Teaching Assistants' Association
UW- Madison
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State Politics Impacting Us
State politics has a huge impact on us as graduate student workers, members of the UW community, and as citizens at large. State government, from the Governor to the state legislature to the Department of Public Instruction, especially have a large impact on us on matters ranging from those immediate to our lives to that which affects the broader communities of which we are part. That is why we organize to affect state politics, who is elected to office, and what issues are addressed and how they are addressed.
...As Graduate Student Workers...
From the basics of our contract to the general support of the UW that manifests itself in our day-to-day lives at graduate students and grad student workers, policy set in the state legislature impacts us all too greatly.
Wish we had higher wages and better healthcare benefits? We need elected officials that recognizes our importance to the UW system and reflects that in funding adequate for a decent contract. Remember, Wisconsin's universities work because we do - and the state government must recognize this.
Wish we had domestic partner benefits for all families? Our state passed a discrimination amendment to our constitution in 2006 that now precludes DP benefits - and there is anti-LGBT majority in the statehouse that prevents change. We need a progressive state legislature that understands that civil rights are universal and reflects that with policy change.
Did you know that UW-system faculty and academic staff are second-class citizens without collective bargaining and union organizing rights? They are such because of state statute that needs changing. We stand in solidarity with our fellow academic workers for their basic human rights. We need legislators that understand that workers' rights are vital - and good for the university.
...Members of the UW Community...
The state legislature tremendously influences the general state of the University of Wisconsin system, especially right here at UW-Madison. The most tangible way that they do so is the amount of state funding that is allocated to the university. While one-third of the UW budget used to come from state funding, now it is less than one-fifth.
Without strong support from the state, the lack of funding for the state's university system means that there are cuts in programs and a general erosion of the UW and its reputation.
We need pro-UW legislators and policy-makers that understand that the UW is the economic, cultural, and social driver of the state of Wisconsin. Needlessly attacking the UW system and failing to recognize the importance of the UW - and making policy decisions accordingly - damages the university system and the state of Wisconsin.
We need to not only build a majority of pro-UW legislators but also a majority that will take serious action to restore the UW-system and UW-Madison to its place as one of the premier institutions in the entire world.
...Citizens At Large...
Our lives do not end at the edge of campus. We are citizens and members of other communities. And we are part of two larger movements. As part of the labor and progressive movements, we want to see economic and social justice for all.
We think that there are basic human rights that cannot be infringed - and that actualizing them is good policy. We all deserve quality healthcare and a public education. All peoples have worth and we abhor discrimination, be it based upon race, ethnicity, gender, religion, or sexuality. Everyone deserves the ability to make a decent living and have hope for a better future.
We are not limited as citizens to being concerned simply with ourselves as members of the UW community, but instead being concerned with broader issues where our action is in line with the very principles that underly our existence as a union of professional workers.
So we work to elect progressive candidates to state office that will take action on these matters We work to build progressive political power to ensure that action is indeed taken. Working through the democratic political process is how we can affect social change on these issues that matter to us and define who we are, from the shop-floor to the statehouse.