Union Talk

A Back-to-School Season Like No Other

AFT President Randi Weingarten talks to educators about their aspirations and anxieties as they enter a new school year. This is a back-to-school period like no other, fueled by anxieties over historic federal cuts, raids tearing children and families apart, city occupations, and fears about the future of our country. Weingarten and educators discuss how this is impacting schools and students and how educators continue to show up to teach, support, nurture and help students reach their dreams.

The Big Betrayal

AFT President Randi Weingarten unpacks the dangers for working people in the big, ugly bill being pushed through Congress by President Donald Trump and Republicans. The bill would affect nearly every family in America through horrific cuts to healthcare, education and critical services to fund tax breaks for the rich. Weingarten is joined by Alaska nurse Shannon Davenport, Connecticut nurse Heather Brauth and Virginia educator Laquetta Mackey to discuss how this bill will hurt patients, kids and our communities and what we can do to stop it from becoming law.

World Pride

AFT President Randi Weingarten sits down with Los Angeles educator and United Teachers Los Angeles member Skye Tooley, as well as student activists Rehman Hassan, Ray Loux and Erica McPheeters for a special live episode of Union Talk during World Pride in Washington, D.C. World Pride comes at a time of growing attacks against LGBTQIA+ people, and this discussion focuses on speaking out, staying engaged, and advancing basic humanity for all across generations. Pride is a time of both activism and celebration, and the panelists discuss how to keep the joy through this ongoing fight for freedoms and rights, as joy itself is an act of spiritual and political resistance.

Higher Education Under Attack

President Trump has declared war on America’s colleges and universities. The administration has launched investigations into dozens of colleges and universities and stripped billions in research grants from schools. The administration is disappearing students who are in the U.S. legally for exercising their First Amendment rights. Three professors and union leaders join AFT President Randi Weingarten to provide a view from the frontlines of Trump’s war on knowledge and discuss how we can fight back.

Economic Opportunity or Destruction?

We're talking economics on this episode of Union Talk, but you won’t need a Ph.D. to join the conversation. This episode focuses on how the economic policies of President Trump and Elon Musk hurt working and middle-class Americans—many of the same people who voted for Trump hoping he would help reduce costs and help working people achieve a better life. Economic expert Damon Silvers joins to set the baseline for the damage Trump and Musk are doing, and teachers Greg Cruey and Ternesha Burroughs share what their communities in Minnesota and West Virginia are experiencing. The group also discusses the labor movement's role in moving an agenda for broad-based opportunity and ensuring working people and their children have a shot at the American dream.