Mayor Lori Lightfoot criticized the Chicago Teachers Union on Sunday after a tense battle over the reopening of city classrooms for personal learning during the pandemic, according to a report.
Lightfoot, a Democrat, said her office maintains peace with almost every person [organized labor] unit, except for the Fraternal Order of Police, and the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU), which according to her aspirations have “similar to a political party.”
“If you have unions that have other aspects than being a union, and maybe are something similar to a political party, then there will always be conflict,” she said in an interview with the New York Times Sunday.
“I think ultimately they want to not only take over Chicago Public Schools, but also take over the management of the city government,” Lightfoot added. “It will play out in time. I’m not really spending time, and certainly not in the midst of a pandemic, and I’m worried about politics. But politics always intrudes.”
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Pre-kindergarten students listen on January 11 while their teacher reads a story in Dawes Elementary in Chicago (AP / Chicago Sun-Times)
Her comments come after the Chicago Teachers Union last week approved a proposal by the city’s public school district to reopen elementary and middle schools. It ended a bitter stance and the mayor avoided a second CTU strike within two years.
In the midst of the struggle, educators have expressed concern about school safety as parents and families have dealt with tension and uncertainty about the future of their children’s education.
“Many of our residents are still very scared. They are very concerned about the virus. So addressing the needs of parents is a big part of the needs of our larger residents through education, through outreach,” Lightfoot said. told the newspaper. .
“In this pandemic, social life has been completely torn from so many of our young people. Their social-emotional learning is absolutely central to their growth, and yet we see how they learn on screens. We know this is not the best way for them to learn, ‘she continues.
According to the proposal, students and staff will report to classrooms alone before the K and special education this month. They are followed on March 1 by students in grades K-5 and on March 8 by students in grades 6-8.
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The public schools in Chicago were originally planning to bring back its K-8 students for personal learning on February 1, but the dispute hampered their return when union members told them to work remotely during negotiations.
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Despite the ongoing tensions, Lightfoot and the union are likely to meet in the near future to discuss the reopening of the city’s high school. The mayor added that she is focused on reopening high schools and wants seniors to have a normal experience during their final year.
President Biden has called for most schools to be reopened within his first hundred days.
Fox News’ Greg Norman and Edmund DeMarche contributed to this report