La LB 1781 Dre ? M WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? By William E. Drake, Ph. D. (Summary of talk given at a meeting sponsored by the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers, Local 400, January 17, 1936.) PRINTED IN U.S.A. Lithoprinted by Edwards Brothers, Inc., Lithoprinters and Publishers Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1936 1 WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? The position I am in tonight is some- what analogous to that of Rastus Jones, colored man who had just been elected to a deaconship in his church. One of Rastus's friends who had been out of town and who had just learned of his election ques- tioned him about it. "Rastus Jones," he said, "I can't understand how a fellow like you ever got into such a position you who are known as a drunkard and a chicken thief becoming a deacon in the church. How did it happen?" ܚ "Well---," said Rastus, "You see it's this way. Every community has its disreputable group. De disreputable group of dis community de- cided that it wanted a representative in de church and here I is." There are a group of teachers in this community (as in many other communities) who feel and believe that what America needs is a more real- istic democracy and who are willing to fight for it. I was appointed to represent this disreputable group to you tonight and "here I is." Before discussing with you whatever merits or demerits the American Federation of Teachers may have I should like to analyze briefly with you some of the basic points which underlie the philosophy of this organization as I see it. The American Educational system is paradoxical. On the one hand we talk about love for our fellow man; teach the principles of common brotherhood; urge children to cooperate with one an- other; try to show them why they should be honest and have high character; encourage them to glorify country and to love God; and tell them that every- one has equal educational opportunity "in the land 2 WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? of the free and the home of the brave." With these words we are stupefied, put to sleep, and made blind to the forging trends of American life, and the part which our educational system plays in that great drama. We do not seem to realize that democracy in practice in the American system has always meant the right of an individual to rise out of his class, by any means possible as long as he did not get caught, and then to look down on the other poor wretches saying, "Don't you wish you were as smart as I am? See what I have done you lousy dogs? Come on up if you can!" This has been the real goal of the Ameri- can system and of the American school covered over and made sacred by the beautiful and humane words of the lowly Nazarene. In it Democracy is no longer aggressive and vigilant but submissive and humble as the money lords press a bayonet of steel into the raw flesh and raped bodies of the unemployed. With the passing of the frontier, and the opportunity for rising to the top so to speak, those who hold the power revive the old theory that the state can do no wrong. New demands are made upon the school, penses must be curtailed; classes must be enlarged; teacher's salaries must be cut; oaths of loyalty must be taken by teachers; and the work of the teacher must be scrutinized by Chambers of Commerce, Revolu- tionary Daughters, Legionnaires, and Liberty Leagues. This is the policy of the Hearst Press and of the super-patriots. The teacher who does not realize that it is the call to battle, and that he must or- ganize for power, if he would save his soul as well as that of his people, manifests the gross stupidity of social and economic forces which is so character- istic of his lot. You will say that we are already organized and that most teachers belong to some ed- ucational organization, all of which may be true or not, but as to organizations whose aims are inter- locked with the economic and social rights of the people and which function for the attainment of these aims we are sadly lacking. As John Dewey has ex- WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? 3 said, "Organizations of teachers to secure their own economic ends have proved indispensable...Their campaigns when carried on in isolation from other groups of workers, whether civil service employees or workers in shops, factories, and offices, have a tendency to produce a reaction that is unfavorable to the cause of education."...Organization among teachers is imperatively needed to stem the rising tide of brutal reaction and intimidation. But so many teachers are timid because of 'hostages to for- tune' that it is foolish to suppose that this organ- ization will be adequate unless it is supported by wider and deeper organization with others..." It is surprising that the laboring people of America have remained faithful to our schools in the face of teachers keeping themselves aloof from the economic struggles of the common man. LX 7 History testifies to the truth of the assertions which I have made. The American public education movement rather than growing out of the philosophy of the American Revolutionists grew out of the Industrial Revolution of the nineteenth cen- tury. Similar movements took place in all of the major European countries but varied in accordance with the conditions which prevailed. It is true that American Revolutionists like Jefferson, Franklin, and Paine advocated public education for the benefit of the people but their philosophy was rejected and not until there was a felt need for disciplining the minds of the people with the rise of industrialism and of urban life was the public school idea accept- ed and practiced. The fear of class prejudice, of loss of property; and of an undisciplined mob; the need for skilled workers and common laborers were the ingredients that forced the establishment of and acceptances of public school practices by the money- ruling class. Democratic ideals only constituted the bait by means of which the people were trapped. The writings of Horace Mann and especially of Henry Barnard give evidence to such a conclusion. *** 4 WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? /1 It was in 1841 that Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote "The cause of Education is urged in this country with the utmost earnestness on what ground? Why on this, that the people have the power, and if they are not instructed to sympathize with the...trading and governing class; inspired with a taste for the same competitions and prizes, they will upset the fair pageant of Judicature, and perhaps lay a hand on the sacred muniments of wealth itself, and new distrib- ute the land. To Germany they went for the system of education on which our schools were patterned and to Germany our young men went for instruction in higher education all during the nineteenth century. The primary interest of our normal schools in method and in discipline is easily explained in the light of these facts. /of recent years, amidst the brazen- ness of the public utilities and their high-handed methods to control the school curriculum, an official of a large corporation wrote that "teachers don't know anything and aren't supposed to. Control the textbook and you control the school." Let us hope however that our teachers are awakening from their Rip Van Winkle dream, and that they are ready to function in accordance with their aims, da A rebirth of the spirit of eight- eenth century democracy is needed, this to be guided by the new knowledge which has been gained in our experiences with the industrial age. We need to realize that only as we protect ourselves do we pro- tect those whom we serve. We need to realize that "eternal vigilance is the price of liberty", and that democracy calls for a fighting and aggressive leadership on our part/ The futility of the concep- tion that learning functions via the classroom must be sidetracked for a realistic policy of strug- gle and achievement in the world of men. The lowly miner would seem to know more about true educative functioning than last year's college graduate. Only teachers and preachers are still living in the mid- dle ages and of recent months it has almost seemed << < " ! WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? сл. as if the preachers would leave us behind. The goals of our educational policy need to be stated in terms of our answer to the problems of our socio- economic world, and not in terms of the meaningless seven cardinal principles or of courses in Latin, English, or History. 5 I feel that I still have not answered your query as to why you should join the American Federation of Teachers until I have told you some- thing about the organization and answered some of the criticisms which have been raised against it. The American Federation of Teachers has been in the process of growing since 1902. At that time the teachers of San Antonio, Texas ceived a Charter from the American Federation of Labor. Later in this same year the teachers of Chicago, aided by the ever aggressive Jane Addams, and driven by a starvation salary scale, laid the ground work out of which the American Federation of Teachers grew. The battle was on, and in spite of re- 2~ the advice handed here and there that teachers should not unionize, twenty organizations in ten different states were established during the years from 1902 to 1916. Many of these organizations died off rapidly due to loss of interest, nonpayment of dues, or local suppression, but enough remained to point the way for the establishment of a national or- ganization in 1916. - Eight local charters with a combined membership of 2,800 made up the national body. It is interesting to note that among these eight locals was the Teachers' Association of Scranton, Pennsyl- vania. Application was made for affiliation with the American Federation of Labor, and The American Teacher, published by a group of individuals in the New York union became the publication of the national organization. ་ Despite the fact that Chicago teach- ers were forced to pull out of the national Hist 1 6 WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? organization by Chicago politicians, school adminis- trators, and businessmen, the American Federation of Teachers continued to grow until 1920. Years of decline followed until the year 1927 with less than 20% of the original charters being maintained. In 1928 there was an increase of 20% in membership. With the depression years the growth of the organiza- tion has continued. Membership of the Association now exceeds 20,000 with 87 new locals being added this past year. The objects of this organization are embodied in Article II of The Constitution of the American Federation of Teachers. They read: To bring associations of teachers into relations of mutual assistance and co- operation. 2. To obtain for them all the rights to which they are entitled. 3. 1. To raise the standard of the teaching profession by securing the conditions essential to the best professional service. 4. To promote such a democratization of the schools as will enable them to equip their pupils to take their places in the industrial, social and political life of the community. Generally speaking, only classroom teachers may be- Gen long to this organization. Supervisors and princi- pals are not excluded, however, in that they may ← organize into separate locals. This avoids the major criticism which may be directed against National Education Association and the Pennsylvania State Education Association both of which admittedly are controlled by administrative officers. At the last meeting of the Pennsylvania State Education Association the number of administrators present as delegates exceeded by far the number of teachers. the 7 WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? B AMERI Critics have said that this organiza- tion is primarily interested in salaries, and this is accepted not as a criticism but as the truth. We are interested in salaries, because it is an econom- ic fact that a teacher's ability to contribute on a high cultural plane is definitely controlled by the salary which she receives. It is an obvious fact that the teacher must be improved for the sake of the society and the child if not for herself, but why make a division. The Federation of Teachers goes so far as to recommend a minimum of $2000 per year; of equal pay for equal professional qualifica- tions regardless of sex, grade, or social status, as in the case of married women. One would think that marriage was a social crime, the way women have been dropped from the profession for the past decade be- cause of such conduct. / The Federation has been condemned by administrators as not being sufficiently interested in the "professional improvement" of teachers. This arises, however, because of a fundamental difference in point of view. Members of the Federation feel that until the economic and social status of the teacher improves, the teacher is more of a slave or a servant than a member of a reorganized profession It might also be pointed out that whereas the Pennsylvania State Education Association is more concerned with the problems of teaching within the teaching body the American Federation of Teachers is more concerned with the problems of the teacher in the everyday world. P し ​The point around which most of the objection to the A. F. of T. centers, however, is that of its affiliation with organized labor It C じ ​is said that teachers should not take sides; that affiliation with labor is beneath the dignity of our high-minded organization; that teachers are members of a profession and cannot, should not, unionize. It might be said that generally conservatives oppose an affiliation with labor whereas liberals favor such 8 WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? а J ୨ : an alliance. To quote again from John Dewey, "The economic literacy of teachers and administrators would be immensely furthered by an alliance with the great masses of workers... "Secondly, an open alliance of teach- ers with workers would greatly strenghten the educa- tional as well as the economic position of the teaching body."// As to our professional dignity - we haven't any. Ours is not yet a profession because it does not embody the ingredients of a profession, neither with reference to the control of the fees which we receive nor the respect which is due us from members of society at large. Average salaries of teachers are less than $500 per year in several of the states of the Union; and in general are less than that of unskilled labor. Teachers are fired indiscriminantly in all of the States, and at no time do they dictate the conditions under which they work. Teachers have refused to recognize the fact that doctors, lawyers, architects, and other profes- sionals dictate the conditions under which they work and control those matters vital to their welfare. The term profession when applied to teachers becomes another one of those greases with which we have salved our conscience. Probably 200,000 certified teachers were unemployed last year, this in the face of increased school enrollments throughout the country; where schools were kept open. With those teachers who were employed called upon to teach larger and larger classes, and to put more and more hours of the day into school work; not to speak of 2,000,000 children who had no school to go to of any kind, of curtailed curriculums in 700 cities, and of shortened inadequate school terms. i Now, as to taking sides. A person who has no convictions should not be called a teacher. He should be called a mechanical man. On this basis teachers should not be permitted to join the Chris- tian Church because it would make them hostile to WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? the Jews; they should not be permitted to join the democratic party because it would make them hostile to the republicans or vice versa; they should not be permitted to be Catholic because it would make them hostile to Protestants. The United States Chamber of Commerce has said that school retrenchment must follow along all lines. Organized labor has given the signal to go ahead. Yet we must not take sides. The whole argument is ridiculous. Ethical Sovereign- ty rises above the sovereignty of the state. The right of association with any organization is an individual right and should be so zealously guarded by every person who believes in the tenets of Democ- racy. An individual has as much right to join the Communist party as the American Legion and it should be so recognized by all. As E. L. Bernays has said, "...men must realize that propaganda is the modern instrument by which they can fight for productive. ends and help to bring order out of chaos." The American Federation of Teachers stands for teacher (a) Freedom in the classroom (b) Freedom in civil life (c) Freedom from yellow-dog contracts Two questions arise with reference to the positions taken gaga 9 1. Are there other organizations with which teachers can affiliate which stand for the same principles? 2. Is there any need for such a stand to be taken, and if so how can teachers best fight for such rights? - Dr. Howard Beale as a member of the commission on Social Studies of the American His- torical Association said that, "The American Fed- eration of Teachers is among organizations at 10 WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? present in existence the one really effective friend of freedom for the teacher. In 1928 when the Seattle teachers were presented with a contract which embodied the statement, "I hereby declare that I am not a member of the American Federation of Teachers, nor of any local thereof, and will not be- come a member during the term of this contract" the National Education Association refused to consider the matter on the ground that such would be meddling into local affairs. Still again at Atlantic City the N. E. A. refused to take a position in defense of Academic freedom. This has led Dr. Beale to say that "The A. A. U. P. appears as a tower of freedom when compared with the N. E. A. which most of the teachers in the lower school depend on for what pro- tection they get." Is there any need for a stand to be taken in defense of our civil, classroom, and per- sonal rights? No detailed research into the social and economic practices of the last few years is needed to convince us of the necessity of taking such a stand. Teachers have been forced yes forced to give to Community Chest Drives. The fact that such constituted a special tax levy on teachers in which bankers and captains of industry had not the privilege of participating should make the money lords green with jealousy. Teachers have been and are being forced to take oaths of allegiance to the Constitution and to the Constitutions of the various states. Already twenty-two states have passed such laws and twenty others have such laws on the docket for consideration. Teachers have been forced to sign yellow-dog contracts of all kinds. Even with the outlawing of the principle of the yellow-dog contract by the national government teachers are still forced to sign contracts of the most ridicu- lous sort as for example - < WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? 11 I promise: That I will not smoke That I will go to church every Sunday That I will not be out any evening after 8 o'clock That I will not flirt with boys in my classroom That I will not wear my dresses more than six inches above my ankles That I will not bob my hair or use cosmetics That if I go out on Sunday afternoon it will be for a walk through the cemetery where I will pass the time in solemn meditation. Is this the sublime or the ridiculous? Is it any wonder that we have more teachers occupy- ing beds in institutions for nervous breakdowns and mental diseases than that of any other profession? Teachers have been forced to teach in accordance with the principles laid down by the school board and the superintendent. Here the need for organiza tion is most apparent. Schools have been too much concerned with the academics of education. As E. T. Orr said in the October, 1933 issue of the American Mercury "It is important to note that mastering, reading, writing, singing, typewriting, shorthand, historical data, physical laws and the like, involves only the same intel- lectual powers and processes that an ape uses when he learns to spit, to smoke a pipe,...or that dogs, seals, and all the rest use to acquire their characteristic tricks...The teacher who never goes beyond such powers is only an animal trainer." 12 WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? PES Powers in control do not want an enlightened people. In the midst of such we teachers strain like a moun- tain and give birth to a mouse. Conservatism is dangerous and blind, not cautious and alert. History teaches that all we hold dear today represents a revolt against tradition. Groups have already or- ganized to preserve the special privileges and pow- ers of the status quo. The organization of the teachers along social and economic lines and their affiliation with other organizations which have sim- ilar interests is imperative if the tenets of De- mocracy are to survive and if America is to avoid bloody revolution and dictatorship. Out of approx- imately 1,000,000 teachers in America only about 1/5 are organized into any kind of an organization. Sociologists have told us that we cannot function individually in the modern world. Our interests; our ideals; our aspirations are fee- ble and anemic until they find expression in group power. In the Thirteenth Year book, titled Social Change and Education and recommended by Superin- tendent Graham for reading by the Pittsburgh teachers it is pointed out that "teachers must have deep convictions in regard to the possibilities of American life, or we are condemned to a policy of drift and ineffectiveness. Unorganized the profes- sion will be pushed aside and disregarded by the forces that control America today. gl Experimentations with affiliations between teachers' organizations of workers in other fields is desirable at the present time. There should be close cooperation with labor groups, with organizations of farmers, in short with the less favored classes of society. Unless such an organiza- tion declares vigorously its sympathies with these classes, it would become worse than futile; it would become the unwitting tool of the most reactionary forces in American life." For the teacher the American Federation of Teachers seems to offer the most hope. As a national official of the organization S WHY JOIN THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS? 13 has said, "The A. F. of T. is not a debating society in which intellectuals may expound their education- al and social philosophies; it is an organization with the definite purpose of organizing the teachers of America into a sound and effective union for their own protection, the protection of the children, the schools and society. SOURCES USED American Teacher, Official Organ of the American Federation of Teachers. Emerson, R. W. Essay on The Conservative, 1841. Knight, E. W. Education in the United States, 1934. Official Monthly Reports of the American Federation of Teachers. Orr, E. T. "The Impossibility of Education" in The American Mercury, October 1933. Robinson, A. W. A Critical Evaluation of the American Federation of Teachers. (Master's Thesis, Smith College, May, 1934.) cial Change and Education, Thirteenth Yearbook, Department of Superintendents. The) Social Frontier, April 1935. سنا 220 DEC 31 593 MAR 30