Re: Union Refuses To Aid Teacher Who Faced Termination for Criticism of Woke Training

[Magnus]

In article <t1vdtp$39noe$3...@news.freedyn.de>
trumps bitch <patr...@protonmail.com> wrote:
>
> Democrats are racists. This is what they do.
>

A Connecticut gym teacher says his school threatened to fire him
after he criticized its mandatory diversity training on
"exploring privilege." But when he filed a grievance against the
school, the local teachers' union dismissed the complaint
without explanation.

John Grande filed the grievance against Hartford Public Schools
for what he called targeted discipline—including threats of
termination and further "Sensitivity Awareness" training—but the
American Federation of Teachers Local 1018, which has
jurisdiction over this arbitration process for teachers,
rejected his plea, his attorney told the Washington Free Beacon.
Grande, who has been a gym teacher for 30 years, said the union
retaliated against him for refusing to join the labor group.

"Our employee handbook explicitly states that no employee of the
Hartford public school system will be disciplined for exercising
their right to free speech," Grande told the Free Beacon. "When
asked for my reaction to the training, I expressed my
disagreement and was punished for doing so."

Neither AFT Local 1018 nor the Hartford Board of Education
responded to requests for comment.

Grande's complaint comes as national teachers' unions embrace
race-based lesson plans and training. AFT president Randi
Weingarten said last year that K-12 schools do not teach
critical race theory but also said her union supports teachers
who face backlash for race-based lessons. The National Education
Association, meanwhile, pledged its support for schools that
teach critical race theory but later removed the statement from
its website following backlash.

The school district's mandatory presentation on privilege,
obtained by the Free Beacon, states that "it is critical for
everyone to reflect on privilege in this way in order to use our
individual and collective privilege(s) for equity and social
justice." The training included an activity for teachers to
split into groups and discuss their privilege in eight
categories: class, ability, race, gender/sex, sexuality,
nationality/citizenship, religion, and "other."

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"If a police car pulls me over, I can be sure I haven't been
singled out because of my race," one example of privilege read.

"I do not fear increased mortality from COVID-19 or standard
medical procedures such as giving birth," another stated.

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Grande said he expressed criticism about the training when the
school district asked for feedback. Two of Grande's coworkers
reported the gym teacher to the school district after he stated
his frustrations about the training seminar.

Frank Ricci, a labor fellow at the Yankee Institute and a former
union president of the New Haven Fire Department, said it
appears the teachers' union and school district coordinated to
target Grande for his beliefs.

"The Hartford School System, aided and abetted by the teachers'
union, has failed our kids," Ricci told the Free Beacon.
"Instead of focusing on their dismal test scores or bridging the
achievement gap, they are focusing on ‘privilege,' which is
nothing more than a distraction for their failed education
policies."

Grande in July filed a complaint at the Connecticut State Board
of Labor Relations against AFT Local 1018 over its refusal to
take up his grievance against the school. The union has complete
control over arbitration of grievances and can reject specific
cases. The Fairness Center, a nonprofit law firm that represents
Grande at the state labor board, argued the union must represent
all teachers equally.

"Officials are refusing to represent him simply because he isn't
a member," Nathan McGrath, president of the Fairness Center,
told the Free Beacon. "John is just asking the union to do its
job so he can continue doing his."

AFT and its PAC have spent a combined $13 million on the 2022
midterm election—all of which went to liberal causes and
Democratic candidates.

Published under: Connecticut, Public School, Teachers, Teachers
Unions, woke

https://freebeacon.com/latest-news/union-refuses-to-aid-teacher-
who-faced-termination-for-criticism-of-woke-training/