Great fact sheet: Chicago's wonderful Teachers Union!

The Blue State Confederacy Of Dunces Has Big Plans For You

By Matt Rosenberg

The capture of Chicago Public Schools by the Chicago Teachers Union was complete long before the latest COVID-related teachers strike – now resolved.

Two mayors in a row have been bullied by CTU into growth caps on public charter schools. This when less than one of five Black CPS fourth and eighth graders can meet basic proficiency standards in math and reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress.

The state legislature in 2021 at CTU’s behest agreed to a moratorium on the closure of any Chicago public schools for several years, even the ones below the benchmark occupancy level of 70 percent.

Teacher strikes are common in Chicago but not allowed in most other big districts; they are also explicitly or effectively illegal in 37 states. Chicago parents are voting with their feet, as students continue leaving CPS in droves. So CTU muscles in with some fixes to preserve what’s left of their slipping monopoly.

During the latest strike, a private CTU Facebook group was discussing keeping a “scab” list for teachers who defy the union by actually showing up to work.

One participant, a CTU delegate and teacher at a school in the city’s Bronzeville neighborhood, wrote, “I will be reporting the names of members who go in.” In a message sent to all CTU members, a field representative of the union similarly urged the reporting of any such dissidents.