Emily Mueller speaks at May Day ceremony May 3 in Chicago

Emily Mueller, president of the Chicago Alliance of Charter Teachers and Staff (ACTS), Local 4343, praised the power of unions to affect positive change during the May Day ceremony May 3 in Chicago.
 
“All teachers - charter school and public school teachers - face the same issues and challenges, so we need to stand together in solidarity,” she said. “Only in solidarity can we win the fight for better funding for education. Only in solidarity can we get better resources for our students. Only in solidarity can we achieve better working conditions for teachers everywhere.”
 
Last spring, Chicago ACTS made history by joining the IFT and becoming the first unionized members of a Chicago charter school.
 
The May 3 ceremony commemorated the 1886 Haymarket affair in Chicago in which four striking workers were killed at a rally protesting police brutality and supporting the eight hour work day.
 
Watch Mueller’s speech on You Tube here.

 [Illinois Federation of Teachers web]