BY AARON BARLOW

This afternoon, from 5:30 to 6:30, union members in New York City protested outside of the Federal Courts in lower Manhattan. The event, organized by the Professional Staff Congress (PSC), the faculty union of the City University of New York, drew hundreds of frustrated and angry people in what is surely one of the first demonstrations against the deliberate attack on unions through disingenuous manipulation of the concept of freedom of speech. As the PSC news release in response to today’s Supreme Court’s ruling in Janus v AFSCME says:

The decision is not about the First Amendment. It is about consolidating wealth, power and even health in the hands of the few while imposing permanent economic austerity on everyone else. The majority decision helps to advance an agenda that has been planned and lavishly funded by billionaires and far-right organizations. Its goal is to undo every gain made by workers, people of color, immigrants, women, the middle class and the poor during the last half-century.

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten sent out an email:

Let’s be clear, the Janus case was about defunding unions. It was about who will have power in our country—working people or big corporate interests. That’s why the case was being funded by wealthy donors and corporate interests. First, they pledged $80 million to “defund and defang” unions. Then, the Kochs, after receiving the Trump tax cut, upped the ante with $400 million to undermine public education and “break” the teachers unions. Why? Because unions fight for a better life for people, and corporate interests see that as a threat to their power.

And President Rudy Fictenbaum of the AAUP brought the importance of the decision to faculty, also in an email:

On the surface, this case may seem like a technical one that doesn’t affect many faculty. But Janus and similar court cases and legislative initiatives are part of a broad assault on public institutions and the common good. They seek to roll back protections for working people, lessen public support for civic building blocks such as education, and diminish the ability of unions to have a positive impact.

AAUP members and chapters on campuses across the country advocate for academic freedom, professional values and standards, and the faculty voice in higher education. They help ensure that our students have challenging learning environments and strengthen our institutions of higher education. Those AAUP chapters that have been formally recognized as unions take this advocacy a step farther, by negotiating legally enforceable contracts that incorporate AAUP principles. This ruling makes their job more difficult.

But make no mistake, our fight as AAUP members to have a positive impact on our colleges and universities, to strengthen public higher education, and to protect academic freedom is not over. Together, we will continue to fight for our students, our campuses, and our communities. We will continue to say, loudly and clearly, that strong universities and well-educated citizens are essential to our survival as a democracy. That’s why our work as educators, union members, and advocates has never been more important than it is now.

In coming days and weeks, these three voices will be joined by dozens, no hundreds and thousands of other voices. We all need to join in supporting them. If you are not now a member of the AAUP and your campus union (if you have one), now is the time to make sure you are.

The fight is getting serious. To date, we are losing. For that to change, we have to work together in ways we never have before. That starts with union activity but it extends to political activism and cooperation of a sort we haven’t seen in a long time.

Join us. Only together can we never be defeated.