[OccupyCU] Fw: Query about sponsoring a C-U solidarity forum with Chicago Teachers Union speakers

Thu Aug 9 18:11:27 UTC 2012

This sounds cool. I am just wondering if a date has already been picked? I
would be down for this but I don't know if I can be there. It will just
depend on the date. Thoughts?

Andrea Herrera

2012/8/8 Gene Vanderport <lightport at sbcglobal.net>

> Comrades, see below the original letter from Steven Ashby asking for
> Champaign Urbana community to host a Chicago Teachers Forum......please
> read his letter way, way below....Also read the growing list of cosponsors
> attached & below....
> Would your organization be willing to cosponsor, which simply means:
>
>    - your organization's name would be listed with the other cosponsors
>    on the event announcements
>    - your leaders would attend
>    - encourage your members to attend
>
> Even if your goals are not DIRECTLY involved with labor issues, you may
> find the Chicago Teachers Union mobilizing methods to be helpful to your
> activists!
> Gene Vanderport & Germaine Light
>
> *Cosponsor List *
>
> *Chicago Teachers Union Forum*
>
> * *
>
> Central Illinois Jobs With Justice:  The Mother Jones Chapter****
>
> UIUC Campus Labor Coalition****
>
> Graduate Employees Union (GEO)/IFT/AFT****
>
> Champaign Federation of Teachers/IFT/AFT****
>
> Campus Faculty Association****
>
> Danville Education Association/IEA/NEA****
>
> Region 9 IEA/NEA****
>
> Champaign-Urbana Citizens for Peace & Justice****
>
> ** **
>
> ----- Forwarded Message ----
> *From:* "Ashby, Steven" <skashby at illinois.edu>
> *To:* "McGuire, James B" <jbmcguir at illinois.edu>; Stephanie Seawell <
> stephseawell at gmail.com>; "Lewis, Margaret A" <mlewis1 at illinois.edu>
> *Cc:* james barrett <jrbarret at uiuc.edu>; Jim McGuire <jimmcgu at comcast.net>;
> "Fields, A Belden" <a-fields at illinois.edu>; "Oberdeck, Kathryn J" <
> kjo at illinois.edu>; "Miller, Dorinda K" <dkmiller at illinois.edu>; Campus
> Labor Coalition <campuslabor at lists.uigeo.org>; Gene Vanderport <
> lightport at sbcglobal.net>; Dorinda Miller <dkmiller at uiuc.edu>
> *Sent:* Tue, July 31, 2012 9:38:09 AM
> *Subject:* Query about sponsoring a C-U solidarity forum with Chicago
> Teachers Union speakers
>
>  Hi, folks,
>
> This is Steven Ashby from LER.  I’m sure you’ve been following the
> developments with the Chicago Teachers Union.  I’m writing to inquire
> whether campus labor folks, and Jobs with Justice, might be interested in
> holding a forum with CTU speakers in late August.
>
>
>
> In brief:  The Caucus of Rank and File Educators formed four years ago to
> mobilize teachers and parents against the Chicago Public Schools (CPS)
> Board of Education’s steady plans to shut down dozens of schools, fire all
> employees, and turn the buildings over to privately run but publicly
> funded, with no accountable, charter schools.  As with all privatization
> efforts, this was primarily a drive to get rid of the union and negotiated
> work rules.
>
>
>
> In June 2010 the CORE slate challenged the incumbent slate, who were
> pretty much classic business unionists, and won office.  Starting in mid
> 2011 they began planning and implementing a contract campaign to turn their
> top-down union into a bottom-up, member driven, social movement unionism
> union.   (LEP held classes and worked as consultants during this
> process).
>
>
>
> Last year under the direction of Democratic Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel
> and Democratic Speaker of the House Michael Madigan, an anti-union bill, SB
> 7, was passed that mandated 75% of all CTU members must vote to authorize
> a strike; thus, those not voting were counted as “no” votes.  Supporters
> bragged that they had effectively eliminated the CTU’s right to strike as
> no large union could achieve this.
>
>
>
> In May 2012 the contract campaign’s success became evident when 6,000
> teachers rallied and marched in downtown Chicago, surprising all
> politicians and media pundits. In June 2012 92% of the members turned out
> in a three-day vote, with 98% of those voting authorizing the leadership to
> call a strike.  Subsequently Crain’s Business (no friend of unions)
> declared the CTU to be the most powerful union in the Chicago area.
>
>
>
> Throughout this process, the union has worked tirelessly with community
> allies, supported other groups’ protests, worked closely with half a dozen
> parents’ groups, and won strong support in the city.  The Mayor, who is
> known for bullying to get his way, is clearly on the defensive.
>
>
>
> Meanwhile, six weeks ago 110 activists came together to form the Chicago
> Teachers Solidarity Campaign to do outreach and build solidarity for the
> teachers and their union.  We have been meeting weekly; I am on the
> steering committee, and in that capacity am writing you.
>
>
>
> While some gains have been made in negotiations, the Board (and Mayor, who
> appoints the Board) continue to refuse to negotiate over classroom issues
> that are central to the union’s mission: lower class sizes, more social
> workers and nurses, a library and air conditioning in every school, and
> more art, music, computer, and P.E. classes.
>
>
>
> No one can predict labor negotiations.   But should there be a strike,
> there is the possibility that it will not be short. The last strike in 1987
> lasted 19 days.  Should that occur, it will be vital to mobilize
> supporters from all nearby cities to come to Chicago the first Saturday of
> the strike. (And of course, all are welcome to attend daily picket lines.)
>
>
>
> Were there a strike, it could come as soon as September 4, or in early to
> mid-September.
>
>
>
> The CTU has asked me to take on this assignment. I have talked to Labor
> Notes about pulling together forums featuring CTU speakers in Madison,
> Milwaukee, and Detroit.  I have talked with Chicago JwJ organizer Susan
> Hurley about JwJ doing the same in other cities.  The CTU’stransformation is an inspiring story.
> Rank-and-file teachers would be the speakers were it a weekend forum; a
> weekday forum might necessitate union staff (all of whom were teachers
> until two years ago when CORE took office) as teachers go back to work on
> August 20.  They might be accompanied by members of the Chicago Teachers
> Solidarity Campaign.
>
>
>
> August is of course a terrible month to do forum, but that’s what we’ve
> got. We’re looking at August 20 to 31.  Please let me know your thoughts
> on the viability of doing a forum in Champaign-Urbana.
>
>
>
> ….in solidarity, Steven
>
>
>
> P.S.  If you have contacts in other cities, like Peoria, Springfield, and
> Decatur, who you think could pull together a successful forum, please ask
> them to get in touch with me.
>
>
>
>
>
> Prof. Steven K. Ashby
>
> Full Clinical Professor and Coordinator, Global Labor Studies
> undergraduate online program
>
> School of Labor and Employment Relations, University of Illinois at
> Urbana-Champaign
>
> Labor Education Program, Rice Building, 815 W. Van Buren #110, Chicago IL
> 60607
> (312) 996-8733   skashby at illinois.edu    http://www.illinoislabored.org/
>
> Global Labor Studies:  http://go.illinois.edu/laboronline
>
> *Staley: The Fight for a New American Labor Movement*, by Steven Ashby
> & C.J. Hawking  http://www.staleybook.org/
>  ------------------------------
>
> _______________________________________________
> OccupyCU mailing list
> OccupyCU at lists.chambana.net
> http://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/occupycu
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.chambana.net/pipermail/occupycu/attachments/20120809/b3dc628a/attachment.html>