For reasons unexplained, American Federation of Teachers union chief Randi Weingarten announced Monday morning that she would be heading to the Ukrainian border to “assess” the damage after Russia bombarded the Eastern European nation.
Woke up this am to reports of disgusting Russian missile strikes in Kyiv, Lviv & other cities.Heading to the border now to assess the situation. This Russian attempt to frighten civilians & the effect on children (who are learning online today) is why this 🇺🇦 trip is so important https://t.co/dUVOxsdwRQ
— Randi Weingarten 🇺🇦🇺🇸💪🏿👩🎓 (@rweingarten) October 10, 2022
What does this union boss and Democratic crony have to do with Ukraine’s war effort? Well, it’s hard to say, but Weingarten claims she’s there to help the kids and their teachers.
Of course, after the learning loss created by government lockdowns in response to COVID, it is doubtful that most American schoolchildren could point out where Europe is on a map, let alone Ukraine.
That tragedy was inflicted thanks to folks like Weingarten, who practically kept teachers and kids out of the classroom as long as possible. In turn, literacy rates have plummeted, math skills dropped, and depression has risen among students. American families are now dealing with the consequences, and an entire generation’s academic progress has been stunted.
Since the pandemic, public education has only worsened. Daniel McGrath, the acting associate commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, recently stated that America’s school children have experienced “some of the largest declines we have observed in a single assessment cycle in 50 years…”
Regardless, Weingarten says she was invited to Ukraine as “part of the global labor movement’s commitment to assist the region’s educators in standing up for freedom and democracy while keeping refugee kids learning in perilous times.”
“As Putin tries to take a blowtorch to democracy, we stand in solidarity with the educators, students and families in Ukraine,” Weingarten said in a press release. “They are fighting against Russian aggression to uphold their democracy, their freedom, and their self-determination—and after nearly eight months of conflict their righteous resistance grows stronger each day.”
Weingarten added that the war on Ukrainian families with school-aged children has “been brutal” while praising “Ukrainian teachers’ persistence, compassion, and bravery in helping students continue their learning in an active war zone should be lifted up and championed.”
Those Ukrainian teachers should take the compliment with a grain of salt.
Weingarten also championed American school teachers during the pandemic, praising them for supposed bravery. Of course, thanks to remote learning, such teachers could go practically wherever they wanted. In fact, a Chicago Teacher’s Union board member was busted after taking a posh vacation to the Caribbean while Chicago schools stayed closed.
Perhaps Weingarten will advise Ukrainian teachers to push for virtual schools. After all, if COVID was too dangerous for American teachers to travel in person, certainly a warzone is too dangerous for Ukrainian teachers.
Maybe Weingarten will trash school choice in Ukraine as she does here at home. Maybe she will try to unionize Kyiv teachers. Come to think of it, are school teachers forced to pay union fees funding Weingarten’s trip overseas? Maybe she’ll bring back an “I Heart Zelensky” tee shirt for one lucky union member.”
Actually, perhaps it is best she just stays in Ukraine. She can do less damage to the American public education system from there.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.