These Are Your Teachers?

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The National Education Association recently concluded its annual meeting in Los Angeles - and you might be surprised what the largest teachers' union in America talked about and decided.

I mean, let's face it. The state of public education in American today is not exactly state of the art. You might think falling test scores, higher drop-out rates, and functional illiteracy of graduates - despite ever increasing taxpayer commitments - would be causes for concern and debate at a forum like this.

You would be wrong. Here are some resolutions adopted by the representative assembly of the professional association responsible for educating your kids:

To participate in a national boycott of Wal-Mart (Two resolutions); To fight efforts to privatize Social Security (nine separate resolutions); To add the words "other" and "multi-ethnic" in addition to "unknown" in the category of ethnicity on all forms; To commemorate the "historic merger of the National Education Association and the American Teachers Association, which occurred in 1966"; To expose health problems associated with "fragrance chemicals"; (I assume this means perfumes. Another resolution called for designating areas of NEA meetings as "fragrance-free zones."); To fight indoor air pollution (two resolutions); To make health care an organizational priority; To expand efforts to elect pro-public education candidates to Congress in 2006; To promote the designation of April as National Donate Month to promote organ and tissue donation; To push for a commemorative stamp honoring public education; To push for more collective bargaining; To study the feasibility of a boycott of Gallo wine (A separate resolution banned the serving of Gallo wine at any NEA functions.); To develop a strategic program to help NEA Republican members advance a pro-public education agenda with the party; To defend affirmative action and oppose the Michigan Civil Rights Amendment; To oppose the annual observance of "Take Your Child to Work Day" during the regular school year; To oppose all forms of privatization; To investigate the establishment of affordable housing programs for members; To respond aggressively to any inappropriate use of the words "retarded" or "gay" in the media; To fight the "regressive taxation practices of the federal government"; To support education programs for prisoners and former prisoners; To support research on women and heart disease; To push for an "exit strategy to end the U.S. military occupation of Iraq"; To oppose the Central American Free Trade Agreement; To push for debt cancellation in underdeveloped countries; To teach children about the "significant history of labor unions"; To develop a comprehensive strategy of support for homosexuality; To educate the public and members about identity theft; To explore alternatives to using latex balloons and gloves at NEA functions. That's a fair synopsis of the actions taken by the largest "education" association in America - the only union and lobby group that is actually tax-exempt by an act of Congress.

What is peculiar about this list? Well, nothing if you are familiar with this thoroughly destructive organization. But, most people are not. Most Americans probably still think the National Education Association has something to do with education. It does not. It is a thoroughly politicized agit-prop group with a radical agenda.

Of the nearly 70 resolutions acted upon affirmatively by the group, no more than a half-dozen had anything remotely to do with classroom education.

The first 14 resolutions voted on had nothing whatsoever to do with education in the traditional sense.

However, one NEA resolution adopted this year did perform a real service to the public. It's the one requiring the organization to make its resolutions more accessible to the public on its website. Check it out for yourself.

Do I exaggerate? Is it time to review this activist organization's tax-exempt status? Is it time to start paying attention to the kind of indoctrination to which its members submit your children?

Here's a little more "reader-friendly" posting of the article (with bullet points)....

These are your teachers?

Posted: July 14, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern

The National Education Association recently concluded its annual meeting in Los Angeles – and you might be surprised what the largest teachers' union in America talked about and decided.

I mean, let's face it. The state of public education in American today is not exactly state of the art. You might think falling test scores, higher drop-out rates, and functional illiteracy of graduates – despite ever increasing taxpayer commitments – would be causes for concern and debate at a forum like this. You would be wrong.

Here are some resolutions adopted by the representative assembly of the professional association responsible for educating your kids:

To participate in a national boycott of Wal-Mart (Two resolutions);
To fight efforts to privatize Social Security (nine separate resolutions);
To add the words "other" and "multi-ethnic" in addition to "unknown" in the category of ethnicity on all forms;
To commemorate the "historic merger of the National Education Association and the American Teachers Association, which occurred in 1966";
To expose health problems associated with "fragrance chemicals"; (I assume this means perfumes. Another resolution called for designating areas of NEA meetings as "fragrance-free zones.");
To fight indoor air pollution (two resolutions);
To make health care an organizational priority;
To expand efforts to elect pro-public education candidates to Congress in 2006;
To promote the designation of April as National Donate Month to promote organ and tissue donation;
To push for a commemorative stamp honoring public education;
To push for more collective bargaining;
To study the feasibility of a boycott of Gallo wine (A separate resolution banned the serving of Gallo wine at any NEA functions.);
To develop a strategic program to help NEA Republican members advance a pro-public education agenda with the party;
To defend affirmative action and oppose the Michigan Civil Rights Amendment;
To oppose the annual observance of "Take Your Child to Work Day" during the regular school year;
To oppose all forms of privatization;
To investigate the establishment of affordable housing programs for members;
To respond aggressively to any inappropriate use of the words "retarded" or "gay" in the media;
To fight the "regressive taxation practices of the federal government";
To support education programs for prisoners and former prisoners;
To support research on women and heart disease;
To push for an "exit strategy to end the U.S. military occupation of Iraq";
To oppose the Central American Free Trade Agreement;
To push for debt cancellation in underdeveloped countries;
To teach children about the "significant history of labor unions";
To develop a comprehensive strategy of support for homosexuality;
To educate the public and members about identity theft;
To explore alternatives to using latex balloons and gloves at NEA functions.

That's a fair synopsis of the actions taken by the largest "education" association in America – the only union and lobby group that is actually tax-exempt by an act of Congress.

Of the nearly 70 resolutions acted upon affirmatively by the group, no more than a half-dozen had anything remotely to do with classroom education.

The first 14 resolutions voted on had nothing whatsoever to do with education in the traditional sense.

Do I exaggerate? Is it time to review this activist organization's tax-exempt status? Is it time to start paying attention to the kind of indoctrination to which its members submit your children?

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