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| Stranger Than Fiction: NEA Top 10 Hyper-Partisan Resolutions |
| posted by: Alix | July 23, 2012, 07:22 PM |
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It should come as no surprise to educators that the National Education Association (NEA) has become the biggest contributor to partisan politics in the country. Year after year, the NEA spends millions on partisan causes and elections at the federal, state, and local levels, and takes liberal policy positions on issues ranging from immigration to gay marriage. Every summer, the NEA uses their July convention to pass a series of controversial resolutions aimed at solidifying their political power. While the issues are diverse, many have nothing to do with education or helping students in the classroom. Two AAE member teachers, Kristi Lacroix and Tracie Happel, tracked a number of the resolutions that were introduced at the NEA Representative Assembly this month and addressed them in their weekly online newsletter, "Freedom from Teachers' Unions." Below are the top ten most shocking adoptions: New Business Item 3: NEA shall compile a list of individuals and corporations who contribute $250,000 or more to "Super PACs" and additional activities. The list shall include companies and the products they control. The information shall be published in the NEA Today prior to March 1, 2013. New Business Item 12: The NEA using existing means of communication and resources shall publish an article on the US Conference of Mayors endorsement of parent trigger laws and report on the concern that parent trigger laws conflict with NEA criteria for creating charter schools. New Business Item 14: NEA will publicly oppose any policy of U.S. military action against Iran and will restate our belief that diplomatic and nonviolent means are preferable in resolving international political differences. Further, we will make this position known in an open letter to the President and Congress. New Business Item 37: That NEA endorse the campaign for a Financial Speculation Tax, or Financial Transaction Tax (FST/FTT), also known as the "Robin Hood Tax", which imposes a small tax of .005-.5% on big banks, hedge funds, and other large financial institutions' transactions. NEA will join with other labor and social advocacy groups in activities designed to urge President Obama and our legislators to aggressively pursue and support this tax. New Business Item 41: NEA will encourage its state and local affiliates to help gather any written communications received from teacher recruitment organizations and/or their operatives that discourage member empowerment and activity in the work of the Association. NEA will then support its local and state affiliates in communicating the inappropriateness of this behavior. New Business Item 49: NEA will, using existing resources, influence state and local governments and educational institutions to specifically include sexual orientation and gender identify as explicitly enumerated categories of protection alongside race, ethnicity, and national origin in their policies and support policies that include proactive elements that prevent bullying. New Business Item 53: NEA will assist affiliates with planning for policy changes under the Affordable Care Act, augmented by cooperation with the Labor Campaign for Single Payer Healthcare Organization, all in support of the longstanding NEA goal of establishing a universal single payer healthcare system. New Business Item 64: The NEA will review the possibility of offering a "Friends of Public Education Card" to the public for a fee. This card will permit the carrier to purchase items from the professional library at a discount and access online educational resources. New Business Item 70: The NEA will promote using existing resources, the "Let's Move Initiative" that was launched by our First Lady Michelle Obama in February 2010. New Business Item 84: The NEA shall, using existing staff and resources, expand efforts to encourage members to use www.ALECexposed.org and other resources to organize in opposition to the American Legislative Exchange Council. Click here to view all 89 adopted NEA resolutions. What do you think about the NEA's priorities? Comment below.
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Comments (3)
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written by Robin in Jonesboro, July 26, 2012
Wait, Jennifer! A professional education organization's focus should be on the students' access to quality education as well as the educators' working conditions, don't you think? Just sayin' . . .
When Teachers Get Concerned
written by Charity, SLC, Utah, July 23, 2012
I am personally concerned with business items 41 and 49. What if an NEA teacher is concerned with some of the NEA business items the NEA is pledging to put resources behind? What if a teacher lives in a state where union dues are a condition of employment? Can that teacher decide they don't want their dollars spent empowering an organization which pledges to put resources behind business items which may violate their religious or political beliefs? Sadly the answer is no. That's right. In a nation which stands for freedom, many of its own teachers don't have the freedom to chose. I'm concerned. Teachers everywhere should be concerned. When teachers, like me, get concerned they should notify local legislation, speak out! Write in to a local newspaper! Take a stand!
Off topic written by Jennifer, Yuma, AZ, July 23, 2012
The NEA is off topic. The organization's only focus should be a teacher's working conditions. I resent being forced to pay dues into an organization that cares more about promoting legislation that does not directly improved the classroom working conditions of teachers.
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