Lines drawn as unions and communities challenge the priorities of the ruling class with Chicago teachers' strike and dozens of actions across the city...
Among the thousands of teachers and others who walked the picket lines across Chicago on April 1, 2016, were the teachers and students of Steinmetz High School. Above, one group on the picket line with the school building looming in the background. Substance photo by Sharon Schmidt.As April 1, 2016 dawned across Chicago and Illinois, the latest challenge to the austerity version of economics in the world's wealthiest nation was beginning. Since the 1970s, when Substance first began documenting it, and during the 40 years since, the talking point of the Chicago and Illinois wealthiest people has been the same: We'd love to pay Chicago teachers more, to provide better services, but "there is no money."
And so it was when Richard J. Daley was mayor; when Michael Bilandic and Jane Byrne were mayor; and even (despite the myths believed by some people, including some of those leading the April 1, 2016 events) when Harold Washington was Chicago's mayor. And since Washington it's been, more or less, the official Party Line of Richard M. Daley, and most recently, of Rahm Emanuel. Emanuel added some of the most dishonest hostility against Chicago's teachers to the narrative following his inauguration in May 2011. Ignoring the facts and the challenges of teaching in America's most segregated (and often violent) cities, Rahm Emaneul took office and immediate launched a propaganda and personal attack on the 30,000 members of the Chicago Teachers Union. Among other lies Emanuel and his expensive propaganda teams pushed into the public narrative was that Chicago's public schools had the "shortest school day" in the USA.
CHICAGO TEACHERS UNION FINAL DAY OF ACTION PRESS RELEASE...
NEWS ADVISORY
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Stephanie Gadlin
March 31, 2016 312/329-6250 (office)
312/890-0866 (cell)
StephanieGadlin@ctulocal1.com
Website: www.ctunet.com
Chicago Teachers Union releases full schedule of the April 1st Day of Action events to shutdown poor governance and fight for revenue
Pickets were active at Willa Cather Elementary School on Chicago's West Side on April 1, 2016. Substance photo by Jean Schwab.CHICAGO-The following information has been updated for news planning purposes of the Chicago Teachers Union's one-day strike and the citywide "Day of Action" demonstrations among a number of labor, student, activists, faith and community organizations organized to fight for just and progressive revenue solutions to restore the fiscal health to the state and save schools and universities. While all events are necessary, important and designed to mobilize citizens and communities in a concerted effort to force lawmakers to make the rich pay their fair share, highlighted in red are supposed large-scale demonstrations of significance.
Day of Action & Shut It Down Nonviolent Direct Action Events
6:30am to 9:00 am
8:30 a.m.. CTU President Karen Lewis at King High School Picket
4445 S. Drexel
9:00 a.m.. CTU President Karen Lewis at Beasley Elementary Picket, 5255 S. State Street
Members of the Chicago Teachers Union will staff pickets at every school and participate in key feeder marches for coalition activity:
1) Roosevelt High School, 3436 W. Wilson Avenue and Fight for $15 will shut down a near-by McDonalds when workers engage in a work stoppage. CTU Vice President Jesse Sharkey will join the Roosevelt picket lines at 6:30 a.m.
2) Saucedo Elementary School, 2850 West 24th Boulevard, will have large scale demonstrations with parents and local communities.
3) Harlan High School, 9652 S Michigan Ave: Nursing home workers will join teachers, paraprofessionals and clinicians at pickets and will walk to a nearby McDonalds where workers will engage in a strike. Group will march to Chicago State University for teach-in.
8:30am. Educators will picket at Bogan High School, 3939 West 79th St. and will march to Illinois Department of Rehab Services office at 7600 South Pulaski to demand the state fund the program.
9:30 am. Activists will rally in front of the Cook County Jail at California and 26th Street to denounce the school-to-prison pipeline and demand access to higher education regardless of citizen
10:00am. Citizens will picket of luxury hotel TIF recipient of $55 million at McCormick Place, corner of Cermak and Wabash
10am to 1:30 pm. Teach-In with Randi Weingarten at North Eastern Illinois University, 5500 N. St. Louis: There will be a New Orleans style jazz funeral march regarding the death of higher education. Demonstrators will have symbolic coffins for health-care, k-12 education, etc. followed by rising of a symbolic phoenix
10:00 am to 12:00 pm. Chicago State University students and BYP100 members to lead a teach-in on campus at the CSU Rotunda in Student Union.
10:30 am. News conference at the Nabisco Plant at 7300 S. Kedzie. A large number of workers will be joined by teachers, students and citizens to protest the destruction of 600 jobs at Nabisco. Bakery Confections Tobacco and Grain Millers Local 300, Warehouse Workers for Justice, United Electrical Workers, the Chicago Teachers Union.
11:00 am. SEIU- Child care and early learning worker action with members from centers and home child care providers, maybe CTU and other partners speak out at Montefiore (1301 S Ashland) with CTU, other partners maybe (closed special ed school); Children's march/action on Bank of America (1212 S Ashland)
12 pm. SEIU - Contract/universal child care Teach-In and Lunch. Meet at NEIU, 5500 N. St. Louis. A delegation of child care workers will go to Ambassador Nursing and Rehab, 4900 North Bernard, to decry state budget cuts.
12:00 pm to 2:00 p.m. Rally at Chicago State University, 9501 S King Dr, where CSU President Thomas Calhoun will be joined by Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr., and CTU President Karen Lewis and other labor and student leaders in a demonstration to demand revenue to save state universities.
12:00 p.m.-2:00 p.m.. Westside Accountability Chapter of Democracy for America and Increase the Harvest will support Chicago Teachers Union with a rally at Emmett Elementary School to show the disinvestment in public education on the West Side of Chicago
1:00 pm - 2:30 pm. Kenwood Oakland Community Organization will host a Community Teach-In at Mt. Carmel Church, 2976 S. Wabash
2:45 pm. Brighten Park Neighborhood Council to lobby Ald. Edward Burke at City Hall to stop charter expansion in the city of Chicago. Protest to follow.
2:00 pm. Youth from across the city will engage in a direct action at the Illinois Youth Center, 136 N. Western, to call for closing youth prisons . This is the location of a juvenile detention center that warehouses 100 male youth each day.
2:00 pm to 3:00 pm. University of Illinois at Chicago - Student Rally To support higher education and party on the Blue Line to the Thompson Center Rally; Location: Quad
2:00 pm to 3:00 pm. University of Chicago Student Rally in solidarity with CTU strike at University of Chicago Main Quad
2:00 pm. DePaul University Student Rally in solidarity with CTU at 2325 North Seminary
2:30 pm. Loyola University Student Rally in solidarity with CTU at the CTA Loyola Red Line
2:30 pm. March from Logan Square Neighborhood Association office, 2840 N Milwaukee Ave, to Centennial Monument at Logan (near Kedzie and Milwaukee) then onward to Blue Line and to rally at Thompson Center
3:00 pm. Brighton Park Neighborhood Council will conduct a teach-in at the richest man in Illinois' (Ken Griffin) office, Citadel 131 S. Dearborn
3:00 pm. Alliance for Human Services will do an action at the Illinois Department of Human Services, 401 S Clinton to demand revenue. Workers will then march to the Thompson Center with a stop off at JP Morgan Chase to demand that they not fund the JDL project and they find low cost housing and that they renegotiate any toxic swaps they may be involved in.
3:30 p.m.. Cook County College Teachers Union Local 1600 will march to Fund our Future Rally at 208 W. Kinzie Street, Chicago
4:00 pm to 5:00 pm. Airport Workers Action - No other information is available
4:00 pm. Day of Action: Fund Our Futures Rally & Protest March
JR Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph
4:00 to 5:00 pm Rally
5:00 to 6:30 pm Protest March
The Chicago Teachers Union issued its final orders to its members on the evening of March 31 by email:
Prepare for Tomorrow
As CTU members prepare to join with thousands of people from other unions and community groups in our strike and day of action, below are some important last-minute pieces of information and links to resources you may need. Included at the bottom is a full schedule of events taking place around the city tomorrow.
Citywide Members
Members with multiple school assignments should pick the school at which they would ordinarily be scheduled for that day. Members who work for a particular network should follow this assignment sheet to determine your picket location.
Delegates
As noted in previous communications, your picket line should start at 6:30 a.m. Please contact your district supervisor if you will have a different time. Please check in Friday morning when your picket line is up, so your district supervisor can report it to strike headquarters. Please use the Sign-In Sheet below to record all members who conduct picket duty. If you are having trouble finding the picket sign pickup because 1901 W. Carroll does not appear on your google map, that is because the building is not currently occupied. It is the building that CTU will convert into our new union headquarters for the coming year.
Resources
Chant Sheet
Picket Line Protocols
Picket Duty Sign-In Sheet
CTU Policy on Strikebreakers
A petition for parents to sign if they are bringing in students
Schedule of Events for April 1
Time Event
6:30 a.m.
Educators will picket at every CPS school.
8:30 a.m.
Educators will picket at Bogan High School, 3939 West 79th St. and will march to Illinois Department of Rehab Services office at 7600 South Pulaski to demand the state fund the program.
9:30 a.m.
Activists will rally in front of the Cook County Jail at California and 26th Street to denounce the school-to-prison pipeline and demand access to higher education regardless of citizenship. 10:00 a.m.
Citizens will picket of luxury hotel TIF recipient of $55 million at McCormick Place, corner of Cermak and Wabash.
10:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Teach-In with Randi Weingarten at Northeastern Illinois University, 5500 N. St. Louis: There will be a New Orleans style jazz funeral march regarding the death of higher education. Demonstrators will have symbolic coffins for health-care, k-12 education, etc. followed by rising of a symbolic phoenix.
10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Chicago State University students and BYP100 members to lead a teach-in on campus at the CSU Rotunda in the Student Union. 10:30 a.m.
News conference at the Nabisco Plant at 7300 S. Kedzie. A large number of workers will be joined by teachers, students and citizens to protest the destruction of 600 jobs at Nabisco. Bakery Confections Tobacco and Grain Millers Local 300, Warehouse Workers for Justice, United Electrical Workers, the Chicago Teachers Union.
11:00 a.m.
SEIU: Child care and early learning worker action with members from centers and home child care providers, CTU and other partners speak out at Montefiore (1301 S. Ashland) with CTU, other partners maybe (closed special ed school); Children’s march/action on Bank of America (1212 S. Ashland).
11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Westside Accountability Chapter of Democracy for America and Increase the Harvest will support the Chicago Teachers Union with a rally at Emmett Elementary School to show the disinvestment in public education on the West Side of Chicago.
12:00 p.m.
SEIU - Contract/universal child care Teach-In and Lunch. Meet at NEIU, 5500 N. St. Louis. A delegation of child care workers will go to Ambassador Nursing and Rehab, 4900 North Bernard, to decry state budget cuts.
12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Rally at Chicago State University, 9501 S King Dr, where CSU President Thomas Calhoun will be joined by Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr., and CTU President Karen Lewis and other labor and student leaders in a demonstration to demand revenue to save state universities.
1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Kenwood Oakland Community Organization will host a Community Teach-In at Mt. Carmel Church, 2976 S. Wabash.
2:45 p.m.
Brighton Park Neighborhood Council to lobby Ald. Edward Burke at City Hall to stop charter expansion in the city of Chicago. Protest to follow.
2:00 p.m.
Youth from across the city will engage in a direct action at the Illinois Youth Center, 136 N. Western, to call for closing youth prisons . This is the location of a juvenile detention center that warehouses 100 male youth each day.
2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
University of Illinois at Chicago – Student Rally To support higher education and party on the Blue Line to the Thompson Center Rally; Location: Quad
2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
University of Chicago Student Rally in solidarity with CTU strike at University of Chicago Main Quad
2:00 p.m.
DePaul University Student Rally in solidarity with CTU at 2325 North Seminary
2:30 p.m.
Loyola University Student Rally in solidarity with CTU at the CTA Loyola Red Line
2:30 p.m.
March from Logan Square Neighborhood Association office, 2840 N Milwaukee Ave, to Centennial Monument at Logan (near Kedzie and Milwaukee) then onward to Blue Line and to rally at Thompson Center
3:00 p.m.
Brighton Park Neighborhood Council will conduct a teach-in at the office of the richest man in Illinois (Ken Griffin) at Citadel, 131 S. Dearborn.
3:00 p.m.
Alliance for Human Services will do an action at the Illinois Department of Human Services, 401 S Clinton, to demand revenue. Workers will then march to the Thompson Center with a stop off at JP Morgan Chase to demand that they not fund the JDL project and they find low cost housing and that they renegotiate any toxic swaps they may be involved in.
3:30 p.m.
Cook County College Teachers Union Local 1600 will march to Fund our Future Rally at 208 W. Kinzie Street, Chicago
4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Airport Workers Action – Bus leaves O’Hare Hyatt at 3:45 p.m.
4:00 p.m.
Day of Action: Fight for Funding Rally & Protest March
JR Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph
4:00 to 5:00 p.m. Rally
5:00 to 6:30 p.m. Protest March
