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Cuomo Strikes a Deal with Working Families Party

By dianeravitch
May 31, 2014 //
88

Well, we got to know a little bit about Zephyr Teachout, who was supposedly the chosen candidate of the Working Families Party. But in the last 48 hours, it became clear that Governor Cuomo wasn’t going to let that party line slip away from him. It is impossible to know what promises were made, whose arms were twisted, what deals were struck, but Governor Cuomo got the endorsement of the WFP tonight.

Lest we forget, this is the Governor who made a deal with the hedge fund crowd to assure that New York City could not charge rent to charter schools; that the city could not reject any of the co-locations hurriedly approved by Mayor Bloomberg’s lame-duck school board last October; that the city would be required to pay the rent of charter schools that rented private space; and that co-located charter schools could expand at will. Lest we forget, this is the Governor that insisted on a 2% tax cap for school districts, which can be lifted only with a supermajority of a 60% approval vote. Lest we forget, this is the Governor who insisted that test scores had to count for much more as part of every educators’ evaluation. This is a Governor of a state with highly inequitable funding. This is a Governor who loves charter schools, corporate tax breaks, and high-stakes testing. He is not a friend of public schools.

Here is the press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WORKING FAMILIES PARTY, GOVERNOR CUOMO, MAYOR DE BLASIO, ATTORNEY GENERAL SCHNEIDERMAN, COMPTROLLER DINAPOLI, AND NEW YORK’S MAJOR UNIONS ANNOUNCE HISTORIC COALITION TO SECURE DEMOCRAT-WORKING FAMILIES MAJORITY IN STATE SENATE, DELIVER KEY PROGRESSIVE VICTORIES

Contact: Khan Shoieb, New York Communications Director, 347 596-6389

NEW YORK, NY – On Saturday, May 31st, at the Working Families Party Convention, the Working Families Party, Governor Cuomo, Mayor Bill de Blasio, Attorney General Schneiderman, Comptroller DiNapoli, and 1199 SEIU, 32BJ SEIU, CWA District One, UFT, HTC, UAW Region 9A, UFCW Local 1500, RWDSU, MTDC, and the Teamsters announced a unified, unprecedented coalition to secure a Democrat-Working Families majority in the New York State Senate and deliver progressive victories on a number of key priorities in the early months of the next legislative session. The legislative commitments include a robust, statewide system of public financing of elections, funding 200 community schools, a commitment to fix the school funding formula to invest more money in high-need schools, the DREAM Act, the Women’s Equality Act, decriminalization of marijuana, and raising the minimum wage to $10.10 while indexing it to inflation and allowing localities to raise it up to 30% higher than the state minimum wage.

Mayor Bill de Blasio:

I was there at the beginning of the Working Families Party. And I’m proud to be with you today.

From the beginning, the Working Families Party has been the party that has stood up an economy that works for everyone and a democracy in which every voice was heard.

Tonight, that has happened again, because of the WFP, an unprecedented coalition is now committed to making a progressive vision for New York a reality.

Bill Lipton, New York State Director, Working Families Party:

The WFP stuck to its values. Tonight was about fighting to give New Yorkers a better job, a stronger school, and a government that actually hears their voice. Tomorrow, New Yorkers will be closer than ever before to seeing a real wage increase. They will be closer to having justice for immigrants, women, and young people of color. They will be closer to having a government that works for them, not just the wealthy and well-connected. And that’s where a real commitment to progressive principles can get you.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman:

Our coalition has never been stronger and our team has never been better. The Governor, the Comptroller and I are committed to transforming the state senate and then following through to transform the great state of New York.

Comptroller Tom DiNapoli:

I am proud to stand with Governor Andrew Cuomo, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, the Working Families Party and New York’s labor community in the fight for New York’s progressive future. Together, we are restoring New York’s reputation as the state that leads the nation in the fight to end income inequality and stands strong for working and middle class families.

George Gresham, President 1199SEIU:

1199 SEIU’s 250,000 New York members are proud to stand together with our leaders to support a strong Democratic majority for the New York State Senate. Together with Governor Cuomo, Mayor De Blasio, labor and the Working Families Party we will deliver a progressive future for New York’s families.

Hector Figueroa, President of 32BJ SEIU:

We are proud to stand with Governor Cuomo, Mayor de Blasio and the Working Families Party today and show what’s possible when progressives, unions and elected officials put the interest of working families first. We are committed to mobilizing our members statewide to take back the state Senate and ensure the passage of legislation that will raise wages, provide educational opportunity for all, including immigrants, and improve the lives of working people throughout New York.

Chris Shelton, Vice President, CWA District One:

For decades, CWA has fought against an entrenched Senate majority opposed to the progressive, pro-labor policies working people need. Now, standing united with Governor Cuomo, Mayor de Blasio, and all labor unions and the Working Families Party, we are in a position to win reforms we’ve fought for all these many years, including public financing of elections, the DREAM Act, a minimum wage increase tied to an index, the right for localities to raise their own wages, greater educational justice, marijuana decriminalization, and [anything i don’t know about]. It’s quite a list, and finally within reach. We urge the Working Families Party to support Governor Cuomo for re-election to achieve the progressive victories this state needs

UFT President Michael Mulgrew:

We look forward to working with the state’s leaders and a Democratic majority in the State Senate to bring real innovation to our schools, and to stop the privatization and “corporatization” that have done so much harm to our children’s education.

Peter Ward, President of the Hotels Trades Council:

We look forward to working with Governor Cuomo, Mayor De Blasio and all New York Democrats in electing a unified Democratic government that fights for working people and progressive values.

Julie Kushner, Director, UAW Region 9A:

Today is an historic moment, creating a grand coalition thathas the potential to bring real change to the hard working people of New York. I am proud to stand today withMayor deBlasio and Governor Cuomo in building this coalition that will begintoday to take on the hard job of winning back the NYS Senate so together we canenact laws that will change the day-to-day experience of millions of workingpeople in our communities. UAW membersare ready to win transformative legislation that will protect womens’reproductive rights, decriminalize marijuana, improve funding for our schools,recognize our DREAMERS, raise the minimum wage and deliver fair elections forall of New York. This is a great day anda great beginning. Let’s get to work.

Anthony Speelman, Secretary-Treasurer, UFCW Local 1500:

UFCW Local 1500 proudly stands alongside the Governor, the Mayor, and labor in supporting a unified Democratic Party. This unity will bring a real progressive agenda to our members, New York State, and the entire labor movement.

Stuart Applebaum, RWDSU:

“The RWDSU is proud to stand with Governor Cuomo and Mayor Deblasio in calling for a governing democratic majority in the State Senate. With a democratic majority, progressive and pro-labor legislation can be moved forward to better the lives of New Yorkers.”

Mike McGuire, Political Director, Mason Tenders District Council:

“The Mason Tenders’ District Council supports the concept of a unified democratic government because that is the best way to advance the cause of organized labor in New York State. We are proud to follow in the footsteps of or friends Gov. Cuomo, Mayor De Blasio and our colleagues in organized labor in achieving this goal.”

Teamsters Joint Council 16 President George Miranda:

The Teamsters stand with Governor Cuomo, Mayor de Blasio and the Working Families Party in working with all Democrats for a stronger more equitable New York. Organized labor has always been the path to equality for workers, immigrants, the downtrodden and the poor. A unified Democratic Party can only stand to strengthen organized labor in the sectors that need it most, such as our burgeoning immigrant workforce.

—
Khan Shoieb
New York Communications Director
Working Families Party / Working Families Organization
o: (718) 222-3796 x219
c: (347) 596-6389
Follow me on Twitter @KShoieb

—
Khan Shoieb
New York Communications Director
Working Families Party / Working Families Organization
o: (718) 222-3796 x219
c: (347) 596-6389
Follow me on Twitter @KShoieb
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to nystakeholders+unsubscribe@workingfamilies.org.

Categories Budget Cuts, Charter Schools, Corporate Reformers, Cuomo, Andrew, Democrats

Cuomo Plays Hardball with Working Families Party

By dianeravitch
May 30, 2014 //
28

Governor Cuomo is trying to persuade other statewide candidates to refuse the Working Families Party endorsement if they choose an independent to run against him. His goal is to punish the party if it does not endorse him.

There is a battle going on for the future of the Democratic Party. Will it be a progressive party, or will it vie with Republicans to hold the line on taxes and budgets? Will it fight for public education or for privatization?

Categories Cuomo, Andrew, Democrats, New York

Peter Goodman: The Only Way Obama Can Avoid Defeat in November is to Fire Arne

By dianeravitch
May 19, 2014 //
124

Peter Goodman, a political analyst who is close to the United Federation of Teachers in New York City, concludes that the November elections are looking increasingly bleak for President Obama and the Democrats. It is beginning to look like Democrats could lose control of the Senate, which would leave Obama with little more than veto power.

This could have serious consequences. Credit Obama with two excellent Supreme Court appointments–Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor. With a Republican Senate, there would be no more. A Republican House and Senate would spend two years rolling back whatever Obama has done.

The election will turn on motivating core constituencies and getting them out to vote.

One of the most loyal Obama blocs has been teachers. To say the least, they are angry and alienated by Arne Duncan’s policies.

There are three million teachers who may sit on their hands on Election Day because of the misguided policies of Race to the Top.

Goodman says that if President Obama has any hope of winning back the teacher vote, he must fire Arne.

That would be a start. But he also would have to fire Ted Mitchell, who was just confirmed as Undersecretary of Education. Mitchell is a prominent proponent of privatization, charters, and for-profit colleges. Almost all of Duncan’s assistant secretaries share his love of high-stakes testing.

Would Obama fire his basketball buddy? Not likely. But what if he could find a new job for him in another agency or make him an ambassador? If control of the Senate is the prize, firing Arne might not be such a bad idea.

Categories Democrats, Duncan, Arne, Obama

Donna Brazile: Privatization Is No Substitute for Integration

By dianeravitch
May 17, 2014 //
7

Donna Brazile, Democratic Party strategist, laments the nation’s retreat from school integration in recent years.

Vouchers and charters are no substitute for integrated schools with equitable resources.

She cites the example of Milwaukee, which has had vouchers and charters since 1990.

Today, Milwaukee has low performance on national tests, and neither the voucher schools nor the charter schools outperform public schools.

She writes:

“Sixty years later, “separate and unequal” is still alive.

“To fix the problem, we must recognize the problem. First, privatizing our school systems results in increased segregation, not improved opportunities. Whether in New Orleans or Philadelphia or Detroit or New York, legislative schemes perpetuate separate and unequal by privatizing large swaths of public school districts — and in some cases, entire districts.

“Second, education doesn’t take place in a vacuum. Students and their families need access to health care, decent wages and affordable housing in integrated neighborhoods. Thus, Brown’s legacy includes economic improvements for children and families.

“Third, neither high-quality public schools nor economic improvements can occur when voters are disenfranchised. Only the right to vote protects access to education and movement toward economic improvement. Yet 34 states — most under Republican control — have passed laws to make it harder for minorities, the elderly, and young people to vote, including so-called voter ID laws and regulations that limit early voting.

“The economic and racial inequities that existed 60 years ago persist in our communities today. They must be addressed. In the spirit of Brown, students, parents and educators are demanding solutions that go beyond the dysfunctional “education reforms” and address a wide range of community concerns, from stopping school privatization to providing universal early childhood education to raising the minimum wage.”

Categories Charter Schools, Democrats, Milwaukee, Segregation , Racial Isolation and Integration, Vouchers

Reader: Why Is the Democratic Party Alienating Its Base?

By dianeravitch
March 30, 2014 //
80

A reader responds to Jeff Bryant’s
article by wondering why so many Democrats in office are
ignoring their base by aligning themselves with the free-market GOP
ideology:

 

“Yes, yes, yes. Lately Democratic operatives have been
moaning and groaning about lack of excitement among their voters.
Supposedly this is a law of nature. Democrats just don’t get
excited about midterms. Yet, “school reform” is demobilizing
important elements of that base vote. This is one of the most
vibrant web sites around these days, and unfortunately, we have to
fight not only the GOP but also our “own” party – from President
Obama to Arne Duncan to Rahm Emanuel to Pat Quinn (who couldn’t
wait to make Paul Vallas his Lt. Gov. Running mate, within days of
Vallas being run out of Bridgeport, CT on a rail). “Stop doing
things to harm your base voters. What a concept! Maybe then we’d
vote. Don’t you realize you’re going to need every vote you can
get?”

Categories Democrats, Duncan, Arne, Emanuel, Rahm, Illinois, Obama

Jeff Bryant: Why Democrats Erred by Embracing the GOP Agenda

By dianeravitch
March 19, 2014 //
54

Jeff Bryant of the Education Opportunity Network writes in Salon that voters are increasingly disenchanted with the bipartisan Bush-Obama education policies of high-stakes testing, Common Core, and privatization.

He points out that the attacks on public education are not playing well at all in the political arena. The overwhelming majority of parents are very happy with their local public schools and respect their teachers. The public is beginning to see through the lies they have been told about their schools. So much of the rhetoric of the “reformers” sounds appealing and benign, if not downright inspirational, but it ends up as nonstop testing, the closing of local public schools, merit pay, union-busting, the enrichment of multinational corporations, and standardization.

Bryant predicts that Democrats will suffer at the polls for their slavish espousal of hard-right GOP doctrine.

He writes:

“The only overriding constants? People generally like their local schools, trust their children’s teachers and think public school and teachers should get more money. Wonder when a politician will back that!

“Many observers, including journalists at The Wall Street Journal, have accurately surmised that the American public is currently deeply divided on education policy. But that analysis barely scratches the surface.

“Go much deeper and you find that the “new liberal consensus” that Adam Serwer wrote about in Mother Jones, which propelled Obama into a second term, believes in funding the nation’s public schools but has little to no allegiance to Obama’s education reform policies.

“Outside of the elite circles of the Beltway and the very rich, who continue to be the main proponents of these education policies, it is getting harder and harder to discern who exactly is the constituency being served by the reform agenda.

“Most Americans do not see any evidence that punitive measures aimed at their local schools are in any way beneficial to their children and grandchildren. In fact, there’s some reasonable doubt whether the president himself understands it.

So is Arne Duncan making education policy on his own? Or is the policy agenda of the Obama administration indistinguishable from that of rightwing Republicans like Bobby Jindal, Rick Scott, Scott Walker, John Kasich, Mike Pence, and Tom Corbett?

Categories Democrats, Duncan, Arne, Education Industry, Education Reform, NCLB (No Child Left Behind), Privatization, Race to the Top, Testing, Unions, Vouchers

David Hursh: How Corporations and Neoliberals Use the Education Issue

By dianeravitch
March 13, 2014 //
4

Professor David Hursh of the University of Rochester visited New Zealand, where he explained so-called “education reform” in the United States. He very bluntly describes the bipartisan agenda that is proving to be harmful to students, teachers, and public education.

Hursh met with educators in Australia and New Zealand over a five-week period, encouraging them to resist the high-stakes testing movement.

Categories Democrats, Duncan, Arne, Education Industry, Education Reform, For-Profit, Global Education Reform Movement (GERM), U.S. education

Politico.com Slants Its Coverage

By dianeravitch
January 14, 2014 //
22

In an article about the retirement of veteran Democratic Congressman George Miller, a favorite of hedge fund managers (DFER) and other supporters of high-stakes testing and privatization, politico.com used language that showed a partisan bent.

It wrote:

“EDUCATION
Miller exit leaves hole in ed leadership
By MAGGIE SEVERNS and LIBBY A. NELSON and STEPHANIE SIMON 1/13/14 4:04 PM

“Rep. George Miller’s departure coincides with that of Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, chairman of the Senate education committee. Will their replacements be reformers or establishment-oriented Democrats?”

So a Congressman who is supported by Wall Street billionaires and by advocates of privatization is a “reformer,” while those who fight for equity of funding and support for teachers and public schools are “establishment-oriented Democrats”?

Are Duncan and Obama “establishment-oriented Democrats” or are they “reformers” fighting “establishment-oriented Democrats”? If the President of the United States and the Secretary of Education are not “establishment-oriented Democrats,” who is?

Wouldn’t it be more accurate to refer to a combination of the Obama administration, the Gates Foundation, the Broad Foundation, the Walton Foundation, the Dell Foundation, the Arnold Foundation, Rupert Murdoch, Art Pope, Democrats for Education Reform, ALEC, and a galaxy of other powerhouses as “the establishment” or “the status quo”?

This is called “framing the narrative.”

Is politico.com supported by Walton, Broad, and Gates, or are they merely innocent dupes of the billionaire-funded status quo?

Categories Corporate Reformers, Democrats, Democrats for Education Reform, Duncan, Arne, Obama

Who Will Fight for Public Education in 2016? Hillary or Elizabeth Warren?

By dianeravitch
November 11, 2013 //
84

In case you have any doubt, I have given up on both political parties when it comes to the present corporate assault on public education.

Arne Duncan could be Secretary of Education for either Obama or Romney. He cheerleads for rightwing governors like Bobby Jindal and hails privatizers like Jeb Bush. On education, the two parties are interchangeable.

Frankly, the public education system was better off when George W. Bush was president because Democrats fought him. Under Obama, Democrats fall in line behind the bipartisan (Republican) agenda. No one in D.C. fights the privatization and data gathering and standardization movement. No one stands up and says bluntly that Race to the Top is a failed extension of Bush’s failed No Child Left Behind. No one says that Congress and the administration have overreached for the past dozen years and are hurting children.

The hope for the future is a grassroots movement so vocal and so numerous that the national and state leaders cannot ignore us.

The election of Bill de Blasio in New York City suggests that the change is beginning. The voters in New York turned against the demonizing of teachers and the closing of public schools.

The movement is building against the corporate takeover of public education.

By 2016, we hope to have at least one candidate in either party who speaks out for American kids, for a stable public education system, for equitable funding, for student privacy, and for a dramatic reduction in high-stakes testing, which should never have been a federal role or mandate.

Who will stand up for better education? Who will stop the war on the profession of education? Who will save our kids from the corporate predators?

Here’s one possible face off: Hillary vs. Elizabeth Warren.

Maybe others will emerge. Who is most likely to resist the lure of Wall Street campaign cash?

What do you think?

Categories Democrats

A Science Teacher Writes to President Obama: Stop!

By dianeravitch
September 13, 2013 //
57

This letter was posted as a comment: “I just sent the
following post to the White House: Dear David Simas, I have
supported President Obama and the Democratic Party for some time.
However, I’m totally fed up and dismayed by Arne Duncan and the US
Department of Education’s assault on Public Education in America.
There are a lot of subjects I don’t have much in-depth knowledge
about. However, I have been a science teacher for the past 27 years
and I believe that I do know a little about educating children. I
want to tell you that the Race To The Top and it’s predecessor, No
Child Left Behind along with the excessive emphasis on Standardized
Testing are KILLING PUBLIC EDUCATION. “There are a lot of
experienced, knowledgeable, and well educated, respected educators
who are screaming at you to please stop this nutty policy which
includes Pay for Performance and the Common Core Curriculum. It is
certainly true that public education in America can be improved,
but not with the solutions that are now being implemented (without
documentation that they will actually work). “These thoughtless
policies are destroying communities, families, children and
teacher’s lives–all in the name of “improving education”. I now
believe that RTTT, NCLB, and the associated standardized testing
that now drives instruction throughout the country is doing greater
harm to our nation that George Bush’s War in Iraq. In its simplest
terms, children cannot be effectively educated by a top down,
force-fed curriculum. They hate it, get bored, and don’t see the
relevance of this test driven education to their lives. “Teachers
are not given the freedom to teach to the kids where they are and
build on their knowledge base. Curriculum content is dictated from
on high. This is the same concept that Joseph Stalin had in Russia
with his 5-year central economic plans. Didn’t work then, won’t
work now. “Educating children is a complex undertaking. It requires
two way, personal interaction between a teacher and student. If
class sizes are too large, that just can’t happen. If a teacher
cannot get his/her students interested and excited about learning,
educating the child is not going to be effective. There are 4 basic
ingredients to a good education: 1) Well trained and dedicated
teachers, 2) small class sizes, 3) adequate resources and a decent
environment to teach in, and 4) giving the teachers freedom to
teach. “Some will argue that this will just cost too much money and
that there are cheaper ways to educate kids. But it just ain’t so.
“Education is not about the money, it’s about the kids. It’s not
about international competition on standardized tests. Those tests
actually measure the wrong things anyway and cost waaaay too much
money. Public education is perhaps the most important bedrock
pillar that makes our nation great. Policies now being put in
place, including RTTT and Common Core Curriculum are destroying it.
Our children and our nation deserve better from you. I will no
longer support this President or the Democratic Party if they
continue on this self destructive path. “Al Tate
altate1122@gmail.com”

Categories Common Core, Democrats, Obama, Privatization, Race to the Top, Testing
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