Bad Boys -- Again

Who's afraid of the pregnant teacher?

Once again the boys have violated the rights of an American female, and this time they went for the bullseye, picking on a pregnant American teacher. She was fired by the Turks because she helped organize a union at one of their schools in Chicago. The unionization (which was voted for by the teachers) passed, and in keeping with their retalitory mannerisms, they fired her.

As the story below (ACTS Chicago) states, the fired teacher had to schedule the delivery of her baby early so that she would be covered by health insurance (because they always make certain to cancel that as soon as they fire people).

When is this going to stop? When is our government going to actually do something about the blatant discrimination against its own citizens, its own teachers, its own children?

What is it going to take for someone to stop these bullies from intimidating, harassing, and discriminating against United States' teachers, and in particular, American women?

But let us not forget that they target men as well. Most recently the boys fired a teacher who had been teaching at one of their schools for 9 years because he did not agree with their "Turkish" way of management.

And then there is the female teacher that was fired after 6 years of employment after she discussed her concerns with the "boys" about their obvious discriminatory practices.

The list goes on and on. This website receives emails daily about how the boys are continually discriminating against and harassing American educators, and yet -- our government -- apparently -- sanctions the Turks "bad behavior," at the cost of United States' citizens.

Did someone repeal the Equal Employment Opportunity laws and forget to inform us? Was the Civil Rights Act washed away in the BP oil disaster?

Or could it be that the boys bank on the fact that our government -- you know, the ones that are supposed to actually enforce the laws, are too busy lining their collective political pockets with Gulen-laced contributions?

Here's a quote (below) from the fired pregnant teacher, she sounds so threatening doesn't she? Or maybe she is just an American teacher who wants both the students and fellow teachers to have equal opportunities, like they are supposed to. This "quote" was made prior to her being fired, but according to Ali, there's no connection.

"I know that being in the middle of this situation feels very stressful and a bit scary! It was nerve-wracking for me to stand in front of the school (knowing Mr. Ali was nearby)and rally support from parents. They do support us and can see that we really do care about their children. I made sure to get the message out that we do not want to work less and that our main concern is the quality of education that their children will receive next year if we don't get a voice at the table. Tomorow is a show of power. We need as many people as possible to show up. We are fighting for the right thing here and that is very powerful! We want to work with them. We want to unite with them and work together for the good of our students. It is time to help our administrators remember why the school was started in the first place(and it wasn't started as an immigration opportunity agency) We teach high-risk kids and we have a great opportunity to advocate for them tomorrow. It is so wonderful that parents, community leaders, politicians, parents, and alumni are coming out to support us. I hope some of you can make it! We are meeting at Touhy Park at 12 pm. From there we will walk over to the school. I will meet you on the inside because I am teaching jumpstart. I am scared but these kids need advocates! There is nothing good about taking public money from the neediest people and using it for their personal gain...The more the better!!! See you tomorrow! If I forgot anyone...please forward this."

It's time to take back our schools. Any teachers, parents, or citizens that are interested in taking action against this ongoing injustice and want to stop the "bad boys" from further exploitation and harassment, contact our website.

Below is the story about the pregnant teacher that was fired in Chicago:

http://www.chicagoacts.org/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=140

Charter School Fires Teacher Active in Union Organizing

Chicago Math and Science Academy Also Challenges Teachers’ Union Rights

The Chicago Math and Science Academy (CMSA), a public charter school, fired a highly regarded pregnant teacher who helped organize a union at the school in June. The firing occurred as the school also challenged its teachers’ right to form a union.

The teacher, Rhonda Hartwell, was eight months pregnant at the time of her firing and was forced to move up her scheduled delivery to ensure it occurred before her health insurance was cut off.

“It’s one thing for the school to fight the union’s legitimacy, but it’s quite another to retaliate against a union organizer who has been rewarded with performance bonuses and was pregnant. This is about as low as an anti-union administration can go,” said Kim Bobo, executive director of Interfaith Worker Justice.

Hartwell had just received a $1,500 performance bonus, and the school had renewed her contract in April, inviting her to come back to teach this fall. Attorneys for the union filed an unfair labor practice charge against the employer.

Meanwhile, attorneys for the charter school claim its teachers are private employees subject to the National Labor Relations Act. The school has filed a challenge to the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board’s jurisdiction over charter schools.

The Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act and the Illinois Charter School Act both make clear that charters—like all public schools—come under state jurisdiction. State law also mandates union certification upon a showing of a simple card-check majority.

“We chose to unionize by a pretty convincing majority, and the school should respect that. Instead, it has chosen to deny us our legitimate right, under state law, to form a union,” said Brian Chelmecki, chair of the school’s math department.

Two-thirds of the teaching staff—well over the majority required by law—signed union authorization cards to be represented by the Chicago Alliance of Charter Teachers and Staff (Chicago ACTS), an affiliate of the Illinois Federation of Teachers and the American Federation of Teachers. Chicago ACTS also represents teachers at eight other charter schools in Chicago.

Teachers and their supporters—which include local community groups, and religious, labor and political leaders—have vowed to fight what they say is a total disregard for the law by school officials.

Rep. Janice Schakowsky, whose district includes Rogers Park, where the school is located, met with CMSA teachers recently. She expressed “deep concerns” about what she heard, and said she hoped school officials would “abide by state law and act in a manner consistent with our democratic values.”

Hartwell said she believes school officials are punishing her for her union activities. “They are using me as a scapegoat to send a chilling message to the rest of the teachers,” Hartwell said. “We formed a union to give teachers a voice in making the school better and to create an environment where teachers would feel secure enough to share ideas and concerns. I am still hopeful that school officials will eventually do the right thing.”

The school cited budget reasons for terminating Hartwell, but she and her colleagues are not buying it. They assert that CMSA is hiring new teachers, and a few days before the union organized, CMSA offered all teachers a 5 percent pay raise.

“When you look at the decisions being made by school leaders, the budget claim just doesn’t add up,” Hartwell said.

[Chicago ACTS press release]