IN OUR UNION, we lift each other up in our fight for change each and every day. Inspired by those who came before us, and guided by our belief that a better world is possible, CTA members know how to fight and how to win.

Today, there’s a lot to be angry about. There are threats out of Washington D.C to slash nearly $16 billion – around $2,800 per student – in federal funding that goes to school meals that feed our hungriest students, support for students with ADHD, dyslexia and life-changing supports for our most vulnerable and overlooked special education students. These are programs that educators and parents have fought for over the generations to help ensure that our students have the support and the education they deserve.

It’s unacceptable for the Trump Administration to cut funds for public schools and prioritize tax cuts for corporations and billionaires. They’re attempting to dismantle the Department of Education, sending immigration agents to our schools, and targeting people who speak out.

Watching the chaos unfold can get heavy and take its toll, and that is part of the strategy: to keep working people in constant survival mode. But as union members in solidarity with our students, families and communities, we can do so much more than just survive. When we look out for each other and protect our people, we are building and fighting for the society we all deserve.

One of the ways we can maintain hope in the days ahead is by looking back at challenging times we’ve encountered together, like the last Trump administration, when one out of five CTA members went on strike and won real improvements for educators and students. We also won community school funding during that same period.

Our union has a long history of fighting and winning for our public schools and communities. We are carrying on that legacy every day when we organize.

CTA members are organizing across the state to extend vital Prop. 55 funding and will be launching campaigns to collect enough signatures to ensure it’s on the ballot in 2026. And we’re also taking our fight to the streets, with “Fight for Schools” marches and rallies scheduled this month in five cities statewide to defend public education from ongoing attacks on our public schools and resources by the Trump Administration. There are also ongoing bargaining fights in locals throughout the state as part of the “We Can’t Wait” campaign to demand fully staffed schools, competitive wages and benefits for educators, and safe schools for our students.

As much as I’d love to say, “Don’t worry — we’ve been here before, we know what to do, it’ll all be fine,” I can’t honestly say that — because we haven’t been here before. But here, in California, we do know how to fight. We do know how to stand together. And in the days, weeks, months and years ahead, we will continue our work together to build a CTA stronger than it’s ever been.

David B. Goldberg
CTA PRESIDENT