Did the Chicago Teachers' Union Really Send a Friendly Delegation to Maduro's Venezuela?

Not quite.

An old friend sent me a link with the subject line "Another generation of American Leftists confuse targets of American hostility with good places," which gets it just about right. The story in the Chicago Tribune has the headline "Chicago Teachers Union group’s trip to Venezuela, praise of socialist leader slammed as ‘propaganda tour’," which also gets it just about right.

It turns out that a self-proclaimed "Radical Educator Collective," comprising union members, created a "GoFundMe campaign titled “Send CTU Strikers to Venezuela." There was no official endorsement of their trip, which has now drawn objections from rank-and-file teachers. Here is the gist of the Tribune story:

The recent trip to Venezuela by a group calling itself a Chicago Teachers Union delegation has upset some union members and expats who question the point of the tour and take issue with the group’s praise of the country’s disputed government.

The four travelers, who crowdfunded the July trip under the banner of the CTU, met with Venezuelan government officials and educators, visited a commune and were featured in local media.

They wrote online about wanting to connect with Venezuelan teachers, students and unionists, criticized U.S. economic sanctions against the South American nation and wrote admiringly of its socialism, its communes and high literacy rates.

But critics say the group glossed over Venezuela’s ongoing political and economic crises and were excessively complimentary of President Nicolás Maduro, whose administration has been accused in recent United Nations reports of “grave” human rights violations and violence against dissenters.

And though the four travelers regularly called themselves a “CTU delegation" online, the union representing close to 25,000 people has sought to distance itself from the trip, stating the CTU did not endorse, sponsor or fund the trip.

There is more to the story, however, including a unanimously-passed resolution by the CTU House of Delegates calling for an end to the sanctions on the Maduro government.

Anyone reasonably familiar with the crisis in Venezuela, which has led to hunger, deprivation, repression, and the exodus of millions of people, ought to know better than to express support for Maduro. But if Pres. Trump condemns Maduro, I guess that is enough for some activists to consider him a friend.

Comments

[anon]

Wow, Steve. Dare I say, there might be hope for you?

Of course, there is more to it than just surmising that some believe that if T condemns it, it must be good.

There is also the governing ethos of the Maduro regime, which many believe would be best for the US, as well.

[Anon]

There is a long and deep history of affinity for neo-stalinism (and not so neo-) inside Chicago's education circles, much of it promoted by Bill Ayers and his side kick ex-Maoist Mike Klonsky. (As Ayers' wife was a long time colleague of yours at NU Law, I thought you might have made the connection.)

And, of course, the CTU has been taken over by elements of that milieu as well as that of various "trotskyist" sects. (I put "trotskyist" in scare quotes because these people know little to nothing about Trotsky.)

[Dave Butler]

There is absolutely nothing good about the Maduro government. It had fallen off of a cliff before Trump. It was well on its way when Chavez died and Maduro just stepped on the gas. You can have issues with Trump on nearly all of his policies with good reason, but do not be blind to what is going on in Venezuela as these dumb teachers have done. This is a country where the people have no voice, and no infrastructure. The government only steps on their throats. Almost all of my friends and family from Venezuela have left and all but a few that remain unfortunately do not have other options at this time.