This past weekend in Chicago, I had the great honor of being elected president of the American Federation of Teachers. With my mom, a former teacher herself, looking on, I was filled with such tremendous pride and gratitude -- especially for the example she set for me.
When I was a child, my mom and her union voted to go on strike, not simply for economic issues, but for concerns of quality and professionalism, and my view of teaching changed forever. When those teachers went on strike for seven weeks, I saw my mother, and the entire teaching profession, differently. I saw a woman who was so dedicated to her profession that she was willing to back her words with action - even if it meant, as it did, material sacrifice for our family.
I always knew that teachers were called to their profession because they cared about kids. But, during my mother's strike, I learned some lessons that would last a lifetime about teaching and trade unionism. I understood that while teaching will never get you a penthouse, it shouldn't put you in the poorhouse. I understood that when teachers can no longer accept low wages and poor conditions, their only choices are to give up and leave, or to stand up and fight. I understood why unionism is so essential to professionalism.
As we move into the final months of this consequential presidential election, those who care about our economy, our disappearing middle class, the growing divide between rich and poor, and the conditions under which many children are being raised in our country today need to be reminded that when unions are strong, the country thrives.
Barack Obama understands this and that's why the AFT voted overwhelmingly to endorse his candidacy for president of the United States. He is devoted to changing the disastrous course we are on in this country, and he understands that stability and opportunity for working families lie at the heart of what makes America great. But he also knows that we all need to be willing to innovate to meet the needs of a rapidly changing world.
In New York City, where I have been president of the United Federation of Teachers for the last 10 years, instead of hunkering down and refusing to change with the times, we embraced the reform movement and made it our own. We raised salaries by 43 percent in six years, giving our members a solid seat at the middle-class table in America. And in that time, recruitment and retention of teachers -- a persistent problem across the country -- improved, and so did student achievement.
There is a lot more we can and should do. Graduation rates are still abysmally low in this country and No Child Left Behind - the multiple-choice-test-driven mania masquerading as accountability - must be changed in favor of a rich and diverse curriculum that respects teacher professionalism and actually prepares our students for the intense demands of the 21st century workplace.
But the example we set shows that if workers have stability, a measure of respect and a strong union standing behind them, the result for everyone inevitably improves. So if you want to see a stable middle class, dignity for working people, and a more secure and prosperous future for America, unions must be strengthened. We must bring down the barriers to organizing and restore the balance between management and labor. We tried it the other way. We let the "market" decide. And guess what? It's not working.
Whether the issue that confronts us is education reform, healthcare reform or governmental reform, these efforts will be doomed to failure unless they are built on a foundation of respect for the professionals who do the work. When you give professionals the respect, the recognition and the rewards they rightfully deserve, there is no limit to what they can accomplish. And there is no limit to what America can accomplish with strong, growing unions standing behind Barack Obama as our next president.
