Come one, come all, to the 2nd Adjunct Project workshop in our new series! Governor Cuomo has all but passed an incredibly eviscerating state budget that will “leave [New York] with 6,100 fewer teachers, 20 fewer fire companies and 100 fewer senior centers,” the NYTimes reported today. Undoubtedly, this kind of intense economic attack will hit us hard in CUNY as management tries to pass off cuts to us, our colleagues, and our students while we undergo this difficult contract campaign.
Now is the time to get involved against this terrible momentum of austerity being foisted upon working people in NYC. Please forward this announcement widely, and we’ll see you all on Wednesday.
“I’m Stickin’ to the Union!”
Galvanizing the PSC & our Contract Campaign
Wednesday March 30th @ 6:30pm
CUNY Graduate Center, rm 5414
365 Fifth Avenue
B/D/F/M/N/Q/R to 34th St-Herald Square
Panel and discussion led by AP members. All are welcome!
RSVP/share: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=211485415531481
The words *UNION POWER* have just come roaring back into public debate, with the decades-long attacks against our unions recently reaching a new fever pitch and turn-around in Wisconsin. Mass protests don’t occupy capitol buildings every day, let alone 16 days straight. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s push to eliminate basic union bargaining rights was a brazen attempt to balance the government/commerce crisis on working people’s backs. In response, many Wisconsinites–inspired by the revolutions in Egypt and around North Africa–created a vibrant “Tahrir Square” rallying spot right in the middle of the “scene of the crime.” Here, rank-and-file unionists, with K-College educators leading the charge, proclaimed a more equitable vision for Wisconsin. Suddenly, the broad U.S. left is being urged to become much, much more politically aggressive.
In NYC, Governor Cuomo and Mayor Bloomberg are eager to usher in major austerity measures, though (in their view) less conspicuously than Gov. Walker. Non-unionized charter schools crop up while public schools are forced to close; CUNY schools are slowly starved while the Board of Trustees and administrators enjoy raises and political immunity. It’s no secret that government and commerce are demanding that our Professional Staff Congress (PSC) union bleed through major upcoming cuts alongside the city’s other unions, which can potentially roll back our living/working/learning standards for good if we do nothing.
But we in the Adjunct Project have a different plan for dealing with this crisis that is one part Cairo, one part Madison, and two parts inimitable NYC. Join us on the evening of Wednesday, March 30th for our 2nd Workshop Series event, “‘I’m Stickin’ to the Union!’: Galvanizing the PSC and our Contract Campaign.” Several Adjunct Project members will lead a discussion on the following subjects:
*the nuts and bolts of being a union member in the PSC
*how to lead a fighting contract campaign from below to challenge CUNY management cuts
*using the March 23 PSC Albany direct action and March 24 NYC rally/march against cuts as momentum
*cohering a radical rank-and-file network of adjunct/contingent unionists around CUNY
*expanding the Adjunct Project’s rowdiness and linking up forces with other groups
Join us for this exciting event on Wednesday, March 30th. If you enjoyed our 3/14 Academic Freedom event, if you’ve been wanting to get involved for a while, if you have some great ideas and energy to contribute, and/or if you too have a different vision for CUNY and NYC than what’s being handed down to us, then this is the place for you to be!
For more info on this event and the Adjunct Project’s new Workshop Series, contact conortomasreed@gmail.com.
Save the date: The next workshop will be “Fighting Oppressions in the Heart of Academia,” Wed April 13th @ 6:30pm, GC rm5414
*Brought to you by the Adjunct Project*
site: www.cunyadjunctproject.org
email: theadjunctproject@gmail.com
office: CUNY Graduate Center, room 5494
Can’t speak for Madison, but as someone who has lived in both NYC and Cairo ~ my two favorite world cities,”But we in the Adjunct Project have a different plan for dealing with this crisis that is one part Cairo, one part Madison, and two parts inimitable NYC” makes my day. I love it! Looking forward to following the action and learning more about the workshop series. Wrap it up in chutzpah and export to campuses everywhere.