Chicago Teachers’ Union President: “Rich White People” To Blame For Chicago School Failure

by John Hawkins | June 21, 2013 6:32 am

Chicago’s public schools are extraordinarily bad. How bad? Well, 79% of their 8th graders aren’t grade-level proficient at English and 80% aren’t grade-level proficient at math[1]. Naturally, the head of the teachers’ union in that city is saying that the buck stops with her for that terrible performance and…oh wait, actually she’s blaming “rich white people” because she sucks at her job[2].

Karen Lewis[3]

CHICAGO (EAGNews) — Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis is full of excuses for why the city’s schools are hemorrhaging money, failing to educate students, and laying off teachers by the hundreds.

During her tenure as union head, Lewis has blamed Chicago Public Schools’ problems on Mayor Rahm Emanuel, charter schools, standardized tests, bankers, venture capitalists, a lack of funding and “a culture of fear.”

During a recent speech to the City Club of Chicago, Lewis focused on her two most inflammatory excuses for CPS’ failures: “racism” and “rich white people.”

“When are we going to address the elephant in the room? When will there be an honest conversation about the poverty, racism and inequality that hinders the delivery of a quality education product in our school system?” Lewis asked the decidedly upscale audience.

“When will we address the fact that rich, white people, think they know what’s in the best interest of children of African Americans and Latinos–no matter what the parent’s income or education level,” she said, according to SubstanceNews.net.

Here are a few facts for that “honest conversation” Lewis claims to want to have. Chicago[4] is 32.4% black, 31.7% white, 28.9% Hispanic. Additionally, Lewis is black and Chicago Public Schools CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett is black.

In other words, the school system is 60.6% non-white, the people in charge aren’t white and the people being blamed for the schools’ horrible performance are….white? Maybe instead of scapegoating white people for her failures, Lewis should do the best possible thing for the kids and resign so that someone competent can take her place.

Endnotes:
  1. 79% of their 8th graders aren’t grade-level proficient at English and 80% aren’t grade-level proficient at math: http://cnsnews.com/news/article/us-department-education-79-chicago-8th-graders-not-proficient-reading
  2. actually she’s blaming “rich white people” because she sucks at her job: http://weaselzippers.us/2013/06/19/chicago-teachers-union-boss-blames-racist-rich-white-people-for-chicagos-school-woes/
  3. [Image]: https://rightwingnews1.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Karen-Lewis.jpg
  4. Chicago: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Chicago

Source URL: https://rightwingnews.com/education/chicago-teachers-union-president-rich-white-people-to-blame-for-chicago-school-failure/