Latest skeptic of teachers unions is clothing label’s city billboard
This spring, the West Side Highway’s
typical advertising fare also includes a political message that seems
aimed at teachers unions.
A billboard advertising Kenneth Cole — the clothing company owned by
Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s brother-in-law — puns to southbound
commuters, ”Shouldn’t Everyone Be Well Red?” In smaller lettering, the
billboard says, “Teachers’ Rights Vs. Students’ Rights …”
The second line evokes a tension drawn out repeatedly by some critics
of teachers unions, including Cuomo, who say that unions’ support for
teachers’ job protections can stand in the way of students’ education.
The billboard also invites viewers to visit WhereDoYouStand.com,
a website maintained by the city-based company, to weigh in on “Issue
in the News.” This spring, one of the issues is “Should underperforming
teachers be protected?”
That question attracted the company’s attention this winter, as media
attention turned to efforts underway across the country to toughen
teacher evaluations. Locally, a breakdown in negotiations over
evaluations late last year and the controversial public release of
reports on teacher performance in February were both accompanied by
criticism of teachers unions, including from Cuomo.
“We heard people talking about it in the news,” said an official in
Kenneth Cole’s public affairs department who declined to give her name
but said she worked on the ad campaign.
“It’s something in the news and being debated, and we wanted to
provide a forum where people could discuss it as well,” said the
spokeswoman, who added that the billboard is meant to tap into ongoing
public discussions, not to attack unions. The ad went up March 14 and is
the only one advertising Kenneth Cole in the city, she said.
Education policy positions are hardly common fodder for clothing ads.
But Kenneth Cole Productions is known for its advocacy campaigns about
pollution, homelessness, and other social concerns, and sometimes the
messages address timely political issues. Last year the same Manhattan
billboard featured a pro-same-sex marriage message, coinciding with its
legalization in New York State.
Kenneth Cole’s three daughters attended private schools; his youngest
is currently a senior at a Westchester County private school. The
designer is married to Maria Cuomo, whose brother is Gov. Cuomo.
