A-Infos (en) France, UCL AL #362 - Trade Unionism - SUD Education Congress: Ambitious Political Directions (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

The trade union congress season continues. Here is the turn of the SUD 
Education federation. Libertarian communist delegates offer us an 
initial perspective. Given the fruitful debate within the UCL, future 
articles will surely return to it with a more critical angle. ---- The 
SUD Education congress was held from May 12 to 16, 2025, in Toulouse, 
one year after that of Solidaires, its interprofessional union. We 
analyze positive progress in terms of inclusion, anti-racism, 
secularism, and internal tools. ---- SUD Education Vendée ---- 
Anti-racist trade unionism against Islamophobia
Far from moral anti-racism, SUD Education seeks to position itself on 
the side of political anti-racism, based on a systemic analysis of the 
oppression suffered by non-white people. This position is notably 
affirmed by the demand for the repeal of the 2004 law prohibiting the 
wearing of "ostentatious religious symbols," for a school that does not 
scrutinize the slightest actions of non-white students, that does not 
condition the schooling of girls on the length of their dress or the 
width of their headband. This law is denounced by anti-racist groups as 
a major Islamophobic offensive that particularly undermines the 
education of Muslim girls or those perceived as such. By making this 
demand, SUD Éducation confirms a significant anti-racist advance.

For an inclusive, accessible, and anti-ableist school
SUD Éducation also takes a firm position on ableism[1]and its 
consequences for students. Many children with disabilities, deemed 
"unfit for a mainstream environment," are excluded and isolated from the 
rest of society in schools run by private associations funded by public 
money. Entry into these institutions often means lifelong exclusion from 
social life and access to education. As adults, they are often only 
entitled to employment in work-support establishments or services 
(ESATs). This so-called "protected" environment, paradoxically, provides 
workers with no coverage under labor law.

One of the major demands of disability activists and anti-disability 
groups is the deinstitutionalization of all people with disabilities, 
which means a single school for all. SUD Éducation calls for the 
construction, with students with disabilities and their families, as 
well as with workers in the medical and social sector, of a school where 
every child has a place and access to all the necessary care and support.

Fighting for Children's Autonomy
Completely rethinking pedagogy, objectives, and the general organization 
of schools to make them truly inclusive would benefit all students (and 
staff).

Just as the violence and control exercised over people with disabilities 
are justified by a desire to ensure their "protection" or "security" in 
the ableist system, the domination exercised over children by adults is 
justified for the same reasons in the infantist system[2]. Like women in 
the past, almost all rights are being taken away from them: their own 
income, political expression and organization, free control over their 
bodies, legal and judicial procedures, etc.

By committing to fighting against infantism, SUD Éducation aims to 
enable children to freely control their bodies (clothing, medical 
procedures, gender transitions), but also to be protected from the 
exploitation of employers who seek to gain control of an ever younger, 
vulnerable, and (almost) free workforce through internships and 
apprenticeships. It also allows them to protect themselves from the 
growing militarization and authoritarianism perpetrated by the state, 
whose objective is to produce good, docile, and obedient little soldiers 
who can easily be transformed into cannon fodder for the capitalists' wars.

Red/MILO Photo Library
Tools under construction
Systemic oppression doesn't stop at the door of our unions; even among 
comrades, there are contentious issues. To establish a framework for 
calm debate, a whistleblower system was tested for the first time at the 
congress: it allows a small number of trained and responsible 
individuals to speak out in the event of racist, sexist, or ableist 
interventions, with the aim of contextualizing and returning to a 
respectful framework.

As at every federal body, a gender-specific measure of speaking time is 
in place to counter the effects of patriarchy. This time, a threshold of 
50% speaking time for cis white men has been established. It was also 
voted that women and gender minorities, as well as non-white men, would 
be given a voice at the podium for one afternoon during debates on the 
texts on anti-racism and secularism.

Other federal tools are being maintained. The Conflict Resolution 
Commission, responsible for mediating and easing tensions within unions 
that request its assistance, was formally enshrined in the bylaws during 
the congress. The Sexist and Sexual Violence Unit, in place since 2023, 
is also being strengthened with a more comprehensive charter. However, 
conflicts persist within the federation and within certain unions.

SUD Éducation is still under construction, and these ambitious 
guidelines, adopted by a large majority, are currently unprecedented in 
the union landscape. For us, they demonstrate the vitality of the desire 
for social transformation, the fight against all forms of oppression, 
and continue to propose a form of unionism based on an emancipatory 
social vision.

Mathilde and Fred (UCL Nancy), Thomas and Méline (UCL Le Havre)

Validate

[1]Systemic oppression suffered by people with disabilities.

[2]Systemic oppression suffered by children.

https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Congres-SUD-Education-Des-orientations-politiques-ambitieuses
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