WHEREAS, the election of UFT-endorsed candidate Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City has definitively ended the immediate danger that UFT and other NYC municipal retirees would lose our traditional Medicare and be transferred into a Medicare Advantage plan against our will, as Mamdani has unequivocally committed himself to the UFT’s position in support of maintaining traditional Medicare, and
WHEREAS, as the threat to our retirement and health care security from New York City government has receded, a major and severe danger has taken shape in Washington, D.C., where President Trump and MAGA Republicans in Congress have mounted various attacks on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, as detailed in the fact sheet appended to this resolution, and
WHEREAS, through Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, the United States government has established a social contract with its working people, who contribute to these programs during our working lives and in return receive retirement benefits that allow us to live our retirement in financial security and with dignity, and
WHEREAS, the attacks of Trump and the MAGA Republicans on these programs threatens to undo that social contract and put the financial security and health care of UFT retirees and all retired Americans in real danger, and
WHEREAS, the UFT Retired Teachers Chapter, with over 70,000 educated and politically aware members spread across the U.S., has a unique ability, capacity and responsibility to address this threat to retiree financial security and health care; therefore be it
RESOLVED that the General Meeting of the UFT Retiree Chapter hereby charges the Chapter Officers and Executive Committee, along with the UFT Executive Board, with the development of a comprehensive organizing campaign to defend Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, to be presented at the next Chapter meeting, which shall be dedicated to the consideration and adoption of this campaign; and be it further
RESOLVED that this campaign shall include, but not be limited to, the following components:
- A plan to educate the members of the Retiree Chapter on the nature and extent of the attacks on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid by President Trump and MAGA Republicans, and on actions they can take, individually and collectively, in response, and
- A plan to develop a rapid response network of Retiree Chapter activists specifically dedicated to the defense of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, including a list of e-activists prepared to engage in on-line action and a list of activists prepared to engage in in-person public protests and lobbying of elected officials, and
- A plan to develop an ‘organizers tool kit’ with practica l suggestions for members and retiree groups on educational and political actions they can take in their local communities, and
- A plan of coordination with the UFT’s Political Action and Communications Departments, and with other Retiree Chapters of our national union, the American Federation of Teachers.