Analysis and Commentary

Everett Traverso teaches philosophy which at the JC's introductory level is mainly a discussion of rhetoric, reasoned argument and the identification of fallacies. So it should be fun and informative to do a step-by-step de-construction of his argument:

Clearly, Everett is bothered by the allegation that
any advantages that SRJC full-time faculty has or that the SRJC institution as a whole have been achieved on the backs of the Adjuncts faculty.

There are 900-1200 Adjuncts teaching 40% of the classes at 1/3 the pay. Of course, the college is benefitting from this windfall. Does Everett acknowledge or take responsibility for this? No. He is mainly bothered by the allegation. This is where the magic of "cognitive dissonance" comes in.

To be sure
some Adjuncts faculty are treated grossly unfairly....some. Those Adjunct faculty who are treated grossly unfairly are those who in a nation-wide search would be hired as full-time faculty members who have taught here for a long time, but who because we do not allocate enough money for full-time faculty members continue in the position of second-class faculty

The standard method for exploiting people without suffering any moral sting or mental dissonance is to de-humanize them or in this case, de-value them, hence Everett's solution: most Adjuncts are not "real teachers" after all.

What I considered the gross oversimplification is to argue that all or even most Adjunct faculty member fall into that category. Some of them, certainly in my department, frequently are what I would call "apprentice faculty". That is they are people who have the very minimal education and usually no teaching experience. And we take the risk of hiring them and we cultivate them and we train them and we work with them. It is simply not the case that the majority fall into that first class of being exploited.

Whether this is Eliza Doolittle and Professor Higgins or Jane Goodal and the chimps, he doesn't say. But I want names Everett. Just who are these 500+ instructors for whom our students are just guinea pigs? We can start our own teacherreview.com right here at SRJC. And where is this training camp you mention? Where can I sign up for my own full-timer "Big Brother" or "Big Sister"? I've been here eight years and haven't seen so much as a single flyer or announcement.

Everett's next point is to argue that we are all victims and that no one injustice outweighs any others:
Secondly, second gross over-simplification think, is to argue that in all the injustices within this institution, and there are many, that the only injustice or the most important or most grievous injustice, is that of Adjunct faculty members. There are many injustices. There are injustices to short-term, what we call short-term, non-continuing classified, who we hire and fire and hire and fire over and over again. There are simply injustices to classified in general who we don't hire enough classified. There are injustices, I would argue myself and I think very reasonably and seriously on this, that if there are any advantages that this college and other colleges hae gained from misusing faculty that the full-time faculty are misused.....

.....There are many classes of employees exploited here. We ought to be concerned with all of them.

This tactic is the oldest trick in the book, Everett, and as a teacher of philosophy, you know it. (for those "in the biz" it's explained by Hannah Arendt in her book On Violence) Perhaps the plight of other part-time workers in the classified area is somewhat comparable, but to argue that full-timers are victims is just ludicrous.

Everett's final point is to argue that there is nothing the College can do about the situation.

The third gross oversimplification, I think, comes from whether or not we can do anything about it......
When you look at what people in California have done to us in terms of paying us, it just.... I just get so upset when somebody points a finger and says, "you are immoral because you're doing this." I just think, you know, the issue is so much bigger than this. I think the problem with this kind of oversimplification is that it clouds our vision about what we can do. What can we do?

At our local campus level, he answers his own question partially. Everett thinks other full-timers can and should:

.....certainly treat the Adjunct Faculty as equals. We can certainly increase the communication with them. We can do all those kinds of things that Michael[Ludder] has been talking about. We have also said in this group here that there are other things that will help us understand the Adjunct Faculty members.

.....[we can] work at the state-wide level. We need as a Senate to be more involved at the state-wide level and we need to be in the kinds of unions that are working for people at the state level....

I don't know why Everett or other full-timers would do this if they look upon their Adjunct colleagues as "apprentices." Besides this, as I expressed in my subsequent rebuttal: "We really need to move beyond pro forma pleasantries of "better communication" and "equal respect." You need to throw Adjuncts bigger bones than these."

For Everett, the bottom line is that there is little we can do at the local level.

because there's only so much we can do at the local level to try to remedy these gross injustices that happen to so many people here.

Well, Everett, here you are. As I state in my rebuttal: Isn't your current decision at hand (Adjuncts representation on the Academic Senate) a place to begin? How about the Academic Senate telling the AFA to stop foot dragging and stonewalling Adjunct issues on their piece of turf? How about forcefully telling Pres. Agrella to stop lobbying against Adjuncts? You know and I know that the deck is stacked against Adjuncts at eery level of campus government and you're complicit. Or how about just coming out of denial with yourself and helping other full-timers to do the same? You cannot hide behind Orwellian language, flimsy logic nor protestations of "morality." The facts of the matter are just too conspicuous. Furthermore, hiring more full-time faculty will only perpetuate the dynamics of the Academic underclass. As anyone who has looked at the situation will tell you, addressing Adjunct concerns is the place to begin.

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