By Illinois Review
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is facing renewed criticism after bringing controversial Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates to the Vatican this week as part of a 46-member delegation meeting with Pope Leo XIV.
The delegation traveled to Rome ahead of Johnson’s Thursday meeting with the first American-born pope, a Chicago native. According to reports, the trip was funded through World Business Chicago and included political allies, labor leaders, clergy, business executives, and elected officials aligned with Johnson’s progressive agenda.
But the inclusion of Davis Gates has quickly become one of the most controversial aspects of the trip.
Critics have long argued that the Chicago Teachers Union under Davis Gates’ leadership has been hostile toward Catholic education and school choice programs that have helped many working-class and minority families escape failing Chicago Public Schools.
Under her leadership, the CTU has aggressively opposed vouchers, scholarship programs, and educational alternatives benefiting private and Catholic schools. Davis Gates and other union leaders have previously described some school choice efforts as “racist,” “fascist,” and harmful to public education.
Yet in 2023, Davis Gates faced intense backlash after it was revealed that her own son attended a private Catholic high school on Chicago’s South Side – despite her repeated public opposition to school choice programs for other families.
The revelation triggered accusations of hypocrisy from parents and education advocates across Illinois.
Critics argued that while Davis Gates used her own financial means to seek better educational opportunities for her child, she simultaneously worked to block low-income families from accessing similar options through scholarship and school choice programs.
The controversy became national news and was covered by major outlets across the country. Now, conservatives are questioning why Johnson would bring such a divisive labor figure to meet the leader of the Catholic Church.
Davis Gates has also faced criticism over allegations involving union financial transparency, heavy political spending, inflammatory rhetoric, and controversial comments toward opponents and school officials.
The CTU itself has become one of the most powerful political forces in Chicago. The union spent heavily supporting Johnson’s mayoral campaign and remains deeply influential inside City Hall and Chicago Public Schools.
Meanwhile, many Catholic schools across Chicago have struggled financially for years while families continue fleeing the city over crime, taxes, and failing schools.
Johnson has framed the Vatican trip as an opportunity to discuss immigration, labor rights, restorative justice, and progressive social priorities with Pope Leo XIV.
But the mayor’s decision to include Davis Gates sends a troubling message to Catholic families who have watched their schools close while union leaders consolidate power over public education.
For many Chicago parents, the optics are difficult to ignore: a mayor whose administration is closely tied to the teachers union bringing one of the nation’s most controversial labor leaders to the Vatican – despite years of opposition to policies supporting Catholic education that now benefits her own family.
