Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot Accuses Teachers’ Union of Holding Students ‘Hostage’

Dr. Susan BerryJanuary 6, 2022

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) said Wednesday evening the Chicago Teachers’ Union (CTU) is holding students “hostage” by refusing to allow teachers to show up for work on Thursday morning for in-person learning with claims of fears of the spread of coronavirus infection.

“I will not allow [the Chicago Teachers Union] to take our children hostage,” Lightfoot said during a press conference, according to Fox News. “I will not allow them to compromise the future of this generation of CPS students. That is not going to happen.”

UPDATE ON CLASSES FOR 1/6: There will be no in-person or remote instruction for CPS students Thursday, January 6. All after-school programs and other events are also canceled. For information on resources and Friday, January 7, please review the attached letter. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/XNrZkfAnlD

— CPS – Chicago Public Schools (@ChiPubSchools) January 6, 2022

According to the report, Lightfoot denied a demand from CTU that the district require all “staff, students, vendors, and volunteers” to produce a negative COVID-19 PCR test before returning to in-person learning.

“We are not going to rob parents of their right and their obligation to tell us if they want testing or not on their children,” Lightfoot said. “It’s not going to happen. It’s morally wrong.”

In an interview with WBEZ Wednesday as well, Lightfoot said:

We love our teachers. We appreciate them. But the CTU leadership is a whole different matter. And we cannot allow them to blow up the school system because they decide that they want to engage in disruptive, chaotic conduct.

The action will end when one of the following conditions is met: The current surge in cases substantially subsides, or the mayor’s team at CPS signs an agreement establishing conditions for return that are voted on and approved by the the CTU House of Delegates.

— ChicagoTeachersUnion (@CTULocal1) January 5, 2022

Pedro Martinez, CEO of Chicago Public Schools (CPS), the third largest public school district in the nation, announced during a press conference Wednesday in-person learning would be cancelled on Thursday.

The union voted on Tuesday, with 73 percent in favor of not showing up for in-person learning until their demands were met for greater health and safety conditions in schools, including more coronavirus testing and vaccination sites, and ventilation.

CTU voted to teach remotely and accused Lightfoot of locking them out of their online platforms.

Educators: Continue working remotely, and safely. Our solidarity is our strength. #LoriLockout pic.twitter.com/AdfFhaagZd

— ChicagoTeachersUnion (@CTULocal1) January 6, 2022

The Chicago Teachers Union, in an overnight message to members:
Meet “at or near” your schools today to make a plan for reaching parents in your area, getting them to sign a petition in support of the union’s demands + signing them up for COVID testing.

— Mila Koumpilova (@MilaKoumpilova) January 6, 2022

Day 2 of trying to teach my students virtually, only to find that once again locked out of my CPS accounts by Chicago Public Schools and Mayor Lightfoot. #LoriLockout pic.twitter.com/NodSrw3A3U

— Dave Stieber (@D_Stieber) January 6, 2022

If Chicago’s Mayor⁩ REALLY supported in-person learning she would make it safe by:

-testing students before a return to school
-distributing KN95 masks widely

THANK YOU Chicago teachers for fighting for student & family safety!!

⁦@CTULocal1 https://t.co/GENBCGpp8S

— Cynthia Nixon (@CynthiaNixon) January 5, 2022

CPS subsequently cancelled classes on Wednesday and also refused to allow remote learning for students.

In March 2021, CPS readied to receive another $1.8 billion in coronavirus taxpayer relief funds as part of a nearly $129 billion K-12 education spending bill that was part of President Joe Biden’s massive $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan.

The bill was described by many as having provided “historic” and “unprecedented” federal funding to K-12 schools.

This outlay to assist with coronavirus relief was the third infusion of federal funding for CPS since the start of the pandemic, reported the Chicago Sun Times, noting the district received a combined $925 million in 2020 from two initial grants.

Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said Wednesday during an interview on CNN’s Don Lemon Tonight she was concerned a failure to continue in-person learning “could just keep going on here.”

“And we’ve got to, at some level, learn to live with COVID with the appropriate safety mitigations in place,” Arwady added, contrasting that image with the “negative consequences” of “almost 100,000 kids disconnected from learning with the extended remote period.”