Mulgrew's Unity Caucus Personally Attacks A Working UFT Paraprofessional

There is no bottom for these self-serving bastards.

Michael Mulgrew is the President of the United Federation of Teachers. He’s a public figure. He sought this highly-compensated job, and now he has it. As such, I don’t have an issue targeting him. His Unity Caucus/ Patronage Cult has publicly ridiculed Migda Rodriguez, a young paraprofessional simply trying to make ends meet. That is bullying, public shaming, and that is despicable.

I know of at least two more Unity members who merit my poison pen this morning. I’m going to spare them because they are not important. They’re just cogs in the Unity machine. Mulgrew is the head. When he goes, another will take his place, and that’s who I’ll target. Personal attacks for their own sake aren’t really necessary. The Unity machine has to be taken down.

It’s one thing to attack Michael Mulgrew and Unity bosses. It’s one thing to point out the hypocrisy of their stooges, most or all of whom are on salary.

It’s quite another to attack Migda Rodriguez. Migda simply cannot make a living on a paraprofessional salary. I’m sure I couldn’t either. So she has a second job to provide for herself and her family. Thanks to Unity’s long-time failure to negotiate a living wage for city teachers, I worked two jobs for decades, and I understand the strain of doing so.

Migda, along with some friends, decided to help herself. She decided that Unity was not making her economic survival a priority. A raise that does not meet cost of living, like the ones in the most recent contract, is not a raise at all. In fact, it’s a pay cut. And occasional bonuses do not obscure the fact that UFT paraprofessionals need a raise, not a tip.

Migda and her friends ran for UFT office. Migda was elected second vice chair by her fellow paraprofessionals. The last person to hold that position, a Unity caucus member, was given a full-time union job to perform his duties. After all, where on earth is someone working full-time as a paraprofessional, let alone working two jobs, supposed to find the time to help members? Unlike teachers, paraprofessionals are programmed all day, with only a break for lunch.

Mulgrew’s Unity Patronage Cult runs the UFT. While the members chose Migda, Mulgrew chooses only people loyal to him. So there was no job for Migda. There was no office space. There was no time off. There was no email list for Migda to contact those who chose her. In fact, Unity did not even give Migda Rodriguez a stinking UFT email address.

Make no mistake, just like they did to the non-Unity OT/PT leader, Melissa Williams, they froze out Migda. They deliberately made it impossible to do her job. Then, when she chose to continue to support her family rather than attend meetings, they decided to humiliate her publicly.

I’ve been to the Unity page. People with Unity jobs are saying Migda should have stepped down if she couldn’t attend the meetings. In fact, when Melissa Williams did just that, stepped down, they ridiculed her for doing so. She was useless, a phony, or whatever juvenile nonsense the stilted minds at the patronage mill could muster.

If you’re opposition, Unity will come after you no matter what you do. They’ll do anything to protect their privileged positions. They get paid to support Mulgrew, not members, and that has to change.

Unity set up a rigged game. They used their power to avert democracy. They thwarted the will of the union and placed their BFFs in positions that should’ve been filled by those the members chose. They did everything they could to crush grassroots activism. Specifically, Unity went after Migda Rodriguez. They went after Melissa Williams.

They even went after Unity Caucus member Amy Arundell. (Amy was the much-beloved borough rep in Queens, now relegated to doing I have no idea what. Though she’s Unity, I can testify firsthand she regularly went out of her way to help members, Unity or not.) There’s a pattern here in the way UFT Unity treats strong women, and I don’t much care for it.

Another strong woman I know is Marianne Pizzitola. (In fact, I now know her so well I can spell her last name without looking it up!) Marianne has been doing the work Michael Mulgrew should have been doing, and she’s been doing it for years now. Marianne is a real union activist.

Shame on Unity for vilifying Marianne as a non-UFT member. When DC37 negotiates a crappy, sub-inflation contract pattern, Unity defends them, saying we’re union and we have to stick together. When Marianne fights to retain the health care of retired UFT members, among many others, she’s a non-UFT member and has no business interfering. Unity has no consistency, no integrity, and say whatever they can muster to suit the moment and protect their privileged status at the patronage mill.

Marianne has led a group that has fought Mulgrewcare 13 times and won. The NY State Supreme Court has stated clearly that Mulgrewcare is a danger to the health and lives of retirees. Aetna has admitted they would block care recommended by the doctors of city retirees. Michael Mulgrew is more worried about the Eric Adams budget than our health, and has not stood with us at all.

Unity has attacked Marianne in various ways. A few years ago, a Unity member I knew told me she was a Trump supporter, and that I should therefore not associate with her. More recently, they’re saying she’s somehow affiliated with the MORE caucus (which happens to be composed of UFT members), and trying to imply that she’s some sort of radical leftist—you know, good old red-baiting.

There’s another powerful woman, and there’s Unity, treating her they way they treat uppity women who assert themselves.

Let me make this clear. I’m with Retiree Advocate. I’m running against Unity and their machine. I support Migda. I support Melissa Williams. I support Marianne, and regularly donate so she can help me and my brothers and sisters retain the health care we’ve earned over decades serving the city, the health care Mulgrew wants to either take away from us or make us pay extra for.

Let me make another thing clear, Mulgrew and company. I have years of experience working to represent members. I have years of experience creating workarounds for lack of support from union bosses. When Retiree Advocate wins, I dare you to treat us as you’ve treated these other elected representatives.

I will not take this sitting down, and I will not be quiet. Nor will my brothers and sisters on Retiree Advocate. Mess with us. Come after us. We are not afraid.

We are ready for you, and we are ready to lead. You will not intimidate us, you will not sway us, and you will not block us. We are not afraid. I was not afraid when you, with no regard to union (not to mention ethics), used member dues to threaten me with civil and criminal penalties. And I’m not afraid now.

Come for us, Mulgrew. Come for me.

I dare you.

Thanks to Daniel Alicea for creating the graphic.