Building Power, Breaking Power: The United Teachers of New Orleans, 1965-2008

by Jesse Chanin

From 1965 to 2005, the United Teachers of New Orleans (UTNO) defied the South's conservative anti-union efforts to become the largest local in Louisiana. Jesse Chanin argues that UTNO accomplished and maintained its strength through strong community support, addressing a Black middle-class political agenda, internal democracy, and drawing on the legacy and tactics of the civil rights movement by combining struggles for racial and economic justice, all under Black leadership and with a majority women and Black membership. However, the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina provided the state government and local charter school advocates with the opportunity to remake the school system and dismantle the union. Authorities fired 7,500 educators, marking the largest dismissal of Black teaching staff since Brown v. Board of Education.

Chanin highlights the significant staying power and political, social, and community impact of UTNO, as well as the damaging effects of the charter school movement on educators.

504 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 5, 2024

Reviews

[Julia Hutto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent review of the triumphs and defeats of the UTNO and the New Orleans public school district. I appreciate the attention that was given to the union's activities leading up to Katrina and not just surrounding the storm. While Katrina is obviously a very important subject to give attention to, it is important to recognize the agency that locals had before the story in shaping important aspects of life in the city like public education. The UTNO's presence in the city since the 60s also gives important context to the overhaul that was done on the school system and how devastating it was particularly for working class African Americans. What the union was able to build in the 1960-1990s makes the dismantling of the school system seem even more disastrous, while at the same time providing an example of what is possible.