Chicago Tribune Poll: Voters Reject Rahm’s Education Policies, Favor Teacher's Union

[yurbud]

Note to Democrats: it's tough to appear small-D democratic when you ignore your constituents who notice that you are robbing them to give to the rich.

Nearly 80% of those with kids in public schools disapproved of his handling of education

What is especially significant is that corporate education reformers often say their goal is to help underprivileged, inner city kids get a better education.

In effect, if you don't agree with them, you are a heartless racist.

Oddly, black Chicagoans aren't feel the love from the corporate reformers since they disapprove of Rahm's approach even more than whites.

Democrats need to realize that to keep up the appearance of democracy, they need to put the people ahead of their Wall Street masters on at least a FEW issues, and this is one of them.

If you don't give us a progressive alternative to party that OPENLY favors the rich, we will have to make another one that does.

The Chicago Tribune's poll of voters' views of Mayor Rahm Emanuel's school policies showed very low approval for the Mayor. The mayoral election is in February 2015, and it appears that education is Rahm's weak spot. He favors charter schools and shut down nearly 50 public schools in one fell swoop, an act unprecedented in American history. He has fought bitterly with the Chicago Teachers Union over school funding. It is not working well for him politically, the poll shows.

"Asked about Emanuel's handling of public schools, 65 percent disapproved, 26 percent approved and 10 percent had no opinion. The latest findings show a shift of 5 percentage points toward disapproval from a Tribune poll in May 2013 — just before a vote by the school board to shut nearly 50 public schools.

"While dissatisfaction with the mayor on education crossed racial lines, it was more intense among African-American voters. Critics contend black neighborhoods were disproportionately targeted for school closings. Fully 77 percent of black voters disapproved of Emanuel's handling of the city's schools while only 14 percent approved."

"Among parents of children in Chicago Public Schools — about one-fifth of those taking part in the survey — nearly 4 out of 5 disapproved of the mayor's handling of public education while only 19 percent approved. But even those without children in the public schools disapproved at a 62 percent rate, while only 27 percent approved.

"Emanuel's approach on charters versus neighborhood schools was roundly criticized by voters: 72 percent disagreed with that approach, compared with 18 percent who agreed. African-American voters most severely opposed the policy — at 83 percent — while only 10 percent agreed with Emanuel. Nearly 8 in 10 parents of CPS children also were opposed, as well as 75 percent of female voters, 69 percent of men and 63 percent of whites."

http://dianeravitch.net/2014/08/15/chicago-tribune-poll-voters-reject-rahms-education-policies-favor-ctu/

[Indyfan53]

1. Rahm is a tool of Rauner.

He is a DINO and needs to be replaced by a real democrat. Rahm campaign took money from Rauner.

[blkmusclmachine]

2. Rahm sucks BIG TIME. But Obama likes him.

[yurbud]

3. And Obama supports the same policies. Obama does a better job of appearing likeable and folksy

Rahm brevet appears to be anything other than what he is: a heartless, thug enforcer for the wealthy.

[polynomial]

4. The Chicago Tribune is a racist player

Being neutral in politics is difficult especially in Chicago.

My comment is going to hit a lot of hot buttons so you will understand my points made are honest and truthful even though some of what is said is basically a time a while ago.

Working in the cable and satellite industry gave me an insider view of the west and south side of Chicago.

With as much kindness as can be delivered, schools that closed in the black areas needed to be closed decades ago not only the infrastructure was depleting discipline was not good.

In conversations with friends it was discovered that a culture of bully and drugs was at the core of a problem.

Young Black teens made a lot of money extorting simple lunch money from peer students, besides running drugs. In some situations the annual take was many hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. The kicker is the adults in families supported such activities.

The whole rhetoric about charter schools is nothing more than an option to what always existed, that is having private schools to be more of the advantage to be removed from this sorted noise in community profiteering through drugs and bully.

Perhaps some out there will rebut this comment but it can be very true because those special reason need to exist to close just about half of schools in the k12 system which obviously needed it.

Actually Mayor Emanuel made an honest hard decision for Chicago. It’s time to build new schools that are state of the art for the new millennium. The Chicago Tribune always ignored that real intrinsic problem of inner city issues in gang wars.

[yurbud]

5. closing schools is a non sequitur to the problems you describe as are charter schools

charters siphon off the students with involved parents, leaving those most vulnerable to deal with the bullies, drugs, and extortion you describe.

All of those problems exist when schools are underfunded and understaffed, so teachers and administrators barely know who's who, let alone what they are doing.

If Rahm was serious about helping schools, he would wouldn't be hoarding money for stadiums but put it in more teachers, social workers, and security at those troubled schools.

If you want to build new schools, great--but wait until they are ready before you close the old ones.

By his logic, if you wanted to build a new house, you would tear down your old one, and then wonder where you're going to sleep before the architect even draws up plans for your new house.