In 2012, the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) went on strike to fight for public sector education. They empowered their members and mobilised parents, students and the wider community. The campaign was hugely successful with hundreds of thousands of vocal and active supporters taking part in nine days of mass pickets, creative sit-ins and demonstrations in 840 schools across the city. The strike was won and the organising strategies that were used became a blueprint for other strikes in both the US and the UK.
Weaving together music, song and inspirational video footage and interviews, Chicago: The Great Teachers’ Strike provides compelling lessons for both educational and broader public sector resistance here in the UK.
The production toured across the UK between 2016-18. In 2019/20 the production was filmed and is available as a DVD.
“Fantastic, empowering, goosebumps the whole time!”Anna Quick, NUT Student Member
“Changed my opinion completely Ex-tory! Fantastic music and story, brilliant lyrics.” Steve Scott, NUT Student Member
The company thanks the NEU for its financial support, all the Banner performers, technicians and administrators, as well as South and City College Birmingham and their staff and students for their work on the DVD.