Labour: Education: New teachers union battle in govt schools on the horizon
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America's National Education Association stirred up a convulsive reaction to its narrow-guage activism to impose features of the Gay ideology on teachers, schools, curriculum, the NEA and its affiliates, and worst of all the students. The NEA has a core intent on using schools to teach all children in a way that many parents and their friends (homos like myself included) find repulsive to our most ultimate values. Once again, the whole project is secularist to its core. It's part of a larger effort to deconstruct Christian culture in the USA, and to determine (a deeper-than-ever) banishment of Christian faith-discourse from the public square. When the effectively-monopolistic lock on the labour-representation of teachers works thru an entrenched union élite to exclude full participation in the profession to those who don't comly to the established religion of the union, the question of Gay ideology becomes just one among many issues at stake. Unfortunately, that issue is the only one that puts a sufficient number of teachers (political conservatives, and non-strict conservative religious people of Catholic, Evangelical, Judaic, Muslim and many others from across the spectrum - even iincluding assorted atheists and agnostics) in momentary motion for change. Again unfortunately, the alternatives being offered are not alternatives. They are all individualistic cop-outs, they add nothing to a restructuring of labour relations and labour representation in that particular sphere of work -- teaching in the near-monopoly of govt schools.
Evangelicals especially annoy me in this respect. They seem to individualize everyting so radically that it all, the whole of the societal order, dissolves into sand in their subchristian worldview (I'm some kind of evangelical, and obviously no leftist). The crippling individualistic cop-out is unworthy of a confession of faith in Jesus Christ, especially in our day and age. I don't have much of a brief to make for ex=Gays, but near the bottom of this blog-entry is a letter from a teacher, who identifies herself as an ex-Gay and who has ins+it into the Gay ideology's agenda in the schools and in regimenting all teachers into their sexual program (which really does little else than militanlty spread the dominant set of Hollywood mores). She, at least, does not take the individualistic route. She is staying in her union and working longterm to change the NEA. Unfortunately, I don't see a word of tolerance for homo teachers who object to the Gay ideology/agenda, wanting to teach in a way that re-inforces traditional values and parental guidance, but without hatred, bigotry, and scapegoating.
My regret is that there is no move toward Christian unionization to contest the monopoly of the NEA, and at the same time not become a persecutory hammer to pulverize every homo teacher. A Christian teachers union in the public schools should f+t on the level of ideas, organizing around the positive contributions possible to Christian labour-representation alongside unions of other ultimate values in a pluralist system. We do not have pluralist democracy in the labour representation of teachers (or much of anywhere else in the American labor-org sphere of society.
Christian Teachers Seek Alternative to NEABut CEAI is not a union either, and therefore is not really engaged in an inner reformation of teachers labour-representation. Lamentably.
UNITED STATES, Jul20,2k6 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The National Education Association’s (NEA) endorsement of same-sex “marriage” has lead a number of teachers to consider alternative organizations to the powerful liberal teachers union for job insurance and legal aid, according to Agape Press.
As Agape Press reports, the NEA’s pursuit of an anti-family agenda and its promotion of homosexual “marriage” has caused an upsurge in the numbers of conservative, Christian, and pro-family educators looking for alternatives to the liberal teachers union. Just one day after the American Family Association (AFA) warned its members that the NEA was preparing to endorse homosexual “marriage”, the Christian Educators Association International (CEAI), recorded 5,000 more visits to its official website than the daily average.
“We have been receiving e-mails, phone calls, and a lot of interaction through our website with a level of frustration like I have never seen before,” said Finn Laursen, the executive director of CEAI. “It almost seems like this open endorsement of same-sex marriage is almost the straw that broke the camel’s back, if you will.” reports, the [National Education Association’s] pursuit of an anti-family agenda and its promotion of homosexual 'marriage' has caused an upsurge in the numbers of conservative, Christian, and pro-family educators looking for alternatives to the liberal teachers union. Just one day after the American Family Association warned its members that the NEA was preparing to endorse homosexual 'marriage,' the Christian Educators Association International recorded 5,000 more visits to its official website than the daily average. 'We have been receiving e-mails, phone calls, and a lot of interaction through our website with a level of frustration like I have never seen before,' said Finn Laursen, the executive director of CEAI."
We continue to hear from many educators, support staff, parents, and other friends of education who are frustrated with the policies and positions of the National Education Association. Many are looking to us as an alternative to this union.I couldn't navigate to anti-abortion and anti-homo Lifesite from either the XNMP source (Jul28,2k6; scroll down to this date's blog-entry; a Hat Tip to Jon Reid Kennedy) and or the Google Search results. But I did find the same text with a little more detail at . XNMP does give the name of the author of the Lifesite article, Peter J. Smith, while indicating there's more to the article. So, I need another strategy, or I need to find some pick-up of the story elsewhere. Meanwhile, the search turned up this non-union "alternative" teachers non-union professional organization in Michigan, as reported by the Michigan Education Report. The monopoly union is the Michigan Education Association, state affiliate of the National Education Association. The "alternative" is the Associaton of American Educators.
CEAI is a professional association that offers liability and legal protection that many look to unions for. We are not a union and therefore do not negotiate contracts; however, we do all we can to support our members, most of whom serve in our public schools. Liability and job protection are available for as little as $129 annually.
The Association of American Educators, a professional association with members in all 50 states, offers teachers access to insurance, career development and industry information without worrying about what it calls "the partisan politics of bargaining or labor unions."Sorry! No link is provided, so I'll have to research that one also, but WSJ takes its articles pay-for very quickly.
"Teachers who join us do so for a vast number of reasons," says Heather Reams, director of communications for AAE. "But they almost always tell us the same thing. They’re glad there’s an alternative."
Reams said teachers who do not wish to belong to labor union mention factors such as moral issues, political issues or just the fact they do not appreciate lacking alternatives in what they support.
"Many times, people are frustrated because their union is supporting causes that they are against," Reams said. "They don’t have a voice and they feel like other people are making choices for them."
Reams pointed to a January editorial in Wall Street Journal that caught the eye of teachers nationwide. The Journal detailed how the National Education Association had given $65 million in 2005 to political groups that have little to do with education, such as Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, the Fund to Protect Social Security and the National Women’s Law Center.
There is also the American Federation of Teachers (AFL-CIO) to which apparently the NEA may affiliate, of which John Dewey was the first member.
A commenter on the first quote above informs us that there's also an alternative teachers union in Georgia, USA.
I'm an education major here in GA and we are allowed the alternative union, PAGE (professional association of Georgia educators) of which I am in the student version. There are many critics of the NEA both secular and religious, I am glad to have an alternative here.Craving more info, I finally found the following text on a PDF:
July 2006The intertwined issues involved in this whole complex of labour-representation of teachers engages several groups that refWrite does not endorse. Anti-Gay is often deceptively anti-homo, a total negation of people who do not endorse the Gay ideology or agenda, do not endorse teaching homosexuality in the schools (govt or independent of govt), yet who are indeed homo without apology. It takes extra effort to be such a person and oppose a teachers labour-union that endorses the Gay agenda and makes life miserable for teachers who are homo (but not Gay) or who are ex-Gay. Sometimes, it must be said, there's an ex-Gay ideology which is the mirror-reverse of the Gay ideology. In both those cases, refWrite is non-supportive of these subchristian ideologies. Yet, the teachers unions and the Gay ideologists maintain there is no honest person who is ex-Gay, refusing them representation and participation when they make their changed orientation visible in opposition to the truckload of ideology dumped on them by the Gay-promoting teachers unions. It's a messy historical situation, and many distinctions must be made at once in order to steer past the Scylla and Charybdis of the polarizers who leave no space for those who don't fit the mold. And have a third or fourth position to articulate; almost always they are drowned out.
Hello Fellow Christian/Conservative Public School Union Member,
I am Jeralee Smith, California public school teacher and one of the three founders of the NEA Conservative Educators Caucus. In this letter, I am representing my own opinions. The Conservative Caucus has not asked me to write this, though most would probably agree with what I am about to tell you. This is a long letter, but I am morally compelled to give you this information and urge you to give it serious consideration.
Many Christians and conservatives of other faiths are re-examining their relationship to teachers unions in the wake of the Annual NEA Convention just completed in Orlando this month. Many have heard in the Christian media that NEA attempted to endorse gay marriage. NEA refutes that but we have solid evidence that they had every intention of endorsing gay marriage but are now back-pedaling because of the bad press (and resulting membership loss) they got before the convention. If you want to read about this, several articles have come out from Focus on the Family, Southern Baptist Press and American Family Association. Broadcasts are also archived on the internet at Focus on the Family and American Family Association.
Attempting to endorse gay marriage is just one example of many things the National Education Association has been doing over the last 10-15 years that undermine our beliefs. As a conservative activist in the union for the last five years, I am privy to a lot of information that I wish every teacher knew. However, most of what I think you should know, the union wants to keep from you. If you want to be kept informed of what we are learning on the inside of the union, please sign up on the email list for the Conservative Educators Caucus.
Many teachers have developed loyalty to the union and have a tendency to accept what their local union leaders say without getting the big picture of how unions play a role in advancing causes that conflict with our Judeo-Christian values. Unions tell us they don’t spend our dues on politics, but there are many soft and subtle ways that they affect the political outcomes at local, state and national levels. Also, unions are clever at making us feel only they can adequately play the role as our advocate and provider of certain services. A clear discussion of exactly what they provide and how effective they are compared to other options is seldom available. Most don’t even realize they have other options!
Now this letter discusses the options Christian and conservative union members have in order to preserve your integrity. In my opinion, there are only two ways to have integrity regarding teachers unions: One is to get out of the union (more discussion on how to do that below), and the other is to get involved in union policy-making on the inside. The worst thing anyone can do is to let their dues money go to the union and feed this huge political machine that is destroying our values, and do nothing
I am still a union member myself because I feel my role is to speak out on the inside and be an inside “watchdog.” Anyone who is a member of the National Education Association can start a caucus, the purpose of which is to influence NEA policy. We conservatives already have two caucuses, plus a Republican Caucus within the union. All have very small membership. More information on the caucuses can be found on these websites: Conservative Educators Caucus, Ex-Gay Educators Caucus
If you are serious about standing with the bold ones on the inside, then run to be a delegate for the 2007 Convention which will be held at the end of June, beginning of July in Philadelphia, PA. Join one of our caucuses and help us speak up for our values before one of the most liberal groups in the country. Cast your delegate vote on the right side of the issues! Most delegates have all or part of their way paid by their union. Local unions have various procedures to elect delegates. Speak with your local president right away so you can be ready to run before your election.
You can also get involved in your state union representative body. It is this body which makes all the union decisions for your state (including dues raises) and powerfully influences your state legislatures, substantially supporting campaigns for politicians who then advance the union agenda. For example, California Teachers Association representatives voted to endorse a gay marriage bill in February, 2004.
For whatever reason, if you cannot be a voice for conservative values inside the union, you can have a powerful effect for good, by keeping part or all of your dues out of union hands by becoming a non-member. Most teachers are told that union membership is mandatory, especially if they don’t live in a state that has “Right to Work” laws. Although about 30 states have laws supporting unions, there is no state in the country that can force union membership on an individual. You can become an agency fee payer where the portion of your dues designated for contract negotiation and local services is all that you pay. Or you can keep every penny out of union hands by becoming a religious objector. Your money then goes into a charity that both you and the union agree upon. For those who live in the approximately 20 “right to work” states, you don’t have to belong to the union. Simply don’t join, or if you do, get involved!
If you want some guidance in this decision, I suggest you visit the National Right to Work website. They have a lot of information and can help you understand your options and what procedures to follow. They can even give you legal counsel along the way or remind anyone of your legal rights who tries to stop you. ...
There are also teachers associations that are not unions who can provide you with liability insurance that is far better than what the union provides for a fraction of the cost of union dues. The union often tries to make teachers fearful of quitting for a variety of reasons, liability insurance being one of them. You should expect this, but double check everything you are told by talking with National Right to Work or another teachers association (not a union) about the arguments you are given for remaining a union member. Union representatives are not reliable sources of information to help you look at the pros and cons of unionism. To get a thorough “Consumer Report” level of quality information about union membership vs. other professional affiliation membership, you need to get information from one or more sources besides the union.
These suggestions are humbly offered for your consideration. We live in a very critical time where the real conflicts with our Christian values lies beneath the surface of our everyday encounters. Sometimes it takes extra time and energy to dig up the truth and get the big picture. Our values are under attack in the open by anti-Christian law suits and press coverage. Our money is being used for the very things we disagree with and we CAN do something about it! Now is our chance to exercise our freedom to take a stand before our freedoms have been entirely eroded.
Blessings,
Jeralee Smith
California Teacher
Co-Founder of the Conservative Educators Caucus
Founder and Out-Going Chair of the Ex-Gay Educators Caucus
Nevertheless, the main point is that we need Christian-ethical unionization as a full alternative to these so-called "professional organizations" that are actually business organizations selling insurance packeages, and which do not take up the task of labour-representation in the workplace and in bargaining units of workers (in this case teachers in govt schools). refWrite supports the Christian Labour Assocation (USA) and the larger Christian Labour Association of Canada and the still larger Christian National Labour Federation of the Netherlands (Christelijk Nationaal Vakverbond (CNV)) - which includes CNV Onderwijsbond: the teachers' union with around 56,000 members working in state-supported schools but only some of them govt schools (the Dutch educational system overall is also more pluralist and democratic). These are all Protestant-founded and answer to no Church. There are Catholic unions as well. Both kinds cooperate in many places around the world, being affiliated and active on the global level of labour-representaiton thru the World Confederation of Labour. Of course, this implies a pluralist system of labour law, where for instance two or several unions can exist parallel to one another in the same teachers barganing unit -- an negotiate their differences before determining a proposal from labour's side regarding wage, safety, health and benefits. It also implies a mutual recognition of the different basic values of the different but parallel memberships, a dialogue as it matures where the establishment teachers unions cannot dictate labour's position from one undialogued position which is subject to special-interest-group lobbying. We must face the fact that NEA-style unions are totalitarian. It's in this context that accomodation / take-over of the Gay ideologists takes place. But that is only one issue on which NEA-style unions are increasingly totalitarian, gobbling up all those people and all their dues-money for causes that do not belong in the purview of a labour union and work against the interests of many teachers who just don't want such add-ons that steamroller over their beliefs.
-- Owlb
Related: NEA abuses unionism to promote Gay ideology/agenda, endaring non-Gay homos in govt schols
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