[dropcap size=big]M[/dropcap]ore than 200 substitute teachers packed a drab conference room on the second floor of an equally drab office building in Koreatown – the official headquarters of United Teachers Los Angeles, the union representing some 34,000 educators on the verge of a massive strike. An overhead projector screen and a Black Lives Matter poster decorated the back wall.
The union organized the meeting Friday just days before tens of thousands of teachers could go on strike January 10. An 11th hour agreement to meet district negotiators on Monday at City Hall was confirmed during the meeting. Mayor Eric Garcetti is expected to mediate the months-long standoff between L.A. Unified and the union.
Los Angeles Unified has repeatedly asserted that the school-year will continue even if the teachers do strike. The district has also filed a motion asking a federal judge to bar special education teachers from striking, arguing it would leave students with special needs without care.