November 24 Defend ATRs Rally Photo Album

Photos courtesy of Ivan Rowe, Independent Community of Educators (ICE) and Class Struggle Education Workers (CSEW). To contact Ivan Rowe, e-mail survivalthing@hotmail.com or call (917) 659-2619.

Hundreds of New York City teachers and supporters rallied at the headquarters of the NYC Department of Education headquarters at Tweed Courthouse on November 24.

They were protesting the DOE offensive, echoed by the media, against 1,500 teachers placed in the Absent Teacher Reserve pool due to the endless school "reorganizations" ordered from Tweed. Another 100+ first year Teaching Fellows are threatened with dismissal by December 5 if they do not find positions.

The teacher bashing is ultimately in the service of union-busting, as Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Schools Chancellor Joel Klein take aim at teacher tenure.

The United Federation of Teachers (UFT) agreed at an Oct. 15 Delegate Assembly to sponsor a rally to show support for ATRS and demand that no new hiring take place until ATRs receive permanent placements. However, a few days before the rally the UFT and DOE signed a side agreement to encourage, but not mandate, the placement of ATR teachers.

On the day of the rally the UFT leadership held an "informational session" at union offices at 52 Broadway while some 225 teachers rallied in support of the ATRs at Tweed Courthouse. After 1 hour and 45 minutes, the UFT leaders finally arrived.

To see photos, click on play button. For full screen mode and photo credits, click on symbol at lower right of slideshow once it is playing. To see all photos go to Support ATRs flickr site.

Tonight's Great Demo -- We Stood Up for the ATRs

Photo courtesy of Ivan Rowe.

This report was written on November 24 following the rally to defend teachers in the Absent Teacher Reserve (ATR).

Colleagues, I think we can be immensely proud of the rally we had tonight. It was empowering to hear so many teachers, social workers, counselors and all school staff speak at the "open mike" with their ideas, their stories, their struggle. Every single person who came played an important role in building it at their schools, their committees, and among their friends. It was a real teacher rebellion.

While we were rallying outside the Department of Education, the UFT/Unity leadership was drinking wine and munching cheese at the UFT and having the side agreement explained. (They even had people stationed at Broadway and Chambers re-routing teachers away from the rally and down to the UFT.) Hopefully, some ATRs will get positions from the agreement, but it does not change the basic structure, which continually produces ATRs. We will continue to struggle for a job freeze until all ATRs who want them have positions.

By our count, about 225 UFT members rallied outside Tweed, starting at 4:30 p.m. Without telling us, the UFT leadership had changed the rally permit to 5 p.m., starting at 52 Broadway! That didn't stop us. We soapboxed, marched around, chanted and organized. Our rally "M.C.," John Powers did a great job keeping it all together.

Later, much later, the "official" delegation from Randi's "informational meeting" arrived, which added another 50-75 people, including a number of rank-and-filers, who were very glad to join us.

Marchers return to rally point after circling Tweed.

Photo courtesy of Ivan Rowe

At this point, we started a spirited march around the DOE/Tweed Courthouse chanting. Facing shouted objections when she started to start the "official rally" while the march was underway, Randi waited till we returned from this walkaround. After she had spoken, and a couple others, I asked to speak, which was angrily refused. Teachers started chanting for me to speak, and Weingarten had to agree. So I was able to get the message of our rally out again -- that is was our grass roots organizing in the schools that has built this rally, and we need to keep up the struggle.

There were many chants and shouts of "Bring Back Seniority" directed at the Unity leadership--an understanding that it was the sellout of the 2005 contract which has in good part led to this mess we're in. After awhile, when the leadership kept repeating "Let Teachers Teach," the crowd chanted back, "Place ATRs!"

Dr. Lezanne Edmond
CSEW photo

At our speakout, which lasted for well over an hour, there were many powerful voices. One of the first speakers was Dr. Lezanne Edmond, Ph.D. in education, literacy specialist and an ATR! She said "we have to stop making education a business and get back to the business of education." Among the speakers were John Lawhead from Tilden High School in Brooklyn, where they have lost many ATRs; Robert Bobrick who came with a group of teachers and students from Lafayette High School; Michael Fiorillo, chapter leader at Newcomers HS, colleagues from the "rubber room"; Christine Grassman from GED-Plus; Angela DeSouza from TAGNY, Keith Brooks from Restart.

Importantly, Dan Feldman spoke from the Teaching Fellows who are facing a December 5th "termination date" if they do not get assigned positions. (By the way if you know of any openings, please beat the bushes for them and inform us!).

John Powers
CSEW photo

There were speakers from ICE (Independent Community of Educators), Teachers for a Just Contract, Progressive Labor Party, and my group, the Class Struggle Education Workers, CUNY students from the Internationalist Clubs, the Support Committee for the Federation of Teachers of Puerto Rico (FMPR). I'm sure I've left some people and groups out. The striking thing is that EVERYBODY wanted to talk, and did.

There was a class of 30 students with their teacher from the Harry Van Arsdale Labor Studies Program at SUNY, who came to observe labor struggle in action! They surely got a taste of that tonight!

Marjorie Stamberg
Photo courtesy of Ivan Rowe

At the speakout, and again later, I called to "smash the Taylor Law" which keeps us from exercising labor's powerful weapon--the strike. That the main way the labor bureaucracy ties us to the bosses is through what Daniel De Leon called "the labor lieutenants of capital." We need a class struggle leadership, a break from the Democrats and Republicans, and a workers party and workers government.

Randi Weingarten
Photo courtesy of Ivan Rowe

The union leadership wanted to have at most a celebration of their side agreement. Hundreds of union rank and filers showed we are determined to keep up the struggle, not just for the ATRs but for all the anti-union attacks coming down the pike in this economic crisis. So we have a lot of work to do. But today was a great beginning.

Marjorie Stamberg
November 24, 2008

Video of the November 24 rally, Part I (26 minutes)
Thanks to David B.



Link to video of the November 24 rally, Part II (20 minutes)


Brief slideshow of the rally with part of Marjorie's speech.
From "Pseudo-Intellectualism" (http://dbellel.blogspot.com)

ATR ACTION ALERT UPDATE

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Updated RALLY Action Alert

Dear Brothers and Sisters:

You may know by now that the UFT is holding a discussion session regarding the new ATR agreement at 52 Broadway (our union hall) on Monday, November 24th at 4pm. After Randi Weingarten explains the agreement, those in attendance will march to Tweed for the rally.

We have distributed 1,000's of leaflets to schools across NYC that indicate the union's original meeting time of 4:30pm at Tweed. We will adhere to this plan, but send a small delegation of UFTers to first attend the gathering at 52 Broadway.

This has not been an easy movement to build for and at this point it is difficult for us to create and distribute new fliers with the aforementioned update. If you can arrive in lower Manhattan as early as 4pm, by all means you should feel free to attend Randi Weingarten's talk. Otherwise, meet us as planned (SEE BELOW).

Last, at this late moment, our leadership has still not produced one flier or poster for this event. This is unfortunate!

Thank you to all who helped the ATR Ad Hoc Committee follow through on planning and building for our rally!!!

In Solidarity,

John Powers / Chapter Leader: Liberation HS
Marjorie Stamberg / ESL Teacher / GED PLUS / District 79


P.S. See the information that follows:

Here are some updates from the ad hoc committee to support the ATRs.

Stand up for the ATRs! We want to send the strongest message to the DOE that the victimization of teachers who have been thrown into the Absent Teacher Reserve has to stop now. No new hiring till all ATRs who want positions are placed! No termination of the teaching fellows! Stop union-busting and teacher-bashing!


We have fought for the union as a whole to demonstrate its support for the ATRS. But we cannot rely on the bureaucracy to make it real, we have to mobilize in the schools. By the way, after we objected to having a soggy "candlelight vigil," the Chapter Leader Update is now referring to it as a rally. Good!

So here are next steps: Do Now

Get fliers out to your school (If you need flyers, let us know, see below).


Get teachers at your school to come with you--make a sign-up list to get solid commitments (see sign-up sheet attached). This is important--don't rely on "I'll try."

Bring everybody -- school staff, parents, students. Ask your chapter leader to hold a meeting and get everybody on board.


"Adopt a school" -- find one more school besides yours to get the fliers out--call your colleagues and friends in other schools.

Make posters --
Some suggested posters "______________(Name of School) is here to support the ATRs!" "Let Teachers Teach!" "Hiring Freeze Until ATRs are Placed"

*VERY IMPORTANT

*Meet Us at the Rally and Come in Together:

Activists are meeting up outside the Brooklyn Bridge/City Hall stop on the 4, 5, 6 train in the open space alongside Tweed and City Hall. We will form up and come into the rally chanting "Let Teachers Teach!" Come with us and make a strong presence. *

*Time: 4:30pm
Place: Tweed Courthouse, 52 Chambers St. (btw Bway and Park Place)
DIrections: Any train to Chambers Street, Brooklyn Bridge or City Hall

Remember: This is everyone's fight*

*When the UFT's gave up senority transfers in the 2005 contract, it opened the door for the DOE to drive a truck through! Now 1,400 teachers are in the ATR pool and we need to get them out! The way the Board is closing schools, if you're not ATR now, you could be tomorrow.

More info or need leaflets:
supportatrs@gmail.com,
Website: supportatrs.blogspot.com
Call 917-545-5671

*If you need leaflets, please give us your name, school and address where to drop off and how many.


Message from Sean Ahern on ICE-mail:
The priority for Bloomberg is pushing forward with his power grab. The pushout of the senior teachers and ATRs has been placed on the back burner until after his election, after Randi's election. So for now its a win win both for Bloomberg and Weingarten to push divisive issues to the side that may interfere with their collaboration going forward for the next year.

Shanker collaborated with the banker's coup in 1975. 20,000 teachers were laid off, The neo liberal crap spread outwards from NYC. Now once again the UFT is leading the way in collaborating with another toxic initiative from the oligarchy to pull the rug out from under popular outrage at his power grab. The UFT leadership sings a lullaby to the members , then the members get whacked. The leadership weathers some outrage for a bit, but the opposition fades, never making much sense of what happened, and the leadership gets back to feathering its nest, insulating itself from members, accumulating property and influence.


Marjorie adds:

Totally agree with you re: Randi's posture and why there was a partial amelioration of ATR crisis (without altering the basic framework of dictatorial mayoral and principal control). Both she and Bloomberg/Klein want to get this "pesky issue" (of outrageous villification of more than a thousand teachers) out of the way, especially since she's being battered from a grass-roots movement inside the union about it. Then they figure they can go ahead with merit pay, charter schools, straight-out union-busting, a la Michelle Rhee. Much of which is part of Obama's education program, by the way

We better make sure this oppositon ain't fading. That means all of us. And we have the program to make sense of what happened and why it happened. Because of all the reasons you state, it was an excellent moment to puruse this crucial struggle. The mobilization of union power AGAINST the labor bureaucracy, whom Daniel De Leon called the "labor lieutenants of capital, we started here needs to be continued to face the really daunting challenges in the coming period.

Download Flier, Makes Copies, and Distribute Widely

The rally leaflet is available for downloading here.

Letter to Leadership: No Candles!

We have been informed that the November 24 Rally to Defend ATRs is now to be officially a "candlelight vigil." We strongly object to this change. The motion passed at the UFT delegate assembly October 15 said that "the UFT will organize a mass citywide rally to show our unity and strength." Instead of a show of strength, this turns it into a toothless gesture of "bearing witness" or silently standing by and observing as a travesty is taking place.

Furthermore, we were not consulted on this change, which was made without our knowledge, despite assurances from Randi Weingarten and Michael Mulgrew that we would be included in the planning. The first we heard of this was in a changed rally leaflet we received this morning.

A candlelight vigil is a silent "protest at the suffering of some marginalized group of people, or in memory of lives lost to some disease, disaster, massacre or other tragedy."

We want to make precisely the opposite point -- that ATR teachers are not marginalized, that we stand by them, and the UFT will fight to ensure that they do not become "lost lives," a "massacre," a "disaster" or other "tragedy." We can "bear witness" all we want, but it won't stop Joel Klein from trying to drive out our colleagues. And it won't stop the likes of the New York Post from vilifying them and our union.

We will continue to plan for a mass citywide rally as "a show of our unity and strength" as the motion called for. I think many teachers will feel as we do that we need strong powerful action, and will not stand by in silence.

In the words of Joe Hill, the famous labor organizer, "Don't Mourn For Me--Organize!"

That is what we will continue to do and we encourage the UFT leadership to reconsider its plan.

John Powers
Marjorie Stamberg
for the Ad Hoc Committee to Defend ATRs

ATR RALLY -- Monday, November 24th!!!

ATR RALLY AT TWEED: 52 CHAMBERS STREET / 4:30
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 24TH 2008

The UFT Executive Board tonight voted to set the date for the rally to support our colleagues in the Absent Teacher Reserve. The ad hoc committee to support ATRs had insisted that the rally be held between the elections and Thanksgiving in order to keep up the momentum, and make a strong show of union support. With a November 24 date, this will now be possible -- it's up to us and the whole union membership to make it real.

We need thousands to come out to say "no" to the teacher-bashers and union-busters.

Randi Weingarten introduced the motion, saying that the rally was voted by the Delegate Assembly on October 15, and we need to start building it. She added they will try to get as many UFTers there as possible. The rally would create pressure to get some action on the issue of the ATRs, she said, and the delegate assembly of November 12 can be helpful in building for the rally.

I spoke earlier at the E-Board, reading our statement and stressing that we needed a date now, that we "talked the talk" at the D.A., now we need a date to "walk the walk."

The union bureaucracy has been agonizingly slow in responding to the mounting crisis over the at least 1,400 teachers who have been removed from their positions. (Also, well over a hundred teaching fellows face 'termination" as of December 5, if they don't get permanent positions.) The stage was set by the 2005 UFT contract which gave up seniority transfers, which many of us opposed at the time. But now that it's clear that the DOE is using this to try to break teacher tenure, everyone can see the need for a powerful fightback.

Our amendment calling for the rally said that it calls on the DOE to "reduce class size and give assigned positions to all teachers in the Absent Teacher Reserve who want assignments before any new teachers are hired." Let's act together to win this demand on behalf of teachers, and our students who are crammed in ever more crowded classrooms.

--Marjorie

BREAKING NEWS

THE UFT WILL HOLD THE RALLY SOMETIME IN LATE NOVEMBER OR EARLY DECEMBER.

ABSOLUTELY BEFORE DECEMBER 5TH.

STAY TUNED FOR THE NEXT PHASE OF OUR "SUPPORT THE ATRS" CAMPAIGN.