Thanks to my 11 year old daughter Kara for figuring out how to move a video from Twitter to post on YouTube. She is now the official ICEblog technical advisor.
UFT CTE Vice President Sterling Roberson addresses the protesters at Grace Dodge in the Bronx this morning but the protesters are not moved an inch.
One protester kind of says it all when she says that trust has been broken.
We hope you can see it and can understand it.
The UFT in my view is becoming a struggle between two main camps. On one side are members who are willing to openly fight back against the inept and often corrupt DOE and their UFT partners who need to unite on common ground. While on the other side are the UFTers who in spite of being sent into situations where they are being put at greater risk of catching a terrible virus are still good soldiers who follow orders. The passive aggressive types who send anonymous pictures where they are afraid to say what school it's from and write comments but in the end do not fight the system openly are unfortunately still with the latter group. (I do get that another group is okay with going in.)
51 comments:
Damn, the UFT is a joke and Sterling one of its biggest clowns. No one trusts the UFT, not even the poor, uneducated, often abused parents parents of Dodge HS. They won’t be fooled again. What’s that say about the teachers inside that’s building? Teachers at Dodge, walk out. The UFT has indeed been ‘pussyfooting around with the Mayor’ , instead of making sure learning can go on in a safe environment. Teachers of NYC if you have any dignity left stop going in or walk out en masse. Dodge has a long and well known history as a shit hole. It was the one school Bloomberg shut down that truly deserved it. That time has come again, again over safety, but this time I hope it’s the teachers that close it.
Good Job Kara! Nice to see young ladies taking an interest in our schools and the issues teachers are concerned about.
For all the dues payers...Look at this. uft members picketing over safety issues, so the uft sends a VP, not to stand with them, but to tell them to shutup and go into the building. Wow.
No sound. Is it me? Can anyone hear video?
He looks just like an administrator
Thank you so much for the blog and for all of you work and solidarity, James.
And God bless those UFT members at Dodge standing up for what's right against the grave injustice being perpetrated on the membership by a cynical, corrupt leadership. I watched the video three times and it brought tears to my eyes.
Let me say right up front: I have no dog in this fight other than the life of my parter, who is an NYC teacher and the most important person in the world to me, and my steadfast, unapologetically socialist belief that the labor movement, as enfeebled as it is, is the base on which any hope for the country's future must be built. I do believe that the only way to restore UFT to functional life as a union is to totally clean house and get rid of every trace of Mulgrew, his cronies, and Unity rottenness. But as long as the caucus or coalition that replaces it is genuinely rooted in the r&f, I don't give a rat's ass who it is. This is not about union politics. It's about the very survival, in any meaningful form, of an organized labor movement for educators (or anyone, for that matter) in this city.
So, that said... I'm at a loss as to how anyone can say that Unity has not sold out membership, and transparently and abjectly at that. It now appears quite clear that the intention, since the late spring, was to back the mayor's plan for re-opening, although this was clearly not in the interests of members. At this point the union's behavior and its PR as indistinguishable from that of City Hall. The agendas are one and the same: opening schools, suppressing resistance, denying problems, singing a happy tune to drown out member's cries for help or remediation.
It is simply not a tenable argument that they were 'unable' to get all-remote done in NYC for allegedly NYC-specific reasons when they never even took that position in the first place. And don't get me started on the 10 day delay, that supposed scrap of a "win," which resulted in teachers being sent right into un-safety certified buildings in order to give BdB/DOE 10 more days to desperately scramble to find teachers, nurses, PPE, etc, thereby averting the immediate threat of a humiliating fail (had students shown up on 9/8, that is). Even that was a sellout, if you peek a millimeter under the surface.
Right now, and for the last several months, the union has worked on behalf of management and against its own workers. For God's sake, even the safety checks are a crock, as far as I'm concerned; the fact is that you can walk into any school building tomorrow with a 102 degree fever, flash some stupid four question checklist on your phone, and waltz right in. Hairdressers are safer.
Bottom line: this failure goes well beyond ivory-towerism, simple cravenness, or inept, soft, shit leadership. It was *intentional* from the start and it's hurting the workers whose wellbeing is the union's only reason to exist. Where I'm from, we call that treason, pure and simple.
Best post I have ever read on this blog
I get the apathy/good soldier argument, look at the contract votes over the years. But here, unlike with salary or layoffs, there's an issue that many faculty don't believe in. No one asked ShopRite, Kalahari, Disney World, Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods, all the restaurants, if their windows open and what kind of filters they have, etc.
It reminds me when Hinds came to Dodge to tell us becoming ATRs was only temporary and the new schools would hire us based on a UFT - DOE formula of 51%. Same demeanor, same anger from the audience. The three new schools inside Dodge hired 1 teacher each from the former staff of approximately 100 teachers. That was in 2012. The rest of us are still ATRs or retired. We couldn’t do anything about - the UFT fucked us and has continued to do so. But you teachers can do something against the outrage that is Mulgrew’s dictatorship. You have a human right to withhold your labor especially for safety concerns. That would screw them and their plans. (If we had done it they would have thrown a party of celebration.)
uft is pathetic. For as long as I've dealt with schools, I've watched teachers file complaints about mold and other ventilation issues. It's never taken seriously. Now it's a pandemic. Good luck getting it right and good luck getting the top admins to care if they do.
TJL, If you don't believe in the issue, fine, but many feel they are putting their lives on the line by going into schools and there is scientific evidence in support of that position.
It is often not covered in the mainstream press (I suspect the Dodge potest won't be on channel 7 news) but PayDay Report says there have been 1,000 strikes in the USA since March 1. Many wildcat actions by working people demanding safe work environments.
https://paydayreport.com/1000-strikes-since-march-1st-tampa-fast-food-workers-strike-100-days-of-breeona-taylor-protests/
Let's not make it personal about Sterling. He represents the broken Unity machine but don't make it personal.
Reports of
@NYCSchools
staff wandering around buildings without masks.
The
@UFT
chapter leader replies, “They’re adults” and does nothing.
This. Is. Not. Safe.
#returntoschool2020 #NotUntilItsSafe
@MOREcaucusUFT
Here’s a fun game to play during stupid PD: pick any statement, tweet or story on school reopening from
@DOEChancellor
,
@nytimes
, or
@UFT
-
@UFTUnity
. Block out the source. Now... try to guess which one wrote it. Bet you can’t!
My building is Not Safe. How are we going to get these kids to wear masks when we are told not to fight with them? Our school's leadership says "students can remain in the classroom if they refuse to wear masks as long as they remain at least 6 feet apart." Is this true for all school buildings?
My building is Not Safe. How are we going to get these kids to wear masks when we are told not to fight with them? Our school's leadership says "students can remain in the classroom if they refuse to wear masks as long as they remain at least 6 feet apart." Is this true for all school buildings?
How can we help if you don't provide the name of the school?
According to NYS gov. If indoors six feet of distance must be maintained. A mask although not required at six feet or more is still STRONGLY ADVISABLE indoors at any distance ( it should be required). All these staff members that refuse to wear a mask technically have a right to do so BUT where is the respect to just put it on to make others feel comfortable, and error on the side of caution? It’s ridiculous how self centered some folks are and a sample of how the rank and file don’t stick together as they should. - Hawk
Sounds like flushing high school. I heard the same thing from a teacher there.
Name the school, even if it anonymous. Are you more afraid of the DOE than DEATH? Almost every school is having major issues - especially the run down, over populated ones. We know Dodge is a nightmare. What about the other shit holes? Taft? Grover Cleveland? John Addams? Roosevelt? Windgate? Evander? Herman Ritter Building? Wings?
10:55 you are hilarious!( and sadly, truthful.)there would be no correct answers because it is all the same song with different soloists. All repeating...My school has ppe, windows and doors open.admin takes it seriously.quiet as a morgue.we stay in our rooms.schools are not a great place for kids if they must be like this.sad, but glad to be safe, sad for others who are unlucky.hopefully, the isolation rm wont be needed.very strict protocols...doe central in need of intelligent life.the video is sad.the uft person is showing the members!I guess he has to back the uft peeps.sadder bec my dad was from the days uft was founded.i am an old time and appreciate a union.look how low it has sunk...time will tell how long we stay here...stay safe!
Here are a bunch of teachers, many who are young, who are not anonymous.
Only one school so far?
Let's see how many other schools do something in Monday when MORE calls for schools to protest. Show me hundreds doing this and the press will come.
It takes guts to fight. Many of us did this for decades - James among the most active. He was never anonymous nor was Jeff Kaufman or most of us who were part of ICEUFT Caucus which was one of the founders of MORE until they threw us out for not going along with the party line and then screwed up the 2019 UFT election big time, thus giving Unity even more control. Maybe people there have gotten some sense.
Imagine a unified opposition that fought Unity in 2019 and would have more power and influence today when it's needed the most.
Very well said, Norm.
@James - can you possibly be any more biased? Seems to me that you were itching for a fight for a very long time, and now want others to fight the battle for you. You think maybe there's a 3rd camp? Those who recognize that the infection rate is very low, that strides have been made in containing this virus in this city, and who did not find remote teaching pleasant at all? Frankly, with most students going remote in some schools, it seems like the remote teachers are going to get the worst of it. All you do is trash the UFT members when they don't see things you're way - you were smearing them and calling them names before a strike was even called - if anyone even thought to cross an illegal picket line.
Maybe those sending making the complaints are in the first camp or are making things up. Maybe you're writing some of those posts.
@11:17 - "Our school's leadership says "students can remain in the classroom if they refuse to wear masks as long as they remain at least 6 feet apart." Is this true for all school buildings?". I doubt very seriously anyone said this. And if they did, you need to report it.
We have been trying to get verifications on what people are sending out. I am getting much more info over emails as to specific schools.
If you think it's safe and City-DOE-UFT are on the level or you believe outside scientific evidence shows it's safe, go ahead. Please understand many do not think schools are safe and some are willing to fight buildings being reopened.
If UFTers pushing for all remote passionately believe with plenty of scientific backing that buildings are unsafe and staff could be spreading the virus by entering schools as could students, what are they supposed to do?
Just out of curiosity, for the people who believe it is safe in the buildings, what would you fight for?
Tom. I hear mask breaks are common in schools in the suburbs that have already reopened. Kind of defeats the purpose.
1:57: The Principal of Flushing High School told his staff this.
BREAKING...SCHOOLS ARE INFECTED
Covid in brooklyn. Being told the school name is P.S. 11 Purvis J. Behan in District 13 in Brooklyn.
Yet ANOTHER
@NYCSchools
building has been closed today due to a positive staff #COVID19 case: M.S. 88 in District 15.
@James - I think everyone has to make decisions that are right for them, and their situations. I don't blame parents with small children who got a doctor's note. What you are doing - while calling for unity no less, is akin to those going in, calling those staying at home, fake, or cowards, or whatever. Not that it would be true - but your insults are tiresome. If "UFTers" want to push for all remote - GREAT. The issue is you all haranguing those who don't have a medical accommodation, and insisting they call out, wildcat, or whatever, and they're cowards if they don't.
It's unsafe to take an uber, it's unsafe to go to an emergency room, it's unsafe to do a lot of things- you take your own precautions. You don't want to unmask after students eat lunch - then don't. Eat before you get to school, and eat after you leave. Is anyone going to starve when buildings have to empty out early this year? No hand sanitizer - bring your own. They didn't give you a mask, "waah", bring your own mask. Bring an air purifier if you have to. This is not a normal situation and as you know even Admin didn't want to open. Absolutely some schools should not open, and you do have incompetent Admin if some of these stories are to be believed - but that doesn't apply to all.
You've been in UFT leadership for years - so whatever is broken is on YOUR WATCH. Not on the rank and file.
A THIRD school with positive #COVID19 cases: PS 1 In District 15: https://twitter.com/leguia_camila/status/1303760316904419328?s=19
At least comment on what I say.
"If you think it's safe and City-DOE-UFT are on the level or you believe outside scientific evidence shows it's safe, go ahead. Please understand many do not think schools are safe and some are willing to fight buildings being reopened."
I am not insulting people who legitimately think it's safe. Having to take all those precautions you talk about kind of undercuts your argument a bit.
As for the last point, UFT operates as a one party state basically. Being one of 6-7 opposition HS Executive Board members out of what was a 90 member Exec Bd, does not make me part of "UFT leadership for years."
Had I been the HSVP after I got hundreds more HS Teacher votes than Janella Hinds in 2016, then maybe I could see some of your argument but that is not how the system works.
Jillian Jorgensen
@Jill_Jorgensen
There are at least two positive cases of COVID among school staff: at PS 1 and MS 88, both in Brooklyn's District 15, confirmed by DOE.
Councilman
@bradlander
says both cases were asymptomatic.
Schools won't be closed; staff has the option to work remotely during test&trace.
Tom I am on your side in regard to "safety" but I think you have James confused with the MORE caucus and some commenters. Yes he's on the all remote bandwagon, in fact he was on it early in March before anyone really knew what was to come. However he never name called and certainly has never been part of the UFT establishment. He ran vs Randi years ago.
we are in school on 9/9 cleaning mouse shit to do remote in school I cannot believe how the UFT sold us out and still takes deductions. Disgusting, disrespectful and unreal! Fk UFT NYCDiE
@ Kara,
She is an example of why I believe the young will lead us to a better way. Hip hip hooray to you young lady and thank you.
Now to 8:11 am:
Unfortunately this inhumane treatment isn't new. NYC students and parents have been duped for decades. Now that the co-conspirators have realized that they too are secondary, disbelief, rage, disappointment, confusion and frustration have set in. And this is only since March. Imagine being treated like this for centuries? Yeah. The least one can do is strike/protest/say something/do something to stay alive. Vote these people OUT if you are tired. Vote for people who will respect you and your profession.
This event is so eye opening. It seems like so many people really are in their own bubble and rarely consider their neighbors' struggle.
Finally @ Tom
Whatever is broken is on ALL our watch.
Tom- No one has insulted or insisted anything. Facts are facts. Some buildings are not safe and those buildings need to close, some buildings are questionable and they should close too. The UFT has not and is not fighting tooth and nail for the safety of ALL. They have dropped the ball on many issues through the years. Change is needed. - Hawk
Wow. I love these powerful speakers/educators in The Bronx. A UFT flack should be housed in every school building where teachers have concerns. Any school that doesn't have a concern should not get a flack.
@James - you first. What "outside scientific evidence" shows it's unsafe to resume classes? Really no need to comment on your straw man arguments because my comments were speaking to your insults - not how safe I thought the buildings were, NOR criticizing others for fighting the reopening.
Taking precautions doesn't undercut my argument that we are at low levels of infection in NYC and that we have made strides. Taking precautions is EXACTLY why we reached the low levels that we have. That's just a fact. Unless you are just advocating for UFTers to wait for what you call incompetent Admin to hand everything to them to make things safe. Hospital workers used their own common sense and improvised with what they had in the name of safety. That's not to say DOE is not responsible for providing supplies, but if one has to go in because they feel they must, they have to do what they have to do. Clearly complaining to Mulgrew doesn't get anyone anywhere. Of course anything can happen if people come in and don't take precautions, or get lazy as the days wear on.
You're against people holding back dues, while arguing against the UFT. Sure - makes sense. NOT.
And don't kid yourself, you absolutely ARE insulting "while on the other side are the UFTers who in spite of being sent into situations where they are being put at greater risk of catching a terrible virus are still good soldiers who follow orders. The passive aggressive types who send anonymous pictures where they are afraid to say what school it's from and write comments but in the end do not fight the system openly are unfortunately still with the latter group." And that's not including the number of times you called on UFTers to go against others by calling them scabs if they even thought about crossing the line of an illegal strike.
@TJL - his comments are right there on the front page, and he was gearing up for labeling people as scabs from the beginning.
Exactly,
That's been my question for some time:
What would you fight for?
@Tom...
Scroll up and read about the new Covid cases in Brooklyn school buildings. I hope it's not fake news.
Thank God! Love your comments. My school is totally safe to open. The problem is people are screaming 100% remote. Not a good idea. Could change education forever. People could be furloughed and fired. Privatized. City won’t allow remote forever. The problem is, is that everyone is entitled and thinks this job is a permanent guarantee....pandemic or no pandemic.
Mixed emotions? How about terror. Total anxiety and fear, because the lives of teachers are expendable, even to our union.
Strawman? Maybe not. You keep telling us how safe it is. That might not be right.
From last week:
"New York City should expect to see an uptick in COVID-19 cases once public schools reopen for in-person classes later this month, an infectious disease expert and advisor to Mayor Bill de Blasio testified at a City Council hearing on Thursday.
Dr. Irwin Redlener was among the 140 speakers scheduled to testify at the day-long education committee hearing on the city's school reopening plan. In the absence of testimony from DOE officials, councilmembers heard from skeptics of de Blasio's school reopening plan, along with the school labor union leaders who convinced the mayor to delay reopening to allow more time to prepare.
Redlener warned councilmembers that students enrolled in schools for in-person learning have a greater chance of contracting the disease when inside a classroom.
“I’m pretty certain that we’re going to see a resurgence. There’s too many factors that we cannot control,” Redlener said, adding that the current reopening of colleges where cases have surfaced coupled with the upcoming Labor Day weekend, when New Yorkers typically travel outside the state, could contribute to an uptick. "It's going to spread and the schools are not as ready as they could or should be."
UFT: yes, UFT Leadership from Unity Caucus: no. My position for 25 years but I will applaud them when they get something right as does happen.
Taylor law prohibition against strikes is a human rights violation as documented by ILO, an agency of the UN so stop with all the "illegal strike" nonsense.
If you have to wear a mask, stay six feet apart, have a temperature check and do a self health check to get in a building, clearly, these are not ideal conditions in buildings.
Just read a report from the Daily News (online) that 2 staff members tested positive at IS88 in Brooklyn. This is just the tip of the iceberg.
James said "Strawman? Maybe not. You keep telling us how safe it is. That might not be right". If it's not a strawman then maybe you have a problem with the written word, because nowhere have I keep "telling us how safe it is". Or maybe you're just flat-out lying.
As for your "one source" - not exactly what I consider "outside scientific evidence". According to the WHO, Unicef, and the Int'l Red Cross there are "control and prevention" measures:
"Following basic principles can help keep students, teachers, and staff safe at school and help stop the spread of this disease. Recommendations for healthy schools are:
• Sick students, teachers and other staff should not come to school
• Schools should enforce regular hand washing with safe water and soap, alcohol rub/hand
sanitizer or chlorine solution and, at a minimum, daily disinfection and cleaning of school
surfaces
• Schools should provide water, sanitation and waste management facilities and follow
environmental cleaning and decontamination procedures
• Schools should promote social distancing (a term applied to certain actions that are taken to slow down the spread of a highly contagious disease, including limiting large groups of people coming together)
You are not the Judge and Jury and could not even offer a guarantee that strikers would not be penalized or have their medical benefits taken away. Not to mention I asked SEVERAL times if remote workers could reasonably join the strike and claim that they were in an unsafe environment if they were assigned to work from home (because according to District Reps claiming an unsafe environment is what would render it a legit strike). But I guess you know more than they do.
Again with your strawman arguments - NO ONE says it's ideal. It's not ideal to go to the dentist under those conditions either. Or the supermarket. So go ahead - just stay home until the cows come home.
Read today's ICEUFT blog posting Tom. It is neither safe nor clean in certain schools. Staff are walking out on camera. Nobody is being charged with violating the Taylor Law. The protests may just expand.
Funny but NOT true story..
A fellow teacher friend of mine told me she had a conversation with her near 80 year old mother who happens to be a retired teacher and supports the UFT as a Retiree.
Appears she received mail from the UFT that said "Important!, Please review the enclosed brochure". Well, she opened it and to her surprise, there was no brochure enclosed. So, being disappointed she called the UFT office to inquire about it and find out what they brochure was all about and to tell them she received an empty envelope.
My friends mother had a lovely conversation with the girl on the phone that went something like this:
The young lady apologized and said things were very busy and she would look into it and did not have an answer as to what brochure it was. My friends mother asked her how she was doing back at her building. She replied, "Oh, we are working from home remotely." Mother Retiree says, "Why is that? Schools are open for all the teachers now." The girl replied, " Oh no, Mr. Mulgrew says he wants to keep us safe."
SOOO, there you have it, Safe For Me But Not For Thee
I would have loved to been a fly on the wall during that conversation, been chuckling about it all afternoon.
This comment is an important point:
"
Blogger TeachNY said...
Thank God! Love your comments. My school is totally safe to open. The problem is people are screaming 100% remote. Not a good idea. Could change education forever. People could be furloughed and fired. Privatized. City won’t allow remote forever. The problem is, is that everyone is entitled and thinks this job is a permanent guarantee....pandemic or no pandemic.
Remote now can lead to cuts in jobs and a rethinking of education. How about contracting out remote? I get emails every day from companies selling services.
If you had a choice of working remote for the entire year but facing a real risk of not having a job next year which would you choose?
Yes, You guessed it, Flushing HS. My building is Not Safe. How are we going to get these kids to wear masks when we are told not to fight with them? Our school's leadership says "students can remain in the classroom if they refuse to wear masks as long as they remain at least 6 feet apart." Is this true for all school buildings?
*Wednesday, September 09, 2020 11:17:00 AM
Now we are being told we will have to teach in person and Remote from the school. Not one or the other. We were advised not to complain by our Union Rep, b/c we are short teachers and complaining will do no good. This school is destroying education. Basically, we were also, informally warned that all students must pass.
What do you expect when you have a bunch of untenured kids as teachers who can't spell?
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