From July 29 to August 2, 2024, the Albert Shanker Institute had the opportunity to offer the Shanker Conversations as part of the World Congress on International Education in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This followed ASI’s inaugural participation at the 2019 World Congress in Bangkok, Thailand. Because Albert Shanker co-founded Education International, the Albert Shanker Institute’s participation in the World Congress on International Education is a natural extension of Al’s vision of learning and building power together globally, just as ASI’s Shanker Conversations are an extension of Al’s commitment to free and open debate.
This blog is a complement to the Video of the conversation, Democracy on the rise.
While far-right political movements have been in the headlines, it has been encouraging to see that recent elections have also seen the emergence of political movements committed to maintaining and growing democracy. From the historic presidential election in Mexico this spring to the landslide electoral victory of the Labour Party in the UK this summer and the left-wing coalition in France, thanks to the persistence of people in all regions of the world demanding that their rights be respected and their voices heard, we are seeing real signs that we may be turning the tide in favour of the rise of democracy.
These promising victories directly oppose the shift being brought about by a new nationalism that prides itself on portraying the media as the enemy, seeks to degrade the electoral process, weakens the judiciary, threatens our freedoms of expression and association, and undermines workers’ rights.
That last point about the devaluation of workers is important, and of course it is why we formed unions to fight for fair wages, decent work, and labor rights: first, by giving workers a voice to access economic success, and second, by relying on civil society organizations fighting for racial equality, gender rights, and social justice. It is also why, on July 30, the Albert Shanker Institute brought together international labor leaders to discuss the rise of democracy. This conversation was moderated by Randi Weingarten, president of the Shanker Institute and the AFT and panelists included Odile Cordelier, National Secretary (SNES-FSU) of France; Ivan Ilich Gonzalez Contreras, General Secretary of SNTE-Section 42, of Mexico, and Emma Rose, President of the National Education Union (NEU), UK.
The conversation ranged from discussing the political climate to long-standing union commitments to be actively involved in the community. Odile Cordelier She began by grounding the conversation in a commitment to students: “We are fighting hard for critical thinking for all students.” Later in the conversation, she acknowledged that education unions still have a responsibility to explain what the far right would do to schools.
Emma Rose They recognised the need to come together and do something about the rise of the far right, especially after 14 years of austerity policies. The Conservatives tried to blame immigrants for the results of more than a decade of austerity policies, such as high class sizes or difficulty in getting medical appointments, rather than taking responsibility. The election results in the UK are promising and the NEU recognises that 14 years of austerity cannot be addressed by election results alone.
Ivan Ilich Gonzalez Contreras She explained that the SNTE also committed to a long campaign, outlining the constitutional reforms of 2013 and 2018 that created an opportunity to make the election of Mexico’s first female president a realistic goal. The SNTE named goals and identified political spaces to work on, from the local to the federal level.
In moderation, Randi Weingarten He highlighted all this work and drew parallels with the potential of the 2024 elections in the United States of America.
Please take the time to watch and listen to this comprehensive, enlightening and motivating discussion. here.
