CFT supports Proposition 1: enshrining access to abortion in state’s Constitution
As we approach the November election, Inside CFT will regularly feature a proposition that will appear on your November ballot and highlight CFT’s position on that measure.
First up: Proposition 1, the Right to Reproductive Freedom Amendment.
Proposition 1 is a Constitutional Amendment that would enshrine the state’s existing law into the Constitution. Currently in California, individuals needing reproductive healthcare, including access to abortion and contraceptives, are free to do so. Proposition 1 ensures that those rights become a part of our Constitution. It does not create a new law regarding reproductive health, but simply ensures that current law becomes a part of our state’ most important governing document.
CFT joins the supporters of this ballot measure – including Governor Gavin Newsom, Senate Pro Tem Toni Atkins, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, Planned Parenthood, and the California Labor Federation – in the belief that anyone who needs to access abortion or birth control should be able to do so freely and without fear.
This measure will help to ensure that California is a beacon of abortion rights and access to contraception at a time when other states are seeking to destroy individual bodily autonomy and undermine reproductive freedom.
CFT urges its members to vote Yes on Proposition 1 on November 8.
CFT leaders embark on 2nd annual “Back to School” tour
This week CFT leaders began their second “Back to School” tour, following a successful tour in 2021. These site visits are an excellent opportunity for CFT leaders to meet with local leaders and rank-and-file members to hear directly from them about what is happening at their school sites and in their local unions.
CFT President Jeff Freitas, Secretary Treasurer Luukia Smith, and Senior VP Lacy Barnes began their tour on Monday with a stop in Marin County to meet with members from three locals: the San Rafael Federation of Teachers, the Novato Federation of Teachers, and the Tamalpais Federation of Teachers. On Wednesday, they visited with the Salinas Valley Federation of Teachers in Monterey County. And on Thursday, they met with the Poway Federation of Teachers in San Diego County and the Coast Federation of Classified Employees in Orange County.
Upcoming stops will take the tour to Los Angeles, Lompoc, Sacramento, Shasta County, and many more stops across California.
Said secretary treasurer Luukia Smith: “This tour is a great opportunity to hear from our members in schools and colleges across the state and to learn about the challenges they are facing but also what they are excited about for this upcoming school year.”
“We have polled our members on priorities, and now we are able to talk to the members directly about those priorities and to get direct input,” CFT president Jeff Freitas added. “We get to meet with the members where they work and live to emphasize that the work we collectively do is about working conditions and lives.”
Photo: CFT Senior VP Lacy Barnes with members of the Salinas Valley Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 1020.
AFT President Randi Weingarten highlights national educator shortage
In a series of media appearances this week, AFT President Randi Weingarten has highlighted the serious problem facing so many of our nation’s schools: a lack of teachers and school staff.
In an interview on MSNBC, Weingarten stated, "There's been a teacher shortage for years. What you're seeing now is that it's reaching a tipping point.” On NPR, she expresses sympathy for teachers and school staff who worked hard to fight for their students during COVID and are now being attacked by political opportunists like Gov. Desantis and Gov. Abbott, who have made LGBTQ+ students and the teaching of accurate history their latest punching bags.
And in an appearance on Good Morning America, she spoke to the root of the problem: "We have a teacher shortage because we have a shortage of respect for public school educators. A shortage of the professional working conditions which makes it difficult for teachers and other staff to meet their students' needs. We have a shortage of pay for what is arguably the most important job in the world. And we have politicians who want to ban books and censor curriculum rather than help teachers meet the social, emotional, and academic needs of kids."
AFT is working with state affiliates to address this issue; in fact, CFT’s own Carl Williams serves as co-chair of AFT’s Teacher and School Staff Shortage Task Force.
Social media bill heads to a Senate floor vote
Even adults know how overwhelming social media can be. But with the rise of teenage bullying, body dysmorphia, and suicide amongst teens, social media platforms must reform themselves to be non-addictive and have strong guidelines to protect our students.
The CFT is advocating for much-needed reform for platforms like Facebook and Instagram to protect the safety and mental health of students who spend time online.
AB 2273 (Wicks) will require age-appropriate design codes for social media platforms and was passed out of the Appropriations Committee on August 11 and now heads to the Senate floor for passage. A similar bill, AB 2408 (Cunningham), would have prohibited them from using designs or features that are known to be addictive to children, but it did not make it out of the Appropriations Committee.
Please contact your State Senator and urge them to vote yes on AB 2273!
