Commentaries

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The Fairness Center represents clients in both the court of law and the court of public opinion. We’ve helped our clients tell their stories in local, state, and national news and opinion outlets to help them accomplish their goals. Read and share their stories below.

Don’t Ignore Teachers’
Union’s Role in
Campus Anti-Semitism

Commentary by Jeffrey Lax

Antisemitism report lets CUNY
off the hook, offers no help
against hate

Commentary by Jeffrey Lax

“The PSC—which promotes BDS and defends anti-Semitic statements—also represents me and hundreds of other Zionist Jews in collective bargaining, even if we have resigned from, or never joined, the union. Right now, the union is concluding negotiations on a new contract. It has the power to demand changes that would hold accountable students, faculty, and administrators who promote anti-Semitism, vandalize campus buildings, or create an unsafe working environment for Zionists like me. But in the union’s 32 bargaining updates they haven’t laid out a single provision or concern related to anti-Semitism. Still, New York law says I must accept the union’s representation anyway—even if its leaders overlook or aid those seeking to drive me from campus.”

“As a Zionist Jewish professor and department chair at the City University of New York, I have witnessed and been a victim of the pervasive anti-Semitism on CUNY’s campuses. In 2021, the EEOC substantiated my claim that CUNY and its faculty union, the Professional Staff Congress, discriminated against me and other Jewish professors because of my religion. So, I applauded when Gov. Kathy Hochul commissioned a report to expose and correct the hatred I had been fighting for years. I should have known better.”

Josh Shapiro rescued me
from Soviet antisemitism,

can continue fighting for Jews

Commentary by Avraham Goldstein

I’m suing my teachers’ union
to end segregation
on its board

Commentary by Isaac Newman

“But Shapiro is the kind of leader who “lean[s]” on his “faith” and doesn’t take “no” for an answer – especially when he knows he’s in the right. How do I know? When he was just six, he launched a years-long campaign that helped my family escape Soviet antisemitism. Now, I’m facing antisemitism in America, and by supporting my cause again, Shapiro can double down on his advocacy for victims of hate – and steer others in his party to do the same.”

Union Officials Should Live Up to
Their Values

Commentary by Amber Welch

How we exposed corruption in
Pennsylvania’s corrections union

Commentary by Chris Taylor and Cory Yedlosky

STANDING UP WHEN MY
UNION LET ME DOWN

Commentary by Mindy McFetridge

I’M STUCK WITH AN ANTI-SEMITIC
LABOR UNION

Commentary by Avraham Goldstein

“[U]nion officials—who speak for me under state law—issued a resolution I, and many of my colleagues, view as anti-Semitic. Now I have a choice: Disrupt my life and damage my career again or rely on the constitutional protections that set America apart from most other countries on earth. I’m done running.”

PRIVATE-SECTOR UNIONS TRY TO STRIP
PUBLIC EMPLOYEES’ RIGHTS

Commentary by Nathan McGrath

OFFENDED BY KANYE’S ANTISEMITISM?
EXAMINE ACADEMIA, TOO

Commentary by Jeffrey Lax

“I’ve represented union members fighting to defend their rights against some of the largest public-sector unions in the country. Now, I’m seeing a new trend: union officials in historically private unions across the Northeast outright denying that Janus applies to the public employees they represent.”

“The same people who referred to Israel as an ‘apartheid’ state are negotiating the salary and working conditions of Jewish professors at CUNY. Absurd? I thought so, too, and several professors joined me in suing the union, CUNY, and the state of New York to escape the union for good.”

Josh Shapiro rescued me
from Soviet antisemitism,

can continue fighting for Jews

Commentary by Avraham Goldstein

“Shapiro is the kind of leader who “leans” on his “faith” and doesn’t take “no” for an answer – especially when he knows he’s in the right. How do I know? When he was just six, he launched a years-long campaign that helped my family escape Soviet antisemitism. Now, I’m facing antisemitism in America, and by supporting my cause again, Shapiro can double down on his advocacy for victims of hate – and steer others in his party to do the same.”

I’m suing my teachers’ union
to end segregation
on its board

Commentary by Isaac Newman

Union Officials Should
Live Up to Their Values

Commentary by Amber Welch

How we exposed corruption in
Pennsylvania’s corrections union

Commentary by Chris Taylor and Cory Yedlosky

“To do our jobs as corrections officers well, we have to trust that our colleagues will be there when we need backup…Likewise, for years, we trusted our union to have our backs…But…state police arrested five former officials on felony theft charges. For many, this was a shocking betrayal of trust. But for us, it was no surprise.”

STANDING UP WHEN MY
UNION LET ME DOWN

Commentary by Mindy McFetridge

I’M STUCK WITH AN ANTI-SEMITIC
LABOR UNION

Commentary by Avraham Goldstein

“[U]nion officials—who speak for me under state law—issued a resolution I, and many of my colleagues, view as anti-Semitic. Now I have a choice: Disrupt my life and damage my career again or rely on the constitutional protections that set America apart from most other countries on earth. I’m done running.”

PRIVATE-SECTOR UNIONS TRY TO STRIP
PUBLIC EMPLOYEES’ RIGHTS

Commentary by Nathan McGrath

“I’ve represented union members fighting to defend their rights against some of the largest public-sector unions in the country. Now, I’m seeing a new trend: union officials in historically private unions across the Northeast outright denying that Janus applies to the public employees they represent.”

OFFENDED BY KANYE’S ANTISEMITISM?
EXAMINE ACADEMIA, TOO

Commentary by Jeffrey Lax

“[T]he same people who referred to Israel as an ‘apartheid’ state are negotiating the salary and working conditions of Jewish professors at CUNY. Absurd? I thought so, too, and several professors joined me in suing the union, CUNY, and the state of New York to escape the union for good.”

HOW MY 8-YEAR LAWSUIT
SETTLED PA. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES’ RIGHTS

Commentary by Jane Ladley

“Backing down from a bully is not in my nature, nor would it have set a good example for my students. […] Teachers, firefighters, police officers and other Pennsylvania public employees now have a definitive judgment that says Pennsylvania’s ‘fair share’ fee law is illegal if unions ever try to enforce these unconstitutional fees.”

RACIAL HARRASSMENT FROM UNION OFFICIALS
WON’T SILENCE ME

Commentary by Edward Seabron

“After seeing the image for myself, I was shocked and disheartened—it looked to me like hate speech. […] Robbins’ abusive behavior is no secret, but he remains in his leadership position with the union. That’s why I’ve taken legal action. No one is holding him or the union accountable.”

WHY I PUT MY DREAM
JOB ON THE LINE

Commentary by Glen Wilkofsky

“For 20 years, I always paid my dues on time. I’d given the union so much money over the years, but the minute I questioned the value they provided, they tried to intimidate me. […] Standing on principle is never easy, especially when doing so could jeopardize something you love.”

CONFRONT CUNY’S
ANTI-SEMITISM PROBLEM

Commentary by Jeffrey Lax

“As a grandchild of four Holocaust survivors and a great-grandchild of eight victims of Nazi torture and murder, I can’t describe how appalling it is to be labeled a white supremacist. […] I believe no one should be forced to associate with a group that hates them.”

White House Swells Federal Union Ranks –
But at What Cost?

Commentary by Nathan McGrath

“Using the estimated dues of the largest federal employee union as an example, the new union members for which the Biden administration is taking credit could represent between $37 million and $46 million in annual dues revenue. And as these employees are ushered through the union door, union officials and government agencies appear determined to slam it behind them.”

Pennsylvania’s ‘Right to Organize’ Amendment
Violates U.S. Constitution

Commentary by Danielle Acker Susanj

“Just two sentences long, HB 950 could have far-reaching consequences on Pennsylvania law. Beyond establishing a constitutional right to organize, it would provide constitutional protections to agreements between government employers and unions that ‘requir[e] membership in an organization as a condition of employment.'”

HARTFORD FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
SHIRKED ITS DUTY TO REPRESENT ME

Commentary by John Grande

“Over 30 years of teaching service. Thousands of dollars in dues payments. A union appreciation plaque for being part of a team that negotiated Hartford teachers’ last good contract. None of this swayed union officials whose representation I, by law, must accept. I guess not all Hartford teachers matter to the union.”