Guide to the Anne Filardo Papers on Rank and File Activism in the American Federation of Teachers and in the United Federation of Teachers TAM 141
Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archive
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
10th Floor
New York, NY 10012
(212) 998-2630
tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu
Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Collection processed by Tamiment staff. Edited by Rachel Schimke for compliance with DACS and Tamiment Required Elements for Archival Description and to reflect the incorporation of addenda (2013).
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on April 19, 2018
Finding aid is in English using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Descriptive Summary
| Title: | Anne Filardo Papers on Rank and File Activism in the American Federation of Teachers and in the United Federation of Teachers |
|---|---|
| Dates [inclusive]: | 1964-2001 |
| Dates [bulk]: | 1970-1989 |
| Abstract: | Anne Filardo (1922-2010) was a guidance counselor and progressive education activist. She served in leadership positions in the United Action Caucus and the Teachers Action Caucus. The collection contains convention materials, correspondence, newsletters, fliers and leaflets, news clippings, agendas and minutes, reports, and other materials created or collected by Filardo from her involvement with several teachers' unions and other organizations. The dominant organizations represented in the collection are the United Action Caucus (UAC), part of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT); AFT as a broader organization; and the New York-based Teachers Action Caucus (TAC), part of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT). |
| Quantity: | 5 Linear Feet in 5 record cartons |
| Location: | Materials are stored offsite and advance notice is required for use. Please contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu at least two business days prior to research visit. |
| Language: | Materials are mostly in English, with some materials in Spanish |
| Call Phrase: | TAM 141 |
Historical/Biographical Note
Anne Filardo (1922-2010) was a guidance counselor and education activist. She was a member of the former Teachers' Union of the City of New York, many of whose leading activists were Communists. The Teachers Action Caucus (TAC), a rank and file opposition group formed within the New York City United Federation of Teachers (UFT) in 1968, was founded by members of the Teachers' Union (including Filardo, who served as chairperson) and younger teachers representing the New Left of the 1960s. The impetus for the group's founding was its objection to the UFT's position relating to the impending crisis in relations between the UFT and the African American community. These tensions, particularly surrounding parents' right for community control in the Ocean Hill-Brownsville section of Brooklyn, erupted in a teacher strike. TAC also went on to oppose the leadership of the UFT on a broad range of issues relating to its education, labor, and domestic and foreign policy positions. With the rise of the progressive New Action Coalition in the late 1980s and early 1990s, which many TAC members participated in, TAC became less active and eventually ceased to exist.
Filardo was also active in the United Action Caucus (UAC), a rank and file organization created within the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) in 1971. She was a founding member of UAC and served as membership secretary and vice-chairperson. UAC took stands on various issues within the American educational system, supported progressive politics in general, and campaigned for internal democracy within the AFT.
Filardo was also a member of the Communist Party USA's National Teachers' Commission, the New York State United Teachers (NYSUT), and a number of other progressive teachers' organizations and other leftist groups.
Scope and Content Note
The collection contains materials created by several teachers' organizations and their members, particularly the national United Action Caucus (UAC), part of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT); AFT as a broader organization and some of its subgroups (i.e. the Coalition for a Democratic Union and the Black Caucus); and the New York-based Teachers Action Caucus (TAC), part of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT). To a lesser extent, the collection documents the activities of the Communist Party USA's National Teachers' Commission; New York State United Teachers (NYSUT); Teacher Democracy, part of NYSUT; the National Education Association (NEA); New Caucus, AFT; and Teachers for Community Control, the predecessor to TAC. Many of the materials are the notes, correspondence, and writings of Anne Filardo, but much of the collection contains convention materials (including official governing documents), fliers and leaflets, reports, news clippings, newsletters, and other materials generated by or pertaining to the AFT, UFT, and other groups. Most folders include Filardo's handwritten summaries of the contents of each folder. The collection dates from the late 1960s to the early 2000s, though the majority of materials are from the 1970s and 1980s.
The materials in the collection, which were mostly created or collected during or in preparation for conventions, document the time period's prevalent controversies in the field of education, such as the struggle to attain equal opportunity for racial minorities and the debates regarding education reform practices like merit pay and peer review. Additionally, the collection provides insight into the internal politics of these organizations, like the opposition to UFT and AFT president Albert Shanker, the debates over the proposed NEA/AFT merger, and TAC member Michael Shulman's campaign for the position of Vice-President for academic high schools. The materials also reflect the organizations' concern with domestic affairs outside the direct realm of education and with international politics and social issues. The collection contains a copy of the Carnegie Forum on Education and the Economy's 1986 report on the teaching profession, as well as Filardo and the AFT's notes and writings on the report. There is a small amount of printed ephemera from various left-wing education, women's rights, and labor groups. Filardo's writings and speeches on a multitude of education-related topics are also included.
Arrangement
This collection has not been arranged by an archivist. The materials are arranged in the order in which they were received from the donor. Most materials were arranged and labeled by Anne Filardo according to the year(s) in which the materials were generated and/or the topic of the materials.
Access Points
Subject Names
- Filardo, Anne Levine, 1922-2010
- Shanker, Albert.
- Shulman, Michael
- Filardo, Peter
Document Type
- Agendas (administrative records)
- Fliers (printed matter)
- Circulars (fliers)
- Petitions.
- Newsletters.
- Minutes (administrative records)
- Correspondence.
- Clippings (information artifacts)
Subject Organizations
- United Federation of Teachers
- Teachers Action Caucus
- Communist Party of the United States of America. National Teachers Commission
- American Federation of Teachers
- American Federation of Teachers. United Action Caucus
Subject Topics
- Strikes and lockouts -x Teachers -- New York (State) -- New York.
- Schools -x Decentrali-ation -- New York (State) -- New York.
- Minorities -x Education -- New York (State) -- New York.
- Teachers -x Workload -- New York (State) -- New York.
- Teachers' unions -- New York (State) -- New York.
- African Americans -- Education -- Social aspects.
- Civil rights -- New York (State) -- New York.
- Labor union democracy -- New York (State) -- New York.
- Community and school -- New York (State) -- New York.
- Discrimination in education -- New York (State) -- New York.
- Educational equali-ation -- New York (State) -- New York.
Administrative Information
Conditions Governing Access
Materials open without restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Any rights (including copyright and related rights to publicity and privacy) held by Anne L. Filardo were transferred to New York University in 2013 by Peter Filardo. Permission to publish or reproduce materials in this collection must be secured from the Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archive. Please contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu.
Preferred Citation
Published citations should take the following form:
Identification of item, date; Anne Filardo Papers on Rank and File Activism in the American Federation of Teachers and in the United Federation of Teachers; TAM 141; Box number; Folder number; Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, New York University.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Anne L. Filardo, 1997, 2000, and date unknown; additional materials were donated by Peter Filardo (son) in 2013. The accession numbers associated with these gifts are 1997.058, 2007.007, 1950.287, and 2013.005.
Processing Information
The collection is comprised of several donations that were initially separated into two different collections. Box 1 of the collection was placed into archival quality folders, arranged and described by an archivist, and established as the Teachers Action Caucus (United Federation of Teachers) Records (TAM 141). Materials from boxes 2 through 5 were established as the United Action Caucus (American Federation of Teachers) Records (TAM 388). In 2013, the collections were united and renamed the Anne Filardo Papers on Rank and File Activism in the American Federation of Teachers and in the United Federation of Teachers (TAM 141) to more accurately reflect the collection's provenance and content.
Also in 2013, some materials from the original TAM 141 collection were separated and established as a distinct collection, the Joyce Wheeler American Federation of Teachers Papers (TAM 388).
Some loose materials in Boxes 2 through 5 were placed in archival folders. These folders were supplied titles by the archivist, which is indicated with square brackets.
Container List
| Container 1 | Title | Date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Box: 1 | Box 1
Scope and Content NoteTeachers Action Caucus (TAC), United Federation of Teachers (UFT) re: Campaigns Teachers for Community Control re: 1968 Teachers' Strike and its Aftermath Perlstein, Dan. The 1968 New York City School Crisis: Teacher Politics, Racial Politics and the Decline of liberalism. PhD. Dissertation, Stanford University, 1994. Chapter 1, "Introduction;" Chapter 3, "Teachers for Community Control and the Limits of Anti-Racism." |
1968-1997 | ||
| Box: 2 | Box 2
Scope and Content NoteUnited Action Conference (UAC), American Federation of Teachers (AFT): |
1977-1990 | ||
| Box: 3 | Box 3
Scope and Content NoteUAC, AFT and AFT: New York State United Teachers (NYSUT): National Education Association (NEA): Carnegie Report (1986) |
1971-1986 | ||
| Box: 4 | Box 4
Scope and Content NoteUAC, AFT and AFT: NYSUT: Leaflets on Various Leftist and Independent Groups Subject Files re: Selden-Shanker Dispute, Shulman (1985-1986), School Based Management-School Decision Making, and Merit Pay Anne Filardo Speeches and Writings National Teachers' Commission, Communist Party of the United States of America and Teachers' Section, New York State Communist Party (1970s-1990s) |
1972-2001 | ||
| Box: 5 | Box 5
Scope and Content NoteUAC, AFT and AFT: National Education Association, NYC Office (1970s) Subject Files re: Decentralization and Community Control; NYSUT/NEA Disaffiliation; 1968 Teachers' Strike Women Strike for Peace Meeting in Toronto (1969) National Teachers' Commission, CPUSA (1970s-1980s) Anne Filardo Speeches |
1964-1998 | ||