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After a wide-ranging speech during AFT TEACH in an enormous Washington, D.C., conference hall on Friday—a speech that focused on saving public education with practical programs that work—AFT President Randi Weingarten brought her vision down to scale in a more intimate town hall with members on Saturday, appealing to them as partners in the fight―not just for public schools but for democracy.
The seriousness of this moment cannot be overestimated. During the session, called “Challenging Authoritarianism Through People Power,” Weingarten said there is real evidence that our democracy is backsliding. Subverting the three coequal branches of government the founders of this country established, President Trump and the extreme right are largely succeeding in exerting control over all three branches—legislative, executive and judicial.
Joining in conversation with Weingarten, Jessica Tang, president of AFT Massachusetts, an AFT vice president and chair of the AFT’s Resistance Committee, and Jessica Smith, director of the AFT’s Union Leadership Institute, described the challenge before us. They discussed basics like the actual definition of authoritarianism—in brief, an abuse of power concentrated in the hands of one or a few people—as well as the pathway to successful resistance.
“The antidote to authoritarianism is mass mobilization,” said Tang. History shows that if 3.5 percent of the population resists, authoritarians lose power. Quick math: That’s about 12 million people in the United States, with its population of about 340 million.
Unions are key to reaching that critical mass because we already have infrastructure in place, from union halls where people can meet and strategize to mailing lists, experience, strong social ties and coalitions with other community organizations. And we have a track record: Tang shared research showing that when trade unions are involved in resistance, the fight against authoritarians is more successful.
“We can beat authoritarianism,” said Smith.
Thankfully, the courts have delayed some of the Trump administration’s more draconian actions, said Weingarten. Creative pushback works, too: The AFT has been talking to financiers who can influence Tesla, working to oust Elon Musk and other bad actors from interfering with the federal government. And of course there’s voting: Midterms are approaching, with gerrymandering and other voter suppression tactics on the menu. With that in mind, “Just as if you were on a fitness regime, we need to develop the muscle over the next year to do this work,” said Weingarten.
Walking away from the stage and out into the audience, Weingarten stressed that she wants to hear from members about what they need to engage their colleagues and get mobilized. She praised affiliates for their engagement in No Kings Day and Hands Off demonstrations. And she flagged upcoming plans for an enormous action on Labor Day that will demonstrate the power of working people and our resistance to authoritarianism.
The work is already underway. Weingarten described this week’s Lobby Day as the start of the election campaign, and bills like the Pay Teachers Act as examples of how we will fight forward.
“Right now,” said Weingarten, “It’s about winning hearts and minds.”
[Virginia Myers]