Correction...

Randolph Stone

My apologies to Randolph Stone, director of the University of Chicago's Criminal and Juvenile Justice Project Clinic and a former public defender, for referring to him as "an insider."

I'm told by a friend, who knows better than I do, that, "PDs are outsiders and he's a great advocate for those charged, convicted and incarcerated."

Having said that, I hope Stone will resign from the mayor's discredited Task Force and help form a truly independent People's Task Force.

Thanks, B.D.

We need an independent People's Task Force in Chicago

I'm all for the call by A.G. Lisa Madigan,  for a federal civil rights investigation of the Chicago PD and City Hall's ongoing cover-up of recent police killings. I'm glad to see that the call to bring in the feds is gaining broad support, including most recently from a group of retired African-American police officers and from (get this) Hillary Clinton.

The mayor's proposed Task Force is a farce and its members should be ashamed to have agreed to take part in this charade.

Even a federal investigation is not adequate. While Obama's Justice Dept. has stepped up investigations of big-city police departments -- at least, compared to Bush's DOJ -- results have been too slow in coming and there's little or no transparency in the process.

The current ongoing federal investigation in Chicago of the Laquan McDonald murder has even been used by Anita Alvarez and Rahm Emanuel as an excuse for not releasing the video of the shooting. And for not telling us that officer Jason Van Dyke, had been accused of misconduct 18 times before he killed Laquan.

Plus, the feds have spent months in Ferguson as well as in Chicago, investigating civil rights violations and corruption, only to come back with politically expedient band-aid solutions, and empty reports leading to little or no change.

Alongside the Justice Dept. investigation, we need an independent People's Task Force that is representative of the community. One that includes community groups, black and Latino youth activists, progressive pols, parents, women and LGBT groups, victims of police brutality and mistreatment, teachers and community elders. Expert witnesses, journalists, academics, victims of police brutality, and even members of the CPD should be called to testify and tell their stories.

Findings should be summed up in a report to the public and in media reports with a list of demands and recommendations for community action.

Retired African-American cops call for federal investigation.

Who could call together such a Task Force? How about it, Black Caucus and Progressive Caucus of the City Council, together with the city's labor coalition?

Without an independent People's Task Force, we will once again be relegated to spectator status and be fed (no pun intended) a little to hide a lot.

Oh, and while we're at it...How about a truly independent Police Review Authority to replace the look-the-other-way IPRA? The N.A.A.C.P. issued the following statement this week:

“The Independent Police Review Authority, (IPRA) was created to be an independent agency that investigates police shootings and misconduct cases. Currently, this process isn’t truly independent because cases are sent back to Chicago Police Department to approve. The process needs to provide IPRA with true independent authority with referral rights to an independent prosecutor.”

More on that later.

No more fun and games.

No Paris trip for Rahm. Staying home to close more schools.

CHICAGO — It was strange to watch Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s hands tremble behind the podium as he talked to reporters about his new task force aimed at improving accountability in a police department that a lot of Chicagoans don’t trust. -- Mark Konkol at DNAInfo

While Rahm trembles, all the national news shows this a.m. began with the story of his  possible departure. But the Little Emperor tells Natasha Koreki at Politico, he's staying, like a good captain, ready to go down with the ship come election time. I'm wondering what the other ship officers, like his big-money campaign patrons, think about those prospects? They've invested a lot in Rahm and stand to lose a lot when the ship sinks.

Yesterday's New York Times editorial reads:

Mayor Rahm Emanuel demonstrated a willful ignorance... All along, Mr. Emanuel’s response, either by design or because of negligence, was to do as little as possible — until the furor caused by the release of the video forced his hand. The residents of Chicago will have to decide whether that counts as taking responsibility.

They're right. We will. 

Rahm tells Korecki, "I'm staying." We'll see. 

One thing I know for sure. Rahm isn't leaving for Paris as planned or anytime soon. If he's read his history, he knows that coups d'etat happen happen most when the emperor is out of town. Beware the Ides of December. 

Another thing I know is that Rahm's newly-formed, so-called, Task Force on Police Accountability, is a farce and those who accepted appointments to it have now made themselves complicit in the cover-up the mayor is perpetrating. They are all insiders, including: 

• Sergio Acosta, former federal prosecutor

• Joe Ferguson, former federal prosecutor and Chicago's inspector general

• Hiram Grau, former director of the Illinois State Police and former deputy superintendent of the Chicago Police Department

• Lori Lightfoot, president of the Chicago Police Board and a former federal prosecutor

• Randolph Stone, director of the University of Chicago's Criminal and Juvenile Justice Project Clinic and a former public defender

From the Tribune: 

"We've seen the mayor put together a hand-selected task force, and then they come out with a very managed result," said freshman Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, 35th. "Now is not the time to have more closed-door conversations."

"Someone who has been involved in this kind of litigation and fighting these issues over decades should be involved," said veteran Chicago civil rights attorney Flint Taylor. "I think this commission should have representatives from Black Lives Matter, Black Youth Project 100 and We Charge Genocide. They are the young people who most represent the people who are getting shot and getting beaten."

Fat chance.

PCP??...I can't let go of the way even the best news people (like Phil Kadner) keep reporting that Laquan McDonald was high on PCP when he was executed by officer Van Dyke. Didn't any of them read the medical examiner's toxicology report? It shows clearly that NO DRUGS were found in Laquan's body during the autopsy. Some, like ABC News7's Ben Bradley, tweeted me that there was another report showing the PCP. But if there is such a report, where is it? Who did it and why? 

I'm pretty sure the PCP issue will be used by Van Dyke's defense lawyers to show the killer's state of mind when he pumped 16 shots into Laquan's body. There must be one reporter out there who can shine a light on this one. 

MORE SCHOOL CLOSINGS...While everyone has their eyes focused on the McCarthy firing and the video cover-up story, Rahm and Claypool are quietly planning more school closings and consolidations. Wake up people!

I've particularly got my eye on the planned move of Spry's Community Links High School into the same building as Saucedo and Telpochcalli in Little Village. 

According to Catalyst:

CPS is proposing to move Spry’s high school one grade at a time over the next three years. Currently the high school is split between the building it shares with Spry Elementary and a leased space in an adjacent Boys & Girls Club building. CPS officials say the co-location would allow CPS to end the lease and save money -- about $90,000 a year.

But the plans came as a surprise to some staff at the schools.

“This is news to my knowledge,” says Maria Cosme, a school counselor at Telpochcalli. “We do not understand why.”

There's always winners and losers in these consolidations and building sharing schemes. Telpochcalli, a nationally recognized small, dual language, arts-focused school. It is one of the last of the original teacher-led small schools to survive the destruction of Chicago's once-potent small schools movement. Looks like they're coming after it again.

Saucedo teachers and parents organized the first of the citywide opt-outs of the PARCC exams. Could this be pay-back?

And why? To save $90,000. Why not save it by getting get rid of half an area chief and leave the schools alone?

A community meeting is planned for this evening to organize a response. I'll be there. 

A Sinking ship

I watched an old film, "The Shipping News" the other night. I liked it, mainly because it's set on the wild, stormy, Newfoundland coast and stars Kevin Spacey, one of my favorites. One scene that grabbed me, had newsman Quoyle, played by Spacey, an inexperienced sailor out in an unworthy boat in rough waters, bailing furiously while the sea overtakes and sinks his sorry craft... (I'll stop here, in case you haven't see it).

That image stays with me as I'm following (and telling) the story of the equally unworthy craft, the leaky Rahm Emanuel regime in the midst of another stormy scandal. Only Rahm (a terrible actor) is in the sinking boat with a crew of thieves and scalawags. Among them, his indicted schools chief Barbara Byrd-Bennett, police Supt. Garry McCarthy and State's Atty. Anita Alvarez. As the story unfolds, Rahm is faced with the choice of throwing some of the dead weight overboard or going down with the ship.

But no matter how hard he bails, it's the rotting, fabric of the regime that's sinking him. And each of his hand-picked crew that gets tossed, only reveals the depths of the problem.

Rahm didn't hire Alvarez. Like him, she was elected and therefore not so easy to dump, even after her betraying of the public trust in her mishandling of the 16-shot, racist police execution of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald. So many questions still remain. But she pretty much sealed her fate last week when she stood before the media and assured the public that cops hadn't erased the tapes from the Burger King cameras, showing officer Van Dyke pumping more than a dozen rounds into the bleeding body of McDonald. The tape may well not have been erased. I can't imagine the missing 86-minutes could show anything more damning they the mysteriously-soundless video that Alvarez and Rahm were finally forced to release.

But anything is possible with this group of scoundrels. Case in point: The city is sitting on another damning video of a cop shooting an unarmed black man, Ronald Johnson. This seems to be Rahm/Alvarez M.O.

Yesterday, reporter Carol Marin showed actual pictures of  street cops sitting at the BK computer going through the tapes. Why?

Alvarez may be forced to resign before my choice, Kim Foxx, gets a shot at her in the upcoming election. I would rather see her go out that way so that Foxx is the people's choice. But either way, it's all good.

McCarthy swears he's staying and that Rahm "has my back". He obviously doesn't know Rahm very well. Ask Byrd-Bennett.

He's toast.

WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Kim Foxx, running against Alvarez

Carol Marin

“The federal investigation of the shooting is active and ongoing,” the U.S. Attorney’s office assured us this week. 

Just remember. The feds never hurry. And Chicago is bleeding. -- Sun-Times

Kim Foxx

“She [State's Attorney Anita Alvarez] waited until her hand was forced by intense political and media pressure surrounding the release of this painful video. She waited even after City Hall was prepared to pay the McDonald family $5 million in damages.” -- Chicago Defender

Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve, former member of "Anita's Army"

It was in this culture that Anita Alvarez and many other prosecutors (including Mayor Richard M. Daley) rose through the ranks of the Office of the State's Attorney, participating in its racialized rules of abuse and being institutionally rewarded with promotions and then, election wins. -- NBC News

House Select Committee on Indian Affairs

 “The goal of Indian education,” according to the committee, “should be to make the Indian child a better American rather than to equip him to be a better Indian.” -- Politico: How Washington created some of the worst schools in America

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka

Well, I always say, you know, most people who talk about schools have never been in one besides the fact that they graduated from an elementary school or high school. The reality is, schools get better when a community supports them. -- Democracy Now

Colleen Connolly

On Wednesday morning, the hashtag #ResignRahm was trending on Twitter in Chicago. -- Ward Room

Demand Rahm Emanuel's resignation. pic.twitter.com/kkk8buxzSi #ResignRahm Add your name. https://t.co/HCt1vL5uVJ

— Leland W Griffin Jr (@LeeGriffin42) November 29, 2015

Chicago needs better than @RahmEmanuel. We need a mayor who cares more about black lives than xmas trees. #BlackLivesMatter #ResignRahm

— Kian B. (@FalseFlorimell) November 29, 2015

It’s not about bad apples. It’s about a rotten tree that’s producing rotten fruit. Cut it down at the root. #LaquanMcDonald #ResignRahm

— Amara Enyia (@AmaraEnyia) November 29, 2015

Harvard News: 'Veritas'

Dean Minow

In the face of student protest following an outbreak of racist vandalism on campus, Harvard Law School Dean Martha L. Minow has appointed a committee to consider “whether to continue” —the crest of the former slave-holding Royall family that endowed Harvard’s first law professorship in the 19th century.

The school’s seal, which features three sheaves of wheat under an emblem of “Veritas,” came under attack earlier this year when a group of students, calling themselves “Royall Must Fall,” demanded its removal in light of its connection to slavery.

There is no truth to the rumor that the racist seal will be replaced by one featuring three dollar signs. 

Claypool on SpEd cuts: The 'formula' done it.

The great thing about Rahm's hand-picked chosen few who run the school system is, they can do no wrong -- unless they are caught, that is. Accountability is a one-way street, a word reserved for CPS' beleaguered teachers.

Case in point: In the face of mounting parent protest and appeals by principals, Forrest Claypool now says he's restoring nearly 150 lost special education positions system wide. And how did those positions get lost in the first place? It was "the formula", says Claypool. The formula done it.

Writes S-T's Lauren Fitzpatrick:

CPS said it based special ed positions on a “flawed funding formula” in late September and since has corrected the errors to make sure every child with an Individualized Education Program gets the services guaranteed to them under federal law. Following vociferous complaints from teachers and parents about shortages and cuts made for the first time ever after school began, CPS agreed to hear appeals and has begun notifying schools of the changes, the district announced Wednesday.

Of course, the 150 restored positions are just a small part of Claypool's announced $42 million in SpEd cuts for district-operated (not charter) schools, and 5,000 teacher cuts overall, set for February. And a question now is, how are you going to find 150 available teachers at this point in the school year?

But it's still amazing, the way parent/teacher protest can correct a "flawed" formula. Isn't it? I think it was Frederick Douglass who said: "No struggle, no progress."

Black Friday Protest: '16 Shots. Stop the cover-up!'

When Black Friday comes
I'll stand down by the door
And catch the grey men when they
Dive from the fourteenth floor -Steely Dan

The first recorded use of the term “Black Friday” was applied not to holiday shopping madness, but to financial crisis: specifically, the crash of the U.S. gold market on September 24, 1869. Two notoriously ruthless Wall Street financiers, Jay Gould and Jim Fisk, worked together to buy up as much as they could of the nation’s gold, hoping to drive the price sky-high and sell it for astonishing profits. On that Friday in September, the conspiracy finally unraveled, sending the stock market into free-fall and bankrupting everyone from Wall Street barons to farmers.

Today's Black Friday protest called by Rev. Jesse Jackson, CTU Pres. Karen Lewis and other ministers and community-based organizations, targeted ongoing police violence and the cover-up by political leaders of the brutal killing of a black teenager by killer cop Van Dyke, who pumped 16 shots in the body Laquan McDonald. 

Several thousand of us marched up Michigan Ave., rallied at the Water Tower, and disrupted business as usual on this, the busiest shopping day of the year. Our slogans called for the removal of those complicit in the cover-up and the delaying the release of the video and the charging of Van Dyke for 13 months -- Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Police Supt. Garry McCarthy, and States Atty. Anita Alvarez.

Be sure to read this commentary posted on NBC News by Temple Univ. Prof. Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve. who's the author of the forthcoming book, "Crook County: Racism and Injustice in America's Criminal Courts." Van Cleve's point is that this is a matter of institutionalized racism, not a case of a few bad apples.

She writes:

...they are merely the figureheads of an entire criminal court system fueled by racism. A court system where the death of another black boy barely makes anyone stand up and take notice and staying quiet about the police officers involved in the shooting is considered a professional courtesy amongst peers.

Mom from Ohio explains to son why protesters are on Mag Mile: "they shot a man 16 times.." #LaquanMcDonald https://t.co/dtBNDpfntn

— DNAinfo.com Chicago (@DNAinfoCHI) November 27, 2015

Justice delayed is justice denied

An aspiring Chicago poet and community activist walked out of a Cook County courthouse Wednesday to hugs and cheers from dozens of supporters after prosecutors in a surprise move dropped charges against him for allegedly punching a police officer during protests over the death of Laquan McDonald. -- Chicago Tribune

"Aspiring", my ass. Malcolm X. London is an accomplished poet and playwright -- called the Gil-Scott Heron of this generation by Cornel West. He's a member of the Young Adult Council of the prestigious Steppenwolf Theater, and has appeared on PBS for the first ever televised TED Talk with John Legend & Bill Gates & has shared stages with actor Matt Damon & rapper Lupe Fiasco as a part of the The People Speak, Live! cast. He also appears on Season 2 of TVOne’s Verses & Flow.

Poet/Activist Malcolm London with supporters. 

In 2011, Malcolm London won the Louder Than A Bomb youth poetry slam in his native Chicago, scooping the top award as both individual performer & with a team. The poet, performer & activist recently wrote & directed a spoken word infused play responding to the Zimmerman verdict called Two Years Later at the Goodman Theatre with an ensemble of five youth poets. Malcolm’s work has been featured on national outlets including CBS, NPR, Huffington Post, The Root, and the CHICAGO TRIBUNE.

And the list goes on.

Justice Delayed... While it took 13 months to for the administration to release the video and charge killer-cop Van Dyke with McDonald's murder, they had poet/activist Malcolm London yanked off the street, in jail and booked on trumped-up felony charges in the blink of an eye. But within 24 hours, States Atty. Anita Alvarez ordered all charges dropped, in the "best interests" of the city. And by "best-interests", she meant her own and those of the mayor and Supt. Garry McCarthy's. Her problem -- tons of community support for Malcolm; plus there was reportedly video of his arrest with cops using illegal "escort holds" and "emergency handcuffing" (Sun-Times).

Judge Peggy Chiampas who told Malcolm, he was "free to go", wasted no time in busting "Chicago Tonight" producer Chloe Riley and chastising her for "creating a media circus." By circus, she meant -- Riley took a few pictures of Malcolm walking down the courthouse hall with supporters, following his release from jail (THE HORROR!). Chiampas, apparently bitter of being forced to cut Malcolm loose, then threatened Riley with jail time unless she destroyed her pics. She complied.

The wheels of justice spin fast when necessary.

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE PROGRESSIVE CAUCUS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:
Joanna Klonsky
press@joannaklonsky.com

Members of the Progressive Caucus call for thorough examination of McDonald case

CHICAGO (November 25, 2015)--Chicago City Council Progressive Reform Caucus members Ald. Leslie Hairston (5); Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6); Ald. Susan Sadlowski Garza (10); Ald. Toni Foulkes (16); Ald. David Moore (17); Ald. Ricardo Muñoz (22); Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29); Ald. Scott Waguespack (32); Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35) and Ald. John Arena (45) issued the following statement on Wednesday to respond to the video of a Chicago Police officer shooting teenager Laquan McDonald 16 times:

“We are mourning the violent death of one of our city’s young people, Laquan McDonald, and we are praying for his family.

“We call for a thorough examination of the apparent effort to withhold information about McDonald’s death as it moved through the administration of the Police Department. We are deeply committed to transparency and public accountability, and we urge all of our fellow public officials to recommit to upholding the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act.

“We ask why this officer is still on the public payroll. In the 14 months since the killing of Laquan McDonald, Officer Van Dyke has continued to live comfortably, facing no criminal charges until yesterday, all while drawing a paycheck at the expense of the taxpayers of this city. This is unacceptable.

“We are concerned that the delay of justice in this case has served to undermine the hard work of the police officers in our districts, who now must face deep distrust from some residents.

“At the same time, peaceful protestors were arrested during last night’s response to the release of the video. These young people came out to march, chant and draw public attention to the death of McDonald. Several of the march organizers were arrested despite multiple witnesses who confirm that they broke no laws. While we were pleased to see that the charges against protester Malcolm London were dropped, we ask that the charges against the other protesters also be dropped immediately.

“Unlike those who protected Officer Van Dyke, these young people were acting in the spirit of stewardship of our city, peacefully assembling, participating in nonviolent civil disobedience, and demanding justice.

“We call upon the leadership of this city and its police force to convene an inclusive, empowered panel to investigate the entire minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour and day-by-day course of this apparent miscarriage of justice, which took the life of a young man and shielded his killer for more than a year.

“Furthermore, in order to revamp the institutional crisis of police discipline, we plan to convene a panel of experts to work with us on providing the City Council and people of this city a thorough change to the City code and regulations that oversee police officers, the Independent Police Review Authority, and the Police Board. We need to ensure that bureaucracy or union contracts don’t stop us from being able to remove bad police officers from the payroll. Changes must be made a priority in order to end the lack of effective and clear discipline practices and oversight that perpetuate these crimes.

“The public demands answers. We have a right to know, in order to put in place new policies and regulations to be applied in any future instance of misconduct.”

###

Protests (not 'riots') rock Chicago. Rahm covers his ass. Calls to fire McCarthy, dump Alvarez.

Toast, I hope.

It's time for Chicago's top-cop and the state's attorney to be gone.

Anticipating a wave of protest following release of their surpressed video, the Mayor and Police Supt. Garry McCarthy put on a long dog-and-pony show at yesterday's press conference, covering their own asses and doing their best to distance themselves from killer cop Jason Van Dyke.

Moments before releasing the sensationalized dash-cam video showing white Chicago police officer Van Dyke pumping 16 shots into the body of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, Rahm and McCarthy stood up before the cameras claiming,

“Jason Van Dyke does not represent the police department...” 

The statement came in response to a question from Brandon Smith, the courageous journalist who had sued the city and forced the release of the video. It's hard to believe that Team Rahm could be this stupid and petty, but they actually blocked Smith from entering the press conference. He had to wait out in the hall while a local CBS News reporter asked a question about the wider culture of corruption in the police department on his behalf.

________________________________

Malcolm London, a 22-year-old poet/organizer with the Black Youth Project 100, was grabbed off the street at last night's protest and charged with felony aggravated battery to a police officer after allegedly punching one officer. Police said the officer was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. According to the Chicago Tribune, those charges were dropped Wednesday afternoon.

__________________________________

As for that culture:

How about a quarter-million stop-and-frisks in the black community during a three-month period in 2014?

The Better Government Association reports that 300 people were shot by Chicago police between 2010 and 2014. Seventy of those individuals were killed. More people were killed by police in Chicago than any other of the largest U.S. cities.

More obfuscation:

Democrat super-flack David Axelrod sounds sincere when he asks on Twitter:

Why did it take a year to indict a CPD officer who shot a kid 16 times? Would it have happened today if judge hadn't ordered video release?

Chicago protest

But Axelrod is feigning naivete here. He knows full well who's behind justice-delayed for the McDonald family. It's his pal/client Rahm Emanuel, Supt. McCarthy and States Atty. Anita Alvarez, who all sat on the video for more than a year, releasing it only after a judge ordered them to do so.

Alvarez is especially complicit here, even charging Van Dyke one day before the video release, presumably to try and head off protests (riots). She badly mishandled the trial of Dante Servin, the detective who shot black 22-year-old Rekia Boyd in 2012, who she charged with involuntary manslaughter. But a judge threw that charge out in April, saying Servin should have been charged with murder. He hasn't been.

Need any more reasons to vote for Kim Foxx?

In my humble opinion, McCarthy is already toast. Sneed, who has a pipeline to the mayor's office, is already naming possible replacements and usually when that happens, time to pack your bags.

Chicago teachers show strong, united, and ready to strike if needed

What a great night! Thousands of Chicago teachers and community activists packed Grant Park last night in a show of strength and unity reminiscent of the days leading up to the 2012 teacher strike. Check out DNAInfo for best tweeted pics from last night.

The Little Emperor is back after splitting town, as he usually does in times of crisis. He ran off to China. Remember, Rahm's the guy who said: "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste." What he obviously meant was, when things get hot, get out of town and let underlings like Forrest Claypool or Garry McCarthy, or whoever, take the heat.

And if you're going to run and hide, this is the week to do it. Panicked by the CTU's militant show of strength and the black community's possible response to Wednesday's court-ordered release of the video showing officer Jason Van Dyke pumping 16 rounds into defenseless 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, the administration is in full retreat mode. They're dropping crumbs along with way to soften or divert the protests, and pausing every few steps to take pot-shots at the teachers union.

Karen Lewis: "If we strike, we do so to protect our children."

Today, the day before the video release, charges are expected to be brought against Van Dyke. Coincidence? Yesterday, top cop Garry McCarthy (is he still here?) called for the firing of Dante Servin, the cop who pumped 5 bullets into the skull of unarmed Rekia Boyd. Servin was never convicted on murder charges. So, in the face of growing protests and the video release, McCarthy ordered him fired for "poor judgement".

Claypool's response to the CTU rally was, duck/dodge/divert. He claims the CTU should be joining hands with him in Springfield to push Gov. Rauner and the legislature to bail out the debt-ridden and broke-on-purpose Chicago. He tells the Tribune:

"It's a sad day when the Chicago Teachers Union is not fighting with us in Springfield for equal funding for the most vulnerable and impoverished children in the state of Illinois," Claypool said.

Is that some kind of joke? It's been Claypool who has stalled contract talks with the union as a signal to Rauner that he and Rahm are willing to beat down the CTU in exchange for a bailout. He could have easily come to an agreement with the union, headed off another strike and set the conditions for a united effort in Springfield. Instead, he's ended serious talks and is threatening to fire thousands of teachers and staff (especially in special ed), blow-up class size, cut after-school programs and sports, and open more privately-run charters.

Helping the "most vulnerable and impoverished" -- right.

WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis, will speak at today's pre-strike rally in Grant Park amid stalled contract talks with the school district. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)

CEO Forrest Claypool to the City Club of Chicago 

"We are at a breaking point." -- Tribune

MTA Pres. Barbara Madeloni 

“It [Common Core testing] is destructive to our students and our teachers and the very possibility of joyful and meaningful public education...We’ve really flipped the narrative in a year.” -- NY Times

Thomas Gattuso, principal of Sullivan House

We are looking for justice. If Laquan had shot the policeman 16 times, he wouldn’t have been at a desk job 13 months later.” -- Sun-Times

Rev. Jesse Jackson

" My greatest fear is not the protest, but if there is no protest.” -- NY Times

Donald Trump

"Maybe the guy should have been roughed up a little." -- Raw Story

Letter to Mark Zuckerberg from former classmate, teacher Emily Talmage

Let me assure you that “personalized learning,” as it is being pushed by the Gates Foundation, the American Legislative Exchange Council, the Digital Learning Now Council, as well as countless educational technology companies, start-ups, and venture capitalists who have invested millions into personalized learning experiments (they call them “innovations”), is a far, far cry from the type of education we got at Exeter. -- Washington Post

Harish Patel, running against Mell's guy in the 40th, deserves support

Democrat Harish Patel working Chicago's Northwest Side neighborhoods seeking signatures on his petitions to challenge ward-boss Dick Mell's machine guy Jaime Andrade in the 40th.   (Illinois Observer pic)

I like Harish Patel and hope the young social-justice activist and community organizer can upset Mell-machine guy Jaime Andrade in the 40th Dist in the same way that upstart Will Guzzardi beat the Berrios machine in the neighboring 39th in 2014.

David Ormsby, editor of the Illinois Observer writes:

Community organizer, entrepreneur, and Guzzardi ally Harish Patel is seeking to duplicate Guzzardi's success in the neighboring legislative district hoping to oust freshman State Rep. Jamie Andrade. Patel is modeling his campaign on Guzzardi's as much as possible. He hits multiple progressive talking points on the campaign trail: education reform, an elected school board, skepticism towards charter schools, boosting state-wide minimum wage, and embracing immigrant rights.

I'm hoping Harish, who opposes pension theft, gets the support he deserves from natural allies (I would think) the CTU and SEIU. If he does, look for a  Guzzardi-type upset.

If he and other progressives like Jay Travis (running in the 26th) don't get that support, we're in for more years of politics-as-usual in Springfield.

Rising student homelessness not an 'excuse' but a brutal fact of life at CPS

Last night I was watching CBS News Chicago. I was surprised when I saw their report on the city's homeless children, putting the number at 11,447. It sounded low to me. I assume it's from the latest report by the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless. But that number includes only young people aged 14-21. ABC 7 reports that there are more that 20,000 homeless students in Chicago Public Schools.

To put that in perspective, that's about one in every 20 CPS students, the great majority being African-American or Latino.

CPS's Nancy B. Jefferson school and the Juvenile Detention Center, is packed with homeless kids, many of whom have committed no crime other than being homeless.

The number of homeless families in Chicago has tripled over the last dozen years, says CCH.

Corporate school reformers love to talk about their so-called, "no excuses" schools. But homelessness is not an excuse, but a fact.

There's only a  small body of academic research and literature that focuses on the academic achievement of homeless children. But everything I've read points to the conclusion that poverty and homelessness have a much greater impact on measurable student learning outcomes than any classroom variables.

It generally indicates that homeless children score poorly on standardized reading and mathematics tests and are often required to repeat a grade.

For one thing, homeless families with children move a lot, often from shelter to shelter. That often means lots of different schools, teachers, and high absentee rates. Many CPS schools, especially charters and selective-enrollment schools tend to push homeless kids out, or not accept them at all.

Fifty-six percent of the 118 homeless Chicago families with school-aged children that were surveyed said they moved between two or three times over a three-year period, and 20 percent reported living at four to six different residences during that time period.

Meanwhile, 57 percent of parents said their child lacked an adequate study area when they were homeless, and 66 percent reported changes in their child's behavior at school since losing permanent housing. Of the families surveyed, nearly 33 percent of the children missed six days of school last year and 17 percent missed more than 10 days.

This doesn't even touch the psychological effects of homelessness on children or their susceptibility to sexual abuse and violence.

Homelessness by the numbers from CCH report:

52.3 percent: The number of renters in Chicago who are “extremely low income,” making less than $22,000 per year.

$17,160: The annual salary for someone working a full-time minimum wage job in Chicago.

44 percent: The percentage of a full-time minimum wage worker's paycheck that goes toward housing at the median fair market price in Illinois.

629,454: The number of people living in poverty in Chicago with 298,403 of those living in “extreme poverty.”

Wednesday's press conference

At Wednesday's CCH presser, Latoya Ellis, a single parent of three whose family became homeless in August due to a lack of affordable housing, spoke to the educational challenges her children, ages 8, 14 and 16, face as a result of their housing status.

"Children need structure and routine, and due to homelessness, I as a parent cannot provide that, because I have no control over certain things like what time the lights go off. My children are often left trying to do their homework by the light of the cellphone, or on the bus on the way to school the next morning or sometimes even in class the next day," she said. "There are constant distractions that keep them from sleeping and getting a good night's rest so, as a result, they sleep during class time."

With Gov. Rauner's devastating cuts in support services for homeless families and children, those numbers will certainly go up. Consider it the next time you hear the words, "no excuses" or Mayor Emanuel's call for "better parenting" or for evaluating schools and teachers primarily on the basis of student standardized test scores.

Former CPS liar-in-chief leaves Rahm's Super PAC to start her own biz.

Substance photo

"She will be a real asset to those that work with her," says Michael Sacks, CEO of Grosvenor Capital Management. -- Crain's

Becky Carroll served as J.C. Brizard's and Byrd-Bennett's liar-in-chief at CPS before moving over to run Rahm's campaign Super PAC. Now, after a year and a half at Chicago Forward, Carroll is setting out on her own. Her new money-making venture is called Chicago Backward (just kidding) C-Strategies LLC and I assume her specialty will be union-busting, school privatization, and attacking progressive political candidates, as always.

Carroll's time at CPS was mostly spent trying to cover up Brizard's ineptness (admittedly an impossible job) and then keep a lid on the BBB/SUPES affair and the UNO corruption scandals. Then there was her CPS budget deception and her selling of the school closings (she named it, "right-sizing"). 

Oh, I almost forgot her efforts to spread dis-information about the Chicago teachers strike in 2012. Quite a track record.

After her relationship with local reporters crashed and burned last year, the mayor pulled her out of CPS' massive Communications Dept. and moved her over to run Chicago Forward where she headed the PAC's $5M effort to elect Rahm's favored puppy-dog aldermen. $2M of that was used to target two progressives, Scott Waguespack in the 32nd and Carlos Rosa in the 35th. Both won handily over machine candidates.

For more on Chicago Forward's failed run at the progressives, see Paul Blumenthal's piece at Huffington, "Chicago Progressives Emboldened After Rahm Emanuel's Super PAC Fails To Beat Them."

Despite this trail of losses, I'm sure Carroll, with investors like Michael Sacks behind her, will make a pile of money in her new venture. Carroll says she's already signed up 10 or so clients, including the Illinois Restaurant Association, who's leading the charge against increasing the minimum wage, and  union-busting education group, Stand for Children.

I can't say I wish her well.

Warning: Be careful who you embed with

em·bed

əmˈbed/ verb 1. fix (an object) firmly and deeply in a surrounding mass.

No, my warning isn't directed at Charlie Sheen's "goddesses". Probably too late for them. It's also too late for GOP current poll leader Ben Carson whose ignorance on foreign policy just got exposed (as if we hadn't noticed) by his "close adviser" and professional embedded "journalist", Armstrong Williams.

So just consider this a warning to everyone who feels they may need it -- AFT, NEA leaders?

Armstrong Williams

For those too young (or too old) to remember, William's approach to journalism was to embed himself with the Bush administration and in particular with Bush's ed secretary, Rod Paige. In January 2005, USA Today reported that documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act revealed that Williams had been paid $240,000 to promote No Child Left Behind. USA Today found that Williams was hired "to promote the law on his nationally syndicated television show and to urge other black journalists to do the same".

Now Armstrong has betrayed Carson. I guess Dr. C must not have left enough money on the nightstand.

Not to say that politics doesn't make strange bedfellows, or shouldn't. Just a reminder to use protection.

Case Studies... Billionaire Rauner is now the most hated governor in IL history. His budget terrorism and banning of Syrian refugees have been met with hostility and resistance across the state. But who will step up in this fight to save public education and salvage what's left of social support networks in the state? And what kind of deal will Sen. Cullerton and House Speaker Madigan try and cut?

I know CTU is watching to make sure we don't get sold out again on Cullerton's "compromise" SB318 like we did on the unconstitutional pension-theft bill.

Brother Fred says that the Supremes' latest oral arguments indicate that their next ruling will help insure us against another pension grab.

When the Court rules again in favor of our pension rights, as it is expected to do, it will now include what it did not have the opportunity to rule in SB1. They will not only protect us from the elected pension thieves in Springfield and City Hall. They will protect us from sell-out union leaders as well.

Ald. "Slow Eddie" Burke is still quick enough to know which way the wind is blowing on this one. He knows Rauner will take a beating on the refugee question, especially here in Chicago. For one thing, the governor doesn't have the authority to stop refugees from settling in Illinois. But he can push the legislature to cut funding for refugee aid.

So Burke is introducing a city council resolution reaffirming "Chicago’s historic role as a place of sanctuary and refuge". Co-sponsors are Marty Quinn (13th) and Progressive Caucus member, Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35th). Should pass easily.

Ald. Waguespack

From Natasha Korecki at Politico -- 9:30 a.m. Progressive Caucus presser at City Hall. From a release:

"Members of the Progressive Reform Caucus will join Access Living Chicago in support of a resolution calling for hearings regarding the impact of financial cuts to special education programs in Chicago Public Schools. To date, Chicago Public Schools has cut approximately $32 million dollars in special education programs, and the budget cut announcements are not over."

-- Expect Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) to introduce a resolution calling for public hearings on special education funding cuts. "This resolution asking for hearings by the Education Committee will provide CPS an opportunity to clear the air and tell the public exactly what the state of funding and support for special needs students is at this point in time and throughout the year," Waguespack said in a statement. "The system supporting special needs students needs to be fully funded and CPS has an obligation to fulfill that duty today."

In case you missed the interview with Kim Foxx, candidate for Cook County State's Attorney on Chicago Tonight. Watch it here.

Letter to faculty & staff from DePaul Pres. Holtschneider

Dear Colleagues,

The State of Illinois took the unprecedented step yesterday of temporarily halting Syrian immigration to Illinois.  Whatever you may think of the larger issue, I am writing to thank you in advance for your particular care and concern for our Syrian students, as well as any of our students from the Middle East region.  It is possible they may be subjected to popular misunderstanding and/or feel less safe than they ordinarily might as they travel to and from campus. 

As our faculty and professional staff, you are often the first to notice if our students are experiencing any distress.  Please know that you can always refer them to either the Office for International Students and Scholars (312-362-8376), the International Programs Office (312-362-8250), or the Dean of Students Office (312-362-8066) for assistance.

Thank you for your good hearts in this complex world environment. 

Sincerely,

Rev. Dennis H. Holtschneider, C.M.
President

New Study: Hungry kids score lower on tests. Shocking news?

Black Panther Party's free Breakfast Program, circa 1969.

Here's a shocker for you. Latest research coming out of Cardiff University confirms that kids who come to school hungry score lower on standardized tests than kids who are fed well. The latter group of the study's 11-year-olds scored twice as high as the hungry students.

More evidence that basing teacher evaluations on student test scores is bogus. What the tests are mostly measuring is student/family poverty -- not so-called "student achievement". Of course, by now nearly everyone in the field realizes this. Thus the growing movement of resistance to testing madness that have forced some small retreats in federal and state testing policies. Or maybe just lip service to change?

At any rate, Pres. Obama's call for "fewer and better tests" is welcomed by parents and educators. But it misses the point. That point being -- how high-stakes standardized testing is used to track and sort kids and to evaluate teachers.

Latest mini-retreat comes from one of the nation's greatest offenders -- N.Y. Gov. Cuomo himself.

According to NCPR:

New York State’s latest teacher evaluation system, which was supposed to be in place by November 15, has been put on hold because 90 percent of school districts were granted waivers to delay its implementation. This represents the reversal of a policy championed by Governor Cuomo last spring.

Side Note -- In Wales, where the study took place, there is a free breakfast initiative in place for primary schools.

After watching Stanley Nelson's latest film, The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution, I'm reminded that the Panthers most popular community initiative was it's free Breakfast For Children program. And that was back in '69.

Arne Duncan and the D.O.E. would do well to take a chunk of the millions it spends on testing and use it to recreate the Panthers' program. It would almost immediately lead to higher measurable student learning outcomes than have all the Department's current test-and-punish strategies.

As a parent and educator, I am repulsed by the idea that our society needs the testing rationale to make the case for feeding hungry children. But, whatever works, I suppose.

Without a focus on ending child hunger and poverty, current testing initiatives will continue to reproduce the system's inequities.

WEEKEND QUOTABLES

Ithaca College students in 'solidarity walkout'

Ithaca College Student Body President Dominick Recckio

"This movement has taken over the complete educational landscape of the entire institution. It has framed everyone at Ithaca College’s educational experience and will continue to do so." -- Democracy Now

Outgoing I.G. Faisal Khan

"We are the third biggest metropolis in the country. I would describe to you that the oversight in Chicago is comparable to the Wild West -- anything goes....

"...I could not believe how backwards the city was when it came to ethics. It needs to be blown up and started all over again ... I want Chicagoans to get their outrage back and say: 'enough is enough.'" 

Rahm & Ald. Joe Moore

Moore Khan...

Ald. Joe Moore called a female investigator from [Khan's] office a “bitch” and Khan himself a “bozo.” -- Politico

Sen. Ted Cruz

 “There is no meaningful risk of Christians committing acts of terror." -- Washington Post

Jesse Berney

Terrorist attacks in Western cities should make us more sympathetic to refugees fleeing Syria: The horror in Paris Friday evening is a daily reality of the civil war they're trying to escape. --Rolling Stone