Chicago’s Teachers Are Making History. Again. | The Nation

Chicago’s Teachers Are Making History. Again. | The Nation

Chicago’s Teachers Are Making History. Again.
Rank-and-file workers are finally taking back their unions, and strikes are spreading across the country as a result.

The beginning of a resurgence of strength among America’s unions today can be traced to two seminal events: the September 2012 seven-day strike by Chicago’s teachers, and the less-noticed June 2010 internal union election at the Chicago Teachers Union. That was when a slate of progressive, forward-thinking educators won all the top seats inside their union, ending nearly three decades of do-nothing unionism at the third-largest teacher’s union in the country. Jackson Potter, a teacher and one of the architects of that victory—and the subsequent strike—told me back in the fall of 2013, “Our ability to connect with the community has been key for us. But I worry about our ability to have much success over the long run if there aren’t other worker-led insurrections.”

Potter and 26,000 coworkers helped set the stage for the Chicago strikes, but they couldn’t have predicted the ensuing string of successes toward rebuilding a high-quality public school system, driven by educators from West Virginia to California. The strike that many people regard as the kickoff—the February 2018 West Virginia teacher’s strike—can also be traced back to Chicago. Despite a four-decade general assault against workers and unions, and a specific and especially vicious two-decade attack against America’s teachers, when the Chicago teachers walked in September 2012, the public sided decisively with them—and against Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Suddenly, expectations were raised that workers could fight, even strike—and win. Now with a strike date set for October 17, the focus returns to Chicago’s educators.

Much has changed since 2012, but one factor is refreshingly constant: The teachers’ union remains bottom-up, democratic, resilient and strong. Two other groups of workers in two different units, represented by SEIU local 73, have also voted to authorize strikes on October 17. These additional workers include an important group in the Chicago CONTINUE READING: Chicago’s Teachers Are Making History. Again. | The Nation