‘We Will Not Retreat,’ Teachers Union Rep Tells PUSH
CHICAGO (STMW) – The Rev. Jesse Jackson and a Chicago Teachers Union representative said on Saturday that work will be done to fight back against the recent layoffs of more than 2,100 Chicago Public Schools employees, as well as laws that led ultimately to the acquittal last week of George Zimmerman in the fatal shooting of Florida teen Trayvon Martin.
Addressing a crowd that included some CTU members, in red T-shirts, CTU organizer Brandon Johnson spoke at the Saturday Morning Forum at Rainbow-PUSH headquarters, 930 E. 50th St.
“The mayor of Chicago … has misled the people by claiming we can close the budget deficit by closing scores of schools,” Johnson said. He said that CPS’s move to let go of 2,113 employees, including 1,036 teachers and 1,077 support staff, “is unconscionable, and it’s dirty. This move by CPS will continue to exacerbate an already stressed system,” he said.
“We will not retreat,” Johnson said. In an effort to get action from elected representatives, he said, “we’re gonna show up to ward