Unfortunately, colleges and universities aren’t the only educational institutions that have moved far to the left. The elementary public school system is rapidly heading that direction as well, as is evidenced by the NEA’s recent resolutions to not only enthusiastically support abortion — but also support abortion access for students.
The National Education Association has also voted in favor of incorporating the concept of “white fragility” in staff training, endorsing reparations for slavery, and recognizing the “Equality Act” to the detriment of any religious person or organization that doesn’t hold “politically correct” viewpoints on homosexuality and transgenderism.
It’s also worth noting that union members eager to showcase their progressive stance on hot-button topics made it a point to defeat a motion that would have made student learning the priority of the association.
While progressive educators naturally feel that addressing topics such as abortion and the LGBTQ agenda is of primary importance, a host of truly important issues are slipping by unnoticed. Recent reports show that disruptive behavior problems are rapidly rising in elementary school classrooms, and teachers lack guidelines and other resources needed to effectively deal with such issues. Bullying, defiance and other serious issues prevent entire classrooms from actually learning anything at school.
Statistics show that more than 30% of high schools and nearly 20% of middle schools across the nation have gang problems. There are also numerous schools in poor areas around the nation where children cannot read, write, or do basic math. But, thanks to the NEA, at least students will know how to use proper gender pronouns — and where to get abortions.
Ironically, the NEA’s stance on abortion and other progressive topics doesn’t just hurt students. It also hurts teachers that the NEA claims to represent. Many public school teachers are conservatives who don’t approve of the NEA’s staunch pro-abortion stance, or the fact that the National Education Association donates to Democratic politicians. The fact that the NEA’s recent resolution insinuates that pro-life individuals are misogynists who want to abolish the gains of the women’s rights movements adds insult to injury.
Dedicated conservative teachers who are being insulted and bullied by the union will likely leave since. Thanks to the Supreme Court Janus ruling, they no longer have to maintain union membership or pay dues. In fact, the exodus of teachers who want a common-sense approach to education has already begun. More than 100,000 members and non-member agency fee payers dropped out in the 2017-2018 school year, forcing the NEA to allow non-teachers to join the union in order to fund its political action committee. However, it seems that the union isn’t getting the point — evidenced not only by its recent resolutions, but also the fact that many of its members are considering voting for an avowed social justice warrior for NEA president.
The NEA is the largest teacher’s union in the United States. And while there are many teachers who vehemently disagree with the NEA, the fact remains that the NEA wields a great deal of power in shaping educational policies in all 50 states. To make matters worse, the NEA also takes it on itself to vehemently oppose school choice by making it difficult for politicians who want to allow charter schools to open.
This organization has long abandoned the teachers it claims to represent. Instead, it has become just another weaponized propaganda arm of the Democratic Party. It is more concerned with promoting an agenda than advocating for educators. That said, teachers who are considering dropping their membership cannot leave fast enough. The best way to defeat this entity is to starve its resources.
