By Jerry.
On the eve of a historic battle between Chicago teachers and Rahm Emanuel, in what is to be the biggest fight for quality education in recent history, I find myself unable to sit still. I am in awe of the Chicago Teacher’s Union and their leadership and, at the same time, genuinely annoyed by the leadership of my own leaders in the IEA. While I am a suburban teacher, it is undeniable clear to me the impact the fight in Chicago will have on my profession, the school I work in, as well as the school my children attend. The issues central to CPS teachers are completely and totally parallel to those facing teachers throughout the state.
Fair salary in an era of teaching that is increasingly demanding more from me professionally and personally, the implementation of an evaluation system that clearly has no hope of truly improving teaching, the reduction and possible elimination of promises made to my pension and the lack of respect from many “special interests” who choose to characterize public school teachers as part of the problem facing the Illinois economy.
As I watch the carefully crafted plan of the CTU being carried out and their articulate representatives in the local media, I am profoundly struck be the connection between the CTU’s leaders and its rank-and-file membership. Whether it’s their President, Karen Lewis, speaking on the local news or some inconsequential elementary school physical education teacher from the south side of Chicago answering a reporter’s questions, the message is all-in-one the same. How a group so large and so diverse is functioning as a whole, turning public opinion in their favor, as they are, and against some of teacher’s strongest enemies, is truly incredible to watch.
In the meantime, I will be wholeheartedly throwing my support to the Chicago teachers, of which I have never been prouder to say that my sister is one, while I am in utter bewilderment of my own leaders in the IEA. Never in my 21 years of teaching have felt so confused and misguided in my role as a rank-and-file union member. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I understand completely what’s at stake. My legislators know me by my first name. I lobby them as often and possible with whatever handful of teachers and union members I can manage to join with in my community. I carry the message that I believe is a noble one with little, if any, clear understanding of what the message is from my union.
Wishing deeply that the IEA had reached out to the membership with some, or any plan to help local members organize among each other or crafted an approach to organize around the attacks we face in the state, I will go on with my best efforts to individually make a difference. But one need only look at the contrasting moods between the web-sites and Facebook pages of the CTU and IEA to know where the battle being fought will be won.
Never before have I given the meaning of Labor Day such thought and never has it meant so much to this teacher. The meaning of this Labor Day to teachers is clearly a tale of two stories: on the one, the CTU clearly calling for justice for the education community in its call for action within its’ membership culmination with a major rally in downtown Chicago with a strike looming in the background, and on the other, the IEA with a pathetic Facebook post of a 1:27 video of NEA President, Dennis Van Roekel on the definition of Labor Day.
Today, I stand with my CTU brothers and sisters on Labor Day.
Fred Klonsky 
I am not sure of my union leadership to help with our crisis. I feel weakness on their part. To put it mildly, I do not think they have our best interest. I admire CTU for its cajones to shut down the system if they need to in order to get what they deserve which I think is reasonable to me. I do not know if our union leaders know what they are fighting for on our behalf. Am afraid they are going to sell us down the river. They have not attempted to organize us to show solidarity for our critical cause.
When Ralph Nader called G.W. Bush “a corporation in the disguise of a human being,” he hadn’t yet seen Rahm Emanuel. Other than Arne Duncan, no individual represents the horrid face or neoliberalism and total corporate dominance than the widely despised Chicago Mayor.
The rest of the country will be standing behind the CTU, we know this represents the last stand of working people against the onslaught of the one percent.