A.L.E.C.

   The American Legislative Exchange Council (A.L.E.C.) sounds like such a positive and All-American kind of organization but looks are deceiving. ALEC is one of the most deceptive organizations on the planet and as such is truly public enemy #1 to teachers, teachers’ associations, and public education.

   For many of you this is new news, for others this is additional evidence to be added to a rapidly developing pile. The America we once knew will be gone if we as teachers and teachers’ associations/unions don’t wakeup and do what is necessary to take back our profession and our country. Who is really running our country?

   Let me back up, who or better yet, what is ALEC? ALEC is a SUPERPAC for corporations. This organization has been in existence for over 40 years but has not been impacting policy at every level until recently. The organization not only contributes massive amounts of money into the American political process, thereby buying influence. This group goes one step farther by wining and dining politicians during elaborate conferences. The conferences allow ALEC to remake our country into one that blatantly favors industry/ corporations at the expense of every thing else. The group trains political leaders and ghost writes bills/ legislature to be taken back to their states to be implemented.

   Our state, the state of Virginia, is ground zero for their efforts. The speaker of the House of Delegates is or was an executive of the organization. ALEC trained our governor, lieutenant governor, and the attorney general. Most of the principal players in both houses have had ALEC training and received large political campaign contributions (Virginia Public Access Project).

   All the efforts to minimize the impact of teachers and their organizations are ALEC products. Their efforts are concentrated in weakening public schools and public education. Public education is the new frontier. It is viewed as a potential private business bonanza worth 600 billion dollars. Virtual schools, charter schools, parent triggers are all a portion of their agenda. The elimination of continuing contract for teachers is a way of stripping the teachers of their power and stripping them of their due process.  The weakening and destruction of teacher’s associations is part of their efforts to eliminate unions and the protections they provide.

   Progress Virginia is tracking their impact and efforts in this state.

   Wisconsin, Ohio, and other states are also under their spell. All of the anti-teacher legislation and anti-teacher association/ union legislation originated with ALEC. Any time you wish to get to the bottom-line on an issue, track the money and you will track the influence.

   The efforts to deregulate our environmental standards are ALEC’s efforts. The voter suppression/ strict voter ID efforts are products of ALEC. The most publicized and most damaging legislation associated with ALEC are the Florida Stand Your Ground rules. Many corporations dropped their affiliations with ALEC because of the negative publicity.

  Who are the primary movers and shakers of ALEC? The answer is the Koch Brothers and WALMART.