Recap of CTU Rally on Wednesday, February 4
Over five thousand students, parents, teachers, and allies rallied with the Chicago Teachers Union for a fair contract and against the proposed layoffs.
Tuesday, Chicago Public Schools announced the need to eliminate pension “pick-up” in 30 days as well as cutting $100 million from schools, resulting in nearly 1,000 personnel cuts. This comes hours after CTU rejected the latest contract proposal, a contract they believed to be unfair and discriminatory for the most vulnerable students in the City.
Two days later, the Union organized a mass rally at Bank of America on W. Adams [home of the toxic swap deals] that mirrored the Union’s 2012 “show of force.” Vice President Jesse Sharkey believed in the mass demonstration and virtual shutdown of the “Loop”: “We’re going to need to see political seriousness on the part of the [school] board and political leaders that have appointed the board…we would like to see more than empty promises.”
As the “sea of red” flooded the city for nearly four hours, hundreds of CPS students joined their teachers at the rally. Amongst the thousands were Payton teachers along with their families, parents, and students.
The Paw Print 
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