The Virginia Teachers Union is in hot water for allegedly
mixing education with politics. A union member sent
out an email encouraging teachers to participate in “Obama Blue Day” by wearing a blue shirt (without displaying any
candidate names), and getting at least two people to register to vote.
The author concedes that she should have worded the email
differently—perhaps “Obama Blue Day,” for instance, was not the wisest turn of
phrase. But the union stands by the email as an example of the nonpartisan voter
registration efforts that Virginia
educators have long engaged in. The union voted to endorse Obama because of his
education policies, so the left-leaning tone of the email reflected that
endorsement; it was not an indication that teachers should influence their students' political leanings.
According to the union president, no teacher interpreted the email as a call to encourage students to
support Obama, as state Republicans have, quite understandably, charged. The president pointed out that "Obama Blue Day" was all but ignored. She even forgot all about it and wore red that day.
Just another reminder to take to heart the adage, "Always assume that whatever you write in an email will be published on the Internet."
Photo: Bag News Notes
