NPR Says Karen Lewis is Too….Something to Speak for Teachers
Because of Rosh Hashanah, I’m a little late to this story. And now that the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) has voted to suspend the strike, it might be moot. But still, it’s worth noting.
On Sunday, the CTU voted to continue striking so that its members could have additional time to discuss and debate the terms of Chicago’s contract offer (which is still not final).
You’d think that decision would have been held up as a triumph of deliberative democracy. Here you had union members demanding time and space to discuss the rules that govern their everyday lives, not waiting passively for their leaders to determine their fates. If this happened in other countries, we’d call it a Chicago Spring (or something). Right?
Leave it to NPR to spin the story as a troubling sign of CTU President Karen Lewis’ potential failure as a leader and increasing inability to serve as a spokesperson for the teachers’ cause. No reason is given as to why she can’t serve as that spokesperson; no evidence is provided that she hasn’t. But, hey, there’s just something about her…What might it be?
Have a listen to the NPR report here.