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RALLY AGAINST "THE SHOCK DOCTRINE" AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS

On October 29th, journalist Naomi Klein will be giving a talk on her most recent book, The Shock Doctrine here at the University of Illinois. In her book, Klein contends that governments have taken advantage of the
"shock" produced by military invasions and natural and economic disasters to systematically privatize the public sector and strip an already
vulnerable citizenry of their civil liberties.

Here at the University of Illinois, campus workers and students are facing
a similar state of affairs. At the height of an economic crisis, the University has engaged in a concerted attack on workers’ wages, increased the burden of tuition and fees on students, and endeavored to restrict First Amendment rights.

For this reason, the GEO is working with other campus unions to organize a RALLY AGAINST "THE SHOCK DOCTRINE" to coincide with Klein's talk on October 29th.

Check out Klein's Shock Doctrine web site here:

http://www.naomiklein.org/shock-doctrine

Unity March

Fifth Annual UNITY MARCH
Saturday, October 4
beginning at 11am

Join other GEO members and community activists for this annual event. This year's march will focus on the dire need to increase funding to City of Champaign Township which provides support to the poorest of the poor in our community.

The March will begin at the Township office (Green and Randolph, Champaign) and end at Douglass Park with a rally and reception.

For more info, visit: http://www.anti-war.net/#081004unity

for immediate release...

U of I Graduate Employees' Organization Contests State Ethics Policy, Issues Statement on Free Speech, Academic Freedom

-On September 18th, University staff and faculty received an email memorandum entitled “Prohibited Political Activity.” The document explains that activities such as attending rallies or displaying a partisan button or bumper sticker on University property are off limits to state employees. Under this rule, a faculty or staff member could not use his or her off-work time to attend a political rally on campus. While on campus, he or she would also have to remove any political bumper stickers or buttons from clothing and vehicles.

In a first step to protect its constituents from unconstitutional regulation, the University of Illinois GEO proposed a written statement regarding the state policy during its October 1st general membership meeting. The present membership unanimously endorsed the statement, which condemns the state and University’s disregard for the First Amendment:

"The GEO condemns the U of I's restrictions on its members' speech and political activity, as expressed in a mass email from the Ethics Office on September 18. The GEO demands that the University respect and support the free speech rights of all members of the University community, including the right to participate in political activities on public University spaces, and the right to wear clothing or accessories that promote a political viewpoint or candidate."

University President Joseph White has thus far assured the University community that the state policy will be enforced with “common sense.” The GEO membership, however, additionally endorsed a statement authored by the American Association of University Professors that “calls on President White to repudiate this policy and withdraw it immediately.”

For more information about the Graduate Employees’ Organization, visit uigeo.org, or contact publicity director, Michael Simeone, at 217 377 0850. For further information regarding the statement issued by the AAUP, visit University Ethics and Political Campaigning

University Ethics and Political Campaigning

The University of Illinois recently announced that to comply with the ethics rules of the state, no university employee may engage in political activity while on campus. Check out the University's statement here.

In response the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) has released the following statement:

THE AAUP REAFFIRMS GRAD EMPLOYEE AND STAFF RIGHTS

According to University of Illinois President Joe White and his Ethics Office, a UI secretary, carpenter, graduate employee, academic professional or faculty member is in violation of the university's regulations if one of them returns to campus at night to attend a political rally. Wearing a campaign button at the rally would make them doubly unethical.
The US constitution guarantees freedom of assembly and freedom of speech. Does the university have an interest that would justify overriding these rights for employees, something it knows it cannot do for students, who retain their rights as citizens when they walk across the campus? The state has an interest in ensuring that its citizens are not deprived of information Should a staff member be free to attend a rally or answer a political call on his or her cell phone during lunch hour? The university says "no" and the AAUP says "yes." Should a supervisor be free to decide an office can survive with reduced staff for an hour at other times and let employees attend a rally, assuming they use vacation time or agree to make up the time? The university says "no" and the AAUP says "yes."
President White urges that faculty and staff use common sense and recognize the rules will not be enforced. One may certainly agree it would have been better had the Ethics Office used common sense. It is also notable that courts are typically not sympathetic to the argument that unconstitutional rules or laws can remain on the books just because a given official pledges not to enforce them. Such regulations might well be enforced-even enforced selectively-by a future administration, especially if the campus' collective attention is focused elsewhere. Meanwhile, many are reluctant to do things the administration tells them are prohibited or unethical. Anecdotal responses suggest a chilling effect has already settled over the Champaign-Urbana, Chicago, and Springfield university communities.
It goes well beyond the specific prohibitions embodied in the memo. Yet a counter-response is also in evidence, as faculty, staff, and graduate employees feel even more determined to assert their political rights.
These new regulations thoughtlessly embody a number of absurdities. As the regulations now stand, an employee could walk out on the quad, lift up a megaphone, and publicly announce his or her support of a candidate for office to all attentive passers-by. But you would be in violation of university rules if you wore a campaign button while doing so. An instructor could talk to a class about his or her political beliefs - a principle explained at length in the AAUP's statement on "Freedom in the Classroom" - but the teacher would be in violation of university policy if he or she wore a campaign button while doing so. A graduate student supported by a fellowship retains full political speech rights, but one employed as a TA would have to think twice before wearing a candidate t-shirt in university housing. Our bodies are not state property.
There is indeed a special irony in the fact the UI sent its new regulations to graduate employees. The administration spent over a decade insisting they were students, not employees. Now, even though they are employed part-time, the Ethics Office decides they are employees 24/7. The common element in these contradictory positions is clear enough: the university will take whatever stance undermines graduate employee freedom and self-determination. A number of state courts have taken a different position on this matter: graduate students are employees when they are performing compensated work, like teaching a class, and they are students when they are taking a class. When teaching a class, graduate students should have the same freedom of expression as faculty members; on campus they have the same rights as all students to participate in the political process.
The university has disingenuously claimed it is merely communicating state law, but it has clearly added new regulations of its own. Nor is it credible to imagine the president's office did not approve these regulations beforehand. The university community has a right to know everything about the process that brought these regulations into existence. Sunlight and solidarity should be its twin goals. Faculty, staff, and students should stand together to restore our professional and personal rights.
The AAUP calls on President White to repudiate this policy and withdraw it immediately.

Cary Nelson
National AAUP President

Office/Home Visits

2800 is the number of TAs and GAs, many of whom have never been
asked to be involved in the GEO. That's why we're planning office visits every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 1-3 pm, and home visits on Thursdays from 6-8 pm.

No experience is necessary - you will be paired with an experienced organizer and learn what to do.

Please contact geo(at)shout.net if you're interested!