I would like to respond to Sen. Ann Rivers’, R-La Center, dismissal of Evergreen Education Association’s upcoming walkout with her comment, “I love my teachers … but I think they are being steered the wrong way by unions on this one,” as reported in the May 3 story “Walkout’s target, legislators, listening.” How insulting to be spoken of as a petulant child being led astray. I want to assure Rivers that we educators are intelligent and politically aware enough to recognize the failings of the Legislature all on our own.
Furthermore, Rivers’ patronizing comment reveals her ignorance regarding the functioning of our union. EEA is comprised entirely of educators currently working in the Evergreen Public Schools district. Evergreen educators are the union. Moreover, EEA is easily the most democratic organization I’ve ever belonged to. And we exercised the purest form of democracy — in which each individual member had the opportunity to vote — to determine that 92 percent of our members supported this action.
In fact, our union is far more democratic than the state Senate, where votes are brokered and manipulated in order to give its members the best chance at re-election. To turn a phrase: I love my state senators, but I think they are being steered the wrong way by the Republican caucus on this one.
Wendy Smith
Vancouver
