University of California Faculty Groups File Landmark Unfair Labor Practices Complaint Against UC Over UC’s Repression of Activism for Palestine

Today on Speaking Out of Place we are joined by three members of the University of California faculty who are part of groups that have filed a landmark compliant against the UC system.

This September, faculty associations from seven University of California campuses along with the systemwide Council of UC Faculty Associations filed an unfair labor practice, or ULP charge against their employer, the University of California.  A nearly 600-page complaint was presented to the California Public Employment Relations Board. 

What is especially noteworthy about this complaint is that it claims UC’s repression of faculty and student protests against Israel’s genocide in Gaza cuts to the heart of the educational process, and denies faculty, staff, and students the ability to carry on their work of learning and teaching about critical issues in the world today. 

Most notably, perhaps, is the fact that the faculty groups say that the university system’s restrictions on activism for Palestine amount to violations of the Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act (HEEERA), which protects employees from retaliation around advocating for changes in the workplace. This raises the issue of just how far universities can go, and the methods they employ, to maintain their complicity with genocide and ethnic cleansing.

Anna Markowitz is an Associate Professor in the Department of Education at UCLA. Her work is at the intersection of child development and policy for children and families. She is a member of the UCLA Faculty Association Executive Committee. 

Wendy Matsumura is Associate Professor in the Dept of History at UCSD. Her work is on the history of Japanese empire and Okinawan anti-colonialism. She is part of the UCSD Faculty Association Executive Committee. She is also part of the Workshops4Gaza (https://www.workshops4gaza.com) collective.

Annie McClanahan is an Associate Professor of English at UCI. She works on American culture and economic history and theory. She is the chair of the Irvine Faculty Association board.

Please see the Blog linked to this Episode for news and resources about this issue.