SOUTH BRONX SCHOOL: The UFT Never Misses an Opportunity to Miss an Opportunity

Tuesday, September 15, 2020

The UFT Never Misses an Opportunity to Miss an Opportunity

For those that have lived in a cave for the last 24 hours, Solidarity, led by Lydia Howrilka here) who did not have underlying medical conditions but lived in fear for those they lived one did. and represented in court by über teacher lawyer Bryan Glass won a Temporary Restraining Order for the five plaintiffs (Read decision

What happens next? The TRO only pertains to the five plaintiffs and expires on Monday, September 21. Plus, the Corporation Counsel according to a source is not appealing the TRO, and the judge in the case is welcoming affidavits for other teachers who feel that they are in the same situation as the original five plaintiffs. Email Bryan Glass for more information. Immediately. Affidavits must be in no later than 6 PM EDT Thursday, September 17.

No on to bigger and sadder things.

The UFT, the Unity part of the UFT, could have had this victory. I saw this decision coming and not just because Bryan Glass is the attorney. It made sense. Five teachers, all with loved ones with Centers for Disease Control underlying conditions. A mayor and a schools chancellor that day in and day out not only spew inane contradictory blabber out of their mouths but have time and time again shown that the only reason to re-open school building is that each need to know that all is OK in the phallus department for them.

What does the UFT do? Does it play offense? Not exactly. They were playing what Warner Wolf termed the Giants offense back in the late 70's. The UFT was playing a "prevent offense." The UFT just didn't want to punch the ball into the end zone. They could've. The had the resources to. They just didn't want to.

Yes, Mike Mulgrew for most of August was talking strike. "Wow," some people said, "Mulgrew is being proactive." But striking would not have been a good idea. I laid down why a strike would not have worked two weeks ago. But seeking injunctive relief in keeping schools closed would have been a winner.

One of the advantages in going to court, the city and the DOE would be have not only been forced to lay out their re-opening plans but would have been forced to defend contradictory, ever changing, and unsafe reopening. The city and the DOE would be defending the indefensible. The UFT, on the other hand would show that only the union had the safety and welfare of the students, the school communities, and yes, the teachers as a priority.

With winning in court and keeping the school from reopening the UFT is letting the judge make the decision. The UFT won't have the public perception of turning it's backs on our most vulnerable. The UFT could've had the city and DOE as the villains, as the ones that are usurping education and the re-opening.

The UFT could have had their own plan for 100% remote learning which as of this evening, 9:01 PM EDT on September 15, 2020, the DOE hasn't figured out.

But with a strike, there is always the threat of scabs. Not so with a court ruling. With a court ruling no risk of 2 for 1, or losing automatic checkoff. Teachers would still get paid. The UFT would have had hand. They could've negotiated from a position of strength. The clock is running out for the UFT to proudly take its gonads show them off to the rank and file.

In the mean time the latest I heard is 55 teachers testing positive for COVID. In several schools the teachers are refusing to enter the buildings, photos on Facebook and Twitter of mold in classrooms, schmutz on vents, windows that open have an inch, and too many schools with not enough PPE. Hey, how is that agreement going so far?

And lest we forget the numbers are going up for students who are doing full remote and the DOE is still 10k teachers short.


Time for 52 Broadway to bring in the big guns, and act in a big way.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Peter, the UFT has sold us out. They were never coming to the rescue. Mulgrew got a deal with someone. Probably the governor to make DeBlasio look bad at the expense of the teachers.

Anonymous said...

Mulgrew sounded so much unified in his summer phone sessions..he is a local new york guy fighting but he is dealing with an organization that....well....dysfunctional to say the least and to be kind

Anonymous said...

Mulgrew is just as guilty as DeBlasio and Carranza. Have you seen him in those buildings? Where was he when those teachers were sick and dying? No where crickets. Why don't we see him on the news with those shittys sanitizer wipes or defective face masks to show the parents? Where is his outrage not only for his union people but for the children. Crickets..... He got his 30 pieces of silver. We just have to wait and see what and when he gets it.

Anonymous said...

@9:54
Mulgrew is a lump of wet local NY dog shit, he never fought a day in our lives and the UFT is just as dysfunctional as the DOE.

Anonymous said...

Where is DeBlasio and Carranza? Can they swipe the mouse shit off the desks every morning for me? Cause it is not in the custodians job descriptions. It's not in mine either!!! My windows don't open up only 1!!! I need air to for the mouse poop!

Pete Zucker said...

You all have great points. I don't understand why the UFT is being so passive. We are seeing what happens when there teachers are being proactive. Solidarity took the lead. The caucus formerly a mouthpiece for the ISO is taken the lead. It's really not that hard.