OAN Staff Addie Davis
1:20 PM – Thursday, April 2, 2026
A group advocating for “taxing the rich” and the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during the upcoming May Day protests has reportedly received financial backing from the nation’s largest teachers’ unions.
The two largest teachers’ unions in the United States, the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), have explicitly aligned themselves with the May Day actions that include protests against ICE operations.
The NEA, the nation’s largest teachers’ union, has reportedly funneled approximately $1.4 million to the Midwest Academy since at least 2020, according to financial disclosures reported by the Washington Examiner.
Meanwhile, the Midwest Academy, a prominent training ground for far-left progressive organizers, is reportedly “preparing” lefty activists for the May Day protests. Documents obtained by Parents Defending Education and shared with the Examiner indicate that these training sessions are designed to mobilize demonstrators for the “national day of action” on May 1st.
A number of outlets have described these protests as a follow-up to the recent “No Kings” protests against the Trump administration.
Demands from the organizers, which include hundreds of organizations nationwide, include:
- “Taxing the rich”
- Abolishing ICE
- Ending all wars
- Abolishing private armies serving authoritarian power
- Expanding democracy
- “Hands off our votes” (no federal monitoring of polling places)
Organizers calling for the nationwide “General Strike” are urging participants to “refuse business as usual” through a total cessation of “work, school, and shopping.”
While the NEA has published what it labeled a comprehensive “solidarity” toolkit, complete with event-hosting guides and participation links, its specific stance on student and teacher absences remains “nuanced,” according to organizers. The Washington Examiner also reported that it is currently unclear if the NEA officially endorses truancy or unauthorized walkouts as part of the protest.
The union has not yet responded to requests for comment on the matter.
“This May Day will be a day of rallies, marches, teach-ins, labor actions, and a refusal of business as usual — because when those at the top rig the system, collective action is how we set it right,” NEA stated on its website.
They went on to list their other demands a well, aligned with the organizers’ priorities for May Day.
- Stop the billionaire takeover and rampant corruption of the Trump administration.
- Protect and defend Medicaid, Social Security, and other programs working people rely on.
- Fully fund public schools, healthcare, and housing for all.
- Stop the attacks on our communities, including policies targeting immigrants, people of color (POC), Native people, people with disabilities, and those who identify as LGBTQ+.
“This is yet another example of how activists and teachers unions view schools as a tool to advance their political agenda,” Defending Education’s Director of Research Rhyen Staley told the Examiner. “It should be deeply concerning that one of the suggested tactics is to enter schools to protest against policies they don’t like. Putting children’s education and safety at risk for political gain is unethical and immoral.”
NEA has a history of supporting left-wing causes and organizations.
Defending Education, an organization fighting against political indoctrination in public schools and promoting quality, non-political education, per their website, reported that NEA has given nearly $180 million to left-wing organizations since 2015.
The second largest union, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), has also significantly contributed to left-wing institutions, bringing the combined total to over $255 million. The unions have contributed millions to groups supporting the election of Democrats to Congress, according to Defending Education.
In a February letter, NEA Director of Government Relations Kimberly Johnson Trinca urged the U.S. Senate to vote against the DHS funding bill, citing concerns over accountability for ICE and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP).
“Votes on this issue may be included in NEA’s report card for the 119th Congress,” she asserted.
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