And almost all of the signs I saw were homemade. The crowd was diverse and dedicated. It was really inspiring. Here are some of the things that I saw.

So what comes next? I have no illusions about the next 4 years. The Electoral College will choose Trump, to think not is a pipe dream. He will be inaugurated. I also have no illusions as to what the world would have been like if Clinton had been elected. We live in a system that puts profit above people. We must take on that system. That being said, Trump is a qualitative move towards a more openly fascist America. This is a time where we must join together and fight for the issues that are most important to us. To fight racism. To fight the demonization of the other. To realize that no worker is illegal. To fight for healthcare for all. To fight for good public education and housing.  To fight to bring about a system that meets the needs of all of its members, not just the rich, not the corporations.

I don’t have the answers yet. I know that I saw some very inspiring things on Saturday. I will continue to be involved in groups that I think can make a difference and be involved in movements that I think speak to the issues that I think are important. I am presenting these groups because I am a member of each and I think they are important:

MORE Caucus in the UFT – Part of a growing number of social justice caucuses in teacher’s union around the country. MORE takes on both the day to day conditions of teachers in the union and the effects of living in a racist society that puts the corporate “education deform” movement ahead of the real needs of our students.

Jewish Voices for Peace – because the anti-Muslim forces in this country are deeply tied to the apartheid government in Israel/Palestine.

Bronx Climate Justice North – because the fight over the environment and environmental racism is the one of the main battles we face.

These are not the only organizations out there. There are many, both local and national. I urge everyone who has been upset and depressed since Election Day to get out and find a group to support, not just financially, but in person. Find the people in your community who are taking on power and figure out ways to be involved and do it better.

Ferguson, Social Justice Unionism and the Fight Agianst Racism

The Grand Jury in St. Louis county has handed down its decision. To no real surprise, they have refused to indict Darren Wilson in the death of Michael Brown. This is another in the long line of police officers who have been exonerated for killing Black and Hispanic youth in this country. It is a travesty. Yet, many teachers see no, or just tangential connection to the lives of their students.

As a member of MORE, the social justice caucus in the UFT , I have watched the issue of what should the role of a teacher's union be in society cause immense strains. The discussions have centered around whether or not instances like Ferguson, or the murder of Eric Garner on Staten Island should be officially addressed by a union. To me, the view that they should not creates a false separation between "school" and "the outside world."  

When I started teaching (in 1984) I remember many teachers who said things like "I can only control what happens in my classroom, so that is what I am going to worry about." But all teachers know that some of the biggest impacts on what happens in our classroom are the things that happen outside of it. Some of these may be "small" issues. Jane had an argument with her teacher the period before my class, so she has "attitude" in mine. Tom was hassled by an AP in the hallways because he wasn't moving fast enough between periods, so he is angry when he gets to my door. Some of these may be "larger" issues. Nancy lives in a homeless shelter and doesn't sleep well at night. Timothy's family's food stamps have run out on the 25th of the month and he doesn't have a decent meal between school lunches.

Over the past 30 years I have watched schools in this country become more and more controlled by the police. Today, in my school building, students must pass through a scanner to enter. Now this is not the case in all schools. Stuyvesant, Bronx Science, Brooklyn Tech, Beacon, NYC Lab School are all examples of schools where students are free to enter without having to prove that they are not a danger to others. This is happening around the country, see this report from the Justice Policy Institute. Meanwhile, actions that used to result in parents being called in to schools or a suspension are now considered crimes, with even elementary age students being arrested.

Outside of school, New York is still a city where the official policy is to stop and search young men in neighborhoods that are primarily Black and Latino. These "stop and frisks" result in a disproportionate number of arrests for small amounts of marijuana in those communities.

All of this is to say that ALL of these factors come into our classes. If teachers have the feeling that students are angrier, and less respectful, it is because they are angrier, and they are treated less respectfully outside of school. This fact is not out of our control. We must see that the racism that our students face every day has a detrimental effect on our ability to educate our students. The petty attacks by police, the effect of racist economic policies all take away from our students' ability to perform in schools.

If we are serious about improving the lives of our students we MUST take on these issues. There is no separation between in our classes and outside our classes. We must use all of the tools that we have available, including the one organization that brings teachers together and gives us a voice- our union. If we do not fight to improve all aspects of our students' lives then we have truly let them down.