Chicago Teachers Union seeks day off for May Day civic action
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The Chicago Teachers Union, on behalf of the national May 1 movement, advocates giving teachers and students a day off on May 1.
May 1 is also known as International Workers’ Day, which celebrates workers and advocates for workers’ rights.
on wednesday, union approved A resolution to designate May 1 as a day of “Civic Action and Defense of Public Education” and requesting support from Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Chicago Board of Education.
CTU Vice President Jackson Potter said, “If we still want democracy in the midterm elections this November, public schools that provide quality education for our students, and unions that defend workers’ rights, then it is the responsibility of every Chicagoan to stand up for what we believe in and show the authoritarian billionaire in Washington that it will not be business as usual when he breaks every rule.” he said in a statement.
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In its resolution, the union claimed public education was under attack by “MAGA politicians,” apparently a reference to supporters of President Donald Trump.
“Public education faces an unprecedented national assault driven by MAGA politicians, billionaire donors, and corporate interests who seek to privatize our schools, censor educators, ban books, dismantle civil rights protections, criminalize and separate immigrant families, and weaken labor unions,” the resolution reads.
The union said it stood with Minnesota and advocated keeping Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) out of cities.
He also called for policies aimed at “taxing the rich.”
The resolution called for “No Work, No School, No Shopping,” and instead spend the day “engaging with our students, their families, and neighbors, supporting mutual aid efforts, leading civic education, participating in voter registration, learning your rights, and engaging in mass resistance training from start to finish of the day.”
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Anti-ICE protesters gather in Minnesota on Saturday, February 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
The union argued that Mayor Johnson could use state law to allow an excused absence to attend a “public event.”
“When the President sends federal agents to occupy our cities and the Governor chooses to continue giving tax breaks to billionaires instead of giving our students the day of school they deserve, it takes more than textbooks to teach our students what civil action looks like,” Potter said in a statement to Fox News Digital. he said.
“If we still want to have democracy, public schools that provide quality education for our students, and unions that defend workers’ rights in the midterm elections this November, then it is the responsibility of every Chicagoan to stand up for what we believe in and show the authoritarian billionaire in Washington that it will not be business as usual when he breaks every rule,” he added.
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Johnson called May 1 “an important demonstration of collective strength.”
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“Ultimately, it is each family’s responsibility to decide how or whether they will participate in any civic action,” Johnson told Fox News Digital. “As Mayor, I will work with our partners at CPS and in our school communities to find solutions to ensure there is no loss of instructional time.”
