Educators’ Unions and Grassroots Organizations: Historicizing the Moment Toward Mapping Resistance

• In Event: Lessons from Organizing and Coalition Building for a More Just Future

Abstract

In recent months, we have seen state legislation passed focused on weakening collective bargaining and attacking unions, mandating funding cuts for higher education and K-12 schools, and eroding academic freedom and freedom of speech. This is evidenced in policies like HB 267 and HB 265 in Utah and SB 1 in Ohio, all which have worked to weaken educational institutions. Meanwhile, attacks on public education and other parts of the public good continue to play out weekly with the current Presidential administration with no end in sight to the terror being waged on our communities. In the proposed conceptual paper, we propose a paper that conceptualizes specific historical strategies from past educator movements that we may revitalize in K12 and higher education organizing to respond to our current moment.

Authors

• Erin Dyke, Oklahoma State University

• Brianne Kramer, Southern Utah University