The Wall of Silence About NYC's Rubber Rooms

This guest column is by Jennifer who sent this to the NYCORE listserve. Her raising the rubber room in the context of social justice and humanitarian activism is an important angle to consider as she challenges radical teachers to address the issue. NYCORE's increasing interest in labor/union issues is a very welcome addition to the debate.


Rubber Rooms are the most glaringly obvious example of the Bloomberg Administration disregard for Human Rights. The "buzz" is that talking about the rubber rooms is dangerous. Teachers and organizations that deem themselves radical won't even breach the subject.

What does this say about us as Teachers, Social Leaders, Humanitarians and/or Activist when we sit back silently and allow the current administration to use rubber rooms to destroy innocent Teachers,Whistle blowers and students lives.

The public has been made aware of the Rubber Rooms by a few journalist and media outlets who have been willing to share the story but to-date there has been little to no activism around the issue of the Rubber Rooms by the Teachers.

The guestimation is that over 1000 Teachers are languishing in rubber rooms all over the city yet, they too remain virtually silent about this national tragedy.

A big rally was held for the plight of the ATR's but their story is just the tip of the iceberg and nothing compared to the unethical use of rubber rooms as a political weapon against Teachers and their student.

The current crisis of Rubber Rooms and our silence as Teachers about their illegal use is saddening.

This story and the silence we are maintaining about it is one of the greatest shames of the city today and we teachers, as a whole are helping to perpetuate its deadly impact.

When I think about the reality of the part Teachers played in the deep south during the Civil Rights Movement of the 60's, I'm reminded that in truth, it was the Teachers who were the last ones to join in the fight for justice and humanity for African Americans back then.

In Alabama at the height of struggle, students began to become anxious to join in the city marches against Jim Crow. As they gathered among themselves at their schools, they began to become more and more agitated about remaining in the schools while marches against the system were taking place in town.

It was Teachers and their Administrators who under fear of losing control of the students, locked the gates to barricade them inside. In response, students jumped over school gates and joined the marches and propelled the Civil Rights Movement forward.

Teachers are we on the wrong side of history again? What example are we really setting for the children when we lay silent about the current administrations' use of Rubber Rooms and why do we do it?

Jennifer