Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates proposes that children are part of the educational system.

CTU President’s Bold Claims about Children

During a speech at the City Club of Chicago, Stacy Davis Gates, the President of the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU), made some striking comments about the role of educators in children’s lives.

“Baldwin says the children are always ours. Every single one of them, all over the globe. And what comes next is ‘CTU thinks your children are its children.’ Yes, we do. We do. We do,” Davis Gates stated on Monday, referencing the influential writer and civil rights advocate James Baldwin.

She continued, “’CTU thinks all children belong to it. And they’re a socialist conspiracy ideation.’ Well, I don’t know about all that, but we like children. We educate them, we nurse them, we protect them, we support them, we negotiate for them, we create space for them. We even have them in our homes.”

Her speech was part of a longstanding tradition at the City Club of Chicago, which has hosted numerous figures from various political backgrounds since its inception in 1903.

Corey DeAngelis, a senior fellow at the American Culture Project, commented that the performance of Chicago’s public school system is lacking, suggesting that if the CTU were a parent, it would face consequences for educational neglect. “The irony is glaring,” he said, criticizing the state of education in the city.

Davis Gates has been noted for her controversial statements in the past, especially regarding school choice policies. Last year, she claimed conservatives aim to hinder Black children’s ability to read, framing it as an ideological commitment.

Amid contract negotiations with Chicago Public Schools, the CTU called for over $50 billion in funding to address wage increases and other demands, which, in context, matched the state of Illinois’s total base tax receipts from the previous year.

The union’s requests come at a time when Chicago is grappling with an enrollment crisis in its public schools. Recent reports reveal many schools are operating below capacity, leading to escalated costs and reduced course options. The current student enrollment stands at around 325,000, a significant drop from a decade ago.

Despite spending approximately $18,700 per student, some institutions incur remarkably higher expenses. For instance, Frederick Douglass Academy High School, with just 28 students, boasts a staggering cost of $93,000 per student.