Members of the Chicago Teachers Union made good on their plans to protest Rahm Emanuel's office over proposed Chicago Pubic School closings Friday evening, landing several protesters in jail after they refused to leave the fifth floor of City Hall outside the mayor's office.
Chicago Teachers Union Vice-President Jesse Sharkey said police arrested 10 people at about 10 p.m. Friday, the Sun-Times reports.
Reuters said more than 200 people came to protest or stage a nearby sit-in as teachers union members, parents of Chicago school students and other activists rallied against the school closings.
Chants to the mayor's office ranged from an creative "Hey Rahm, we’re no fool, you will not close our schools,” to a succinct “We here, Rahm!” said the Sun-Times.
CPS has a Dec. 1 deadline to offer up a list of schools for the chopping block, and early Friday, CPS CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett announced she would seek an extension the deadline. The teachers union, meanwhile, said it wanted to quash school closings altogether rather than simply delay the decision.
"We have called for a moratorium on all school actions until we have an analysis of the devastating impact these actions have on our students and neighborhoods," said Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis in a statement Friday.
Emanuel has argued "We have more buildings, chairs, tables and desks than we have students in our district," according to Reuters.
Related
Before You Go
