May Day Resolution Passed Unanimously by House of Representatives

*Passed Unanimously during the March 20, 2026, House of Representatives Meetings

RESOLUTION IN DEFENSE OF PUBLIC EDUCATION, DEMOCRACY, AND OUR COMMUNITIES

Declaring May 1 a Day of Civic Action

WHEREAS higher education is facing an unprecedented national assault driven by anti-education coalitions, billionaire donors, and corporate interests who seek to censor educators, ban books, dismantle civil rights protections, criminalize and separate immigrant families, and weaken workers’ unions; and

WHEREAS these coordinated attacks include efforts to expand vouchers that transfer public dollars to private schools, censor curriculum, target LGBTQ+ students, erode protections for Black, Brown, immigrant, and non-Christian communities, and use federal power to intimidate higher education administrators into compliance with an anti-democratic agenda; and

WHEREAS community colleges have served as one of the most powerful democratizing forces in American society, opening the doors of higher education to millions of people who were historically excluded from colleges and universities, and providing the foundation for an informed, engaged, and self-governing citizenry; and

WHEREAS community colleges are deeply embedded in the communities they serve and function as the safety net of higher education in the United States, providing access to learning and opportunity for first-generation college students, students of color, returning adults, students who serve as caregivers for family members, veterans, immigrants, and all who seek the transformative power of education to build better lives for themselves and their families; and

WHEREAS the federal government has threatened to withhold or eliminate vital student financial aid—including Pell Grants, Federal Work-Study, TRIO Programs, workforce development grants, and other federal funding streams upon which community college students and institutions depend—and has sought to weaponize these funding mechanisms as leverage to compel community colleges and other institutions of higher education to adopt right-wing ideological mandates, abandon diversity and inclusion commitments, and suppress academic inquiry, thereby turning the public purse into an instrument of political coercion; and

WHEREAS billionaires, the ultra-wealthy, and powerful corporations are funding campaigns at the federal, state, and local levels to avoid paying their fair share of taxes and to prevent the full and legally required funding of public schools, community colleges, and universities; and

WHEREAS our Union has never stood on the sidelines in moments of local or national crisis, and we understand that the defense of community colleges from cuts and attacks, the defense of our communities from federal overreach and occupation, the defense of our union rights, and the defense of democracy itself are inseparable causes that demand collective action; and

WHEREAS May Day is rooted in Chicago’s own labor history and represents the global tradition of workers organizing collectively for dignity, safety, and justice; and

WHEREAS in recent years, May Day has become a powerful National Day of Action uniting labor, educators, students, and immigrant and community organizations to demand public schools over private profits, people over billionaires, and democracy over authoritarianism; and

WHEREAS the current administration is willing to spend taxpayer dollars on military operations abroad but refuses to use those funds to bring down health care costs, tuition rates, workforce training expenses, food assistance, transportation costs, child care costs, or other services needed to make life affordable for working families; and

WHEREAS our students—and students everywhere—deserve our love and support, not fear, military intimidation, silence, or complicity, but rather political education, civic engagement, and school communities prepared to protect one another in the face of massive federal interference;

THEREFORE, BE IT

RESOLVED that the Cook County College Teachers Union House of Representatives formally declares May 1 a Day of Civic Action in Defense of Public Education, during which members shall be in community engaging our students, their families, and our neighbors, and supporting mutual aid efforts, leading civic education, participating in voter registration, know-your-rights trainings, and mass resistance trainings from the beginning to the end of the day; and be it further

RESOLVED that we will join our siblings in Minnesota and across the nation by answering the call for a National Day of “No Work, No School, and No Shopping” to defend our democracy, demand ICE out of our cities, and tax the rich to support our schools and vital services; and be it further

RESOLVED that CCCTU members will send petitions and resolutions to the boards of trustees of our eight college districts asking for their full support and participation in May Day activities by formally declaring May 1 a Day of Civic Action; and be it further

RESOLVED that the CCCTU calls on all members to participate in collective actions on May Day, in coalition with labor and community partners, to reject privatization, illegal wars, union-busting, anti-immigrant policies, anti-DEI policies, and federal overreach into our classrooms; and be it finally

RESOLVED that this House of Representatives affirms that the future of public education will be shaped by educators, students, and families—not by billionaires, corporate PACs, or authoritarian politicians—and commits to sustained organizing beyond May Day to protect our schools, our communities, and our democracy.