CUNY board attacks staff union for anti-war teach-ins
Special to Workers World
New York
The union that represents City University of New York
faculty and staff is under attack for taking a stance against
the Pentagon war on Afghanistan.
The union is the Professional Staff Congress, American
Federation of Teachers Local 2343. Its members have been
working without a contract since Aug. 1, 2000.
Union President Barbara Bowen, 16 members of its executive
board and chapter leaders have endorsed a statement by New York
Labor Against the War that declared in part, "We believe that
George Bush's war is not the answer. No one should suffer what
we experienced on Sept. 11. Yet war will inevitably harm
countless innocent civilians, strengthen American alliances
with brutal dictatorships and deepen global poverty."
The Delegate Assembly of the PSC organized a series of
teach-ins, forums and meetings throughout the 20 campuses of
CUNY. In particular, it sponsored meetings at Brooklyn College,
Hunter College, Hunter School of Social Work, City College and
a number of other campuses.
It was a teach-in held Oct. 2 at City College that drew the
ire of the New York Post and reports in the New York Times and
the Daily News.
The Post--a right-wing tabloid--characterized the tenor of
the event as a "hatefest," despite the fact that none of the
nine panelists or the 25 or so people who spoke from the floor
excused the attack on the World Trade Center.
The Post featured a photo of speaker Asha Samad-Matias, an
African-born Muslim woman who wears the hijab, under the
headline "America Under Attack."
Her talk had focused on reasons why many Muslims, Arabs and
others in the Middle East deeply resent the U.S. She said that
Islam was not the cause of the World Trade Center attack and
that racism and war are not the answers.
After the Post reporting, Samad-Matias immediately began
receiving hate mail and phone calls. She believes she was
singled out because she is Muslim.
Following attacks in the media on the teach-in, Chancellor
Matthew Goldstein issued a statement denouncing the union for
sponsoring it. CUNY's Board of Trustees held a public meeting
Oct. 15 on whether or not it should endorse Goldstein's
statement. A number of faculty and students spoke against the
board taking action against the union.
The board will reportedly make its final decision on Oct.
22. The CCNY Coalition for Peace and the New York Schools
Against the War coalition are calling for a demonstration that
day starting at 3:30 p.m. at the CUNY Board of Trustees meeting
at East 80th Street and York Avenue.
Reprinted from the Oct. 25, 2001, issue of
Workers World newspaper
This article is copyright under a Creative
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