BY HANK REICHMAN
The American Federation of Teachers and its state affiliate, the California Federation of Teachers, have established a disaster relief fund to assist “displaced members and their families—our educators and school staff, pre-K through college, in Southern California.” In an email to members, AFT President Randi Weingarten and CFT President Jeff Freitas wrote, “There’s going to be so much that needs to be done as LA recovers and rebuilds. People have lost their homes. Communities have lost their schools. Educators have lost all the school supplies and books they spent their own money on—and so much more. While we can’t replace priceless pictures of families, heirlooms passed down from grandparents or the sense of belonging that a home gives, what we can do is show our members that they are not alone.”
They pledge as well that “every penny that goes into our Disaster Relief Fund will go directly to fire victims and rebuilding, with no fees or overhead taken out.”
I donated yesterday. I urge other readers of this blog to do the same. AFT/CFT represents the non-tenure-track faculty in the University of California system and faculty members at many community colleges in the state, including those in the Los Angeles Community College District, the state’s largest district.
To make a donation click on this link.
And if you’re bothered by the outrageous and slanderous lies about the fires being circulated by political hacks and dishonest propagandists, Governor Gavin Newsom has set up a “California Fire Facts” page. On that page there is also a link to donate to the Cal Fire Foundation, which supports firefighters.
Contributing editor Hank Reichman is professor emeritus of history at California State University, East Bay; former AAUP vice-president and chair of the AAUP Foundation; and from 2012-2021 Chair of AAUP’s Committee A on Academic Freedom and Tenure. His book, The Future of Academic Freedom, based in part on posts to this blog, was published in 2019. His Understanding Academic Freedom was published in October, 2021; a second edition will be published in March 2025.
