Teacher Fired For Organizing Donates Settlement To DC JwJ

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

Last month David Krakow (r), a former history teacher at the Cesar Chavez charter school, reached a settlement with his former employer, which fired him last year shortly after he began organizing with his co-workers (Teacher Exposes Union-Busting at Cesar Chavez HS 4/15 UC). Krakow chose to donate the bulk of his settlement - $10,000 - to DC Jobs with Justice. "I gave to JWJ because they helped me do a lot of the thinking work while we were organizing last year," Krakow, a local activist and Jews United For Justice Jeremiah Fellow said. " Building a system where working people have a say in our jobs and in our communities isn't a one-off project.  I hope this money helps other people to organize themselves." "We're humbled by David's courage in organizing and honored by his decision to invest his settlement back into the movement for workers' rights," said Mackenzie Baris of DC Jobs with Justice. "We hope his victory inspires others to organize and sends a message to employers who think they can get away with firing leaders." Krakow's settlement, which was reported in the Washington City Paper created an instant buzz in the city's charter schools, none of which have union representation. "School reformers need to think harder about how to keep, develop, and value teachers," Krakow noted. " Nobody has that on their agenda in a real way right now." Nationally, the American Federation of Teachers has active organizing efforts in charter schools in a number of cities.