On December 10, 2025, educators, retirees, union delegates, and community members gathered at Judson Memorial Church for a timely and thought-provoking event: “Teach-In on Socialism: Exploring Theory and Practice.”
Hosted by economist Richard D. Wolff and moderated by Alan Schulman, the teach-in was organized by the Socialist Education Educators Caucus (SEEC) in collaboration with the UFT Retired Teachers Committee (RTC), members of the UFT Delegate Assembly, Democracy at Work, and The Left Forum.
The evening marked more than a discussion—it represented a historic shift within the United Federation of Teachers.
Breaking a 65-Year Silence
The event took place in the wake of a major political breakthrough. When UFT Retiree Advocates—leaders in the ongoing fight to protect Medicare coverage for retirees—organized and secured 300 seats in the UFT Delegate Assembly, they effectively ended 65 years of UNITY/UFT control that had limited discussion and curricular engagement with socialist ideas and critiques of capitalism.
That shift became especially visible during extended Delegate Assembly discussions about mayoral candidates. One candidate, running openly as a Democratic Socialist, was ultimately endorsed by both the DA and the UFT. Yet those conversations revealed something deeper: decades of political constraint had left many retirees with limited exposure to the historical evolution of socialist and cooperative economic systems—both globally and within the United States.
The teach-in was designed to address precisely that gap.
Setting a Baseline for “Socialism 2026”
SEEC described the gathering as a first step toward establishing a shared foundation for serious discussion about socialism in the present day. Rather than focusing on abstract ideology alone, the program examined socialism as a living and evolving set of economic practices and institutions.
Participants explored:
The theoretical foundations of socialist economics
The growth of cooperative enterprises worldwide
Real-world applications of worker-owned and publicly accountable systems
The history and contemporary relevance of democratic socialism in the U.S.
Richard Wolff framed the discussion around the structural crises of modern capitalism and the expanding global experimentation with cooperative and worker-directed economic models.
Why This Matters for UFT Retirees and Municipal Labor
The conversation was not merely academic. For UFT retirees and in-service staff, questions about economic systems are deeply connected to current struggles—particularly the fight to defend Medicare coverage and public-sector benefits.
The teach-in opened space to consider:
What alternative economic models could mean for public workers
How cooperative and publicly accountable systems impact healthcare, pensions, and labor rights
The broader future facing New York City’s municipal labor force
By connecting theory to lived experience, the event grounded socialist analysis in the immediate realities of union members and retirees.
Looking Ahead: Curriculum and the Future
Beyond discussion, the teach-in aimed to spark action. Organizers emphasized the importance of developing curriculum that introduces students—from K–16 public schools to CUNY classrooms—to cooperative and socialist economic frameworks.
For many in attendance, the event represented the beginning of a longer project: equipping educators with the tools to teach about multiple economic systems honestly and rigorously, and preparing students for a rapidly changing economic future.
A Beginning, Not an End
This teach-in was described by SEEC as the first in an ongoing effort to normalize informed discussion of socialism within union spaces and educational institutions.