OPEN LETTER to UFT President Michael Mulgrew

What is your position on the COVID Vaccine and Teachers?

Sent on November 25, 2020, 7am

mmulgrew@uft.org

To UFT President Mike Mulgrew:

I write to you as a UFT member and steering committee member for NY Teachers For Choice who represents the opinion of thousands of UFT members. As you know, we are a grassroots group of New York educators who are against any medical mandates for anyone to keep their jobs – especially educators.

On November 23rd after a UFT townhall, dozens of teachers reached out to me stating you support the COVID vaccine being mandatory for teachers. Some said you stated it would be mandatory by September of 2021.

Is this correct information?

I am reaching out to ask for a clarifying public statement on your part before thousands upon thousands of letters flood your email. Clearly, the thousands of educators I represent are 100% against this. In fact, within 24 hours of your statements, we received 1,000 new signatures to our petition against vaccine mandates for educators, bringing that petition to over 6,260 signatures (that number is growing every minute)

See the petition here – http://chng.it/DBqrpHnp

As dues-paying members, we demand that the UFT under your leadership fight for our rights to make the decision of whether to take the COVID vaccine with our doctors. If you do not defend our rights on this matter, the thousands of UFT members who I represent will wonder what are we paying dues for? Are we paying dues to support your salary but not get any representation?

I have always been a dedicated Unionist. 

In fact, I was selected by my chapter leader to ensure that 100% of the UFT members at my school stuck with the union after the controversial Janus Supreme Court decision and we were successful at getting every single member to stay loyal to the UFT. I am very proud of that accomplishment, along with many other pro-Union actions I have been involved in during my 13+ years as a proud NYC Teacher and UFT member: from phone banking, to lobby day in Albany, to serving as an elected delegate on consultation. I have supported my union feverishly for over a decade. NOW it is time for my union to represent me as strongly as I have represented it.

I wish you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving and hope to hear a public response from you on this very soon.

Thank you.

Sincerely;
Michael Kane NY Teachers For Choice steering committee member