A two-day conference featuring socialist, anti-war and pro-Palestinian activists at Chicago Teachers Union headquarters is drawing criticism from an education advocate who says the gathering reflects priorities far removed from the classroom.

The conference included workshops on protest and media tactics, approaching port workers, tracking weapons shipments, fundraising, coalition building and strengthening ties with labor and community groups in Latin America and Africa, according to AWAN’s website.

«I’m not sure that has much to do with empowering teachers in the classroom,» North American Values Institute (NAVI) Chief Advocacy Officer Josh Weiner said about the conference.

«We’ve seen the barriers and boundaries between this political activism and the classroom break down in a lot of different circumstances. Certainly, the classroom is not the priority. It’s a political agenda that’s very extreme.»

INSIDE CUBA’S FOREIGN INFLUENCE CAMPAIGN: FROM THE ’60S VENCEREMOS BRIGADE TO A CALIFORNIA UNION HALL

CTU was not listed as an official conference sponsor, although the venue featured union signage and a mannequin wearing a CTU T-shirt, according to the Washington Free Beacon.

Conference rooms were temporarily named by conference organizers for political figures and activists including Fidel Castro, Nicolás Maduro, Cilia Flores, Rasmea Odeh, Ibrahim Traoré and Patrice Lumumba.

Speakers addressed attendees from behind a podium draped in a Palestinian flag. The program included representatives of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Anti-War Action Network, Anti-War Committee Chicago, the Chicago Alliance Against Racism and Political Repression, and the Committee to Stop FBI Repression, according to the conference program.

Other speakers were Michigan preschool teacher Jessica Plichta, a member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, which describes itself as a Marxist-Leninist organization fighting for socialism. Plichta was arrested on camera immediately after finishing a television news interview in support of Maduro. Police accused her of blocking a roadway and failing to follow commands to move.

Another speaker, U.S. Palestinian Community Network Chairman Hatem Abudayyeh, previously served as a spokesperson for the Rasmea Defense Committee.

Conference resolutions called for ending U.S. aid to Israel, supporting Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaigns, and expanding pro-Palestinian activism, while another resolution referred to the Iranian government as «anti-imperialist» and pledged support for Iranian sovereignty, according to NAVI.

Weiner accused the union of intentionally keeping «themselves at arm’s length of something» while sharing «the same circles» as organizers.

FEDS OPEN PROBE INTO ANTI-ISRAEL NYC TEACHERS

Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Jackson Potter speaks at a rally outside Chicago Public Schools headquarters, Feb. 26, 2026. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

«CTU didn’t sponsor this conference, they weren’t officially a part of it, but that’s on purpose to keep themselves at arm’s length of something that, clearly, they’ve been in the same circles as,» he said.

NAVI also noted that CTU Vice President Jackson Potter and CORE, the union’s governing caucus, follow Anti-War Committee Chicago on Instagram.

Weiner said children are being taught «that the U.S. is imperialist, that it is the purveyor of violence throughout the world» while «platforming leaders that, frankly, are majorly oppressive.»

«Public education is meant to really teach foundational knowledge and formulate our future citizens of our country and to prepare students to be productive, happy, successful citizens within our country and our country is a democratic capitalist system, albeit imperfect, but it still is,» he said.

EXILED MUSLIM SCHOLAR WARNS FAR-LEFT–ISLAMIST ALLIANCE BEHIND ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTS ECHOES IRAN’S RISE

An empty Chicago Public Schools classroom is seen on Dec. 15, 2025. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

AWAN says on its website that it aims to «build a country-wide movement of people who will fight against U.S. imperialism in the streets and in the halls of power.»

Weiner called the conference «the opposite» of what education should look like, saying teachers are «bringing extremism» into the classroom.

«It’s totally anti what education is supposed to be about, and this is an intentional play,» he said. «These teachers believe education is about teaching kids about power, and how to take back power and where to seek power, and to make it a political act in and of itself.»

The conference comes after the Chicago Teachers Union previously faced criticism in April for its collaboration with the National Education Association on a «curriculum build» to bring «social justice into the classroom» ahead of May Day.

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But Weiner said the union’s tactics won’t stop in Chicago, warning that «you’re going to see that playbook essentially happen in other cities,» adding «It’s not as though we think it’s going to happen. They’re saying, it’s going to happen.»

«I think every time they push a boundary and break it, you see it pop up somewhere else and you see them pushing the boundaries further,» he said.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Chicago Teachers Union and the Anti-War Action Network for comment.

El gobierno de Estados Unidos aprobó el viernes 17 de julio un cambio en la normativa federal que regula el jugo de naranja pasteurizado, al reducir el requisito mínimo de sólidos solubles de 10,5% a 10% Brix, una medida que afecta a productores, procesadores y consumidores en todo el país. El Brix es una escala utilizada en la industria alimentaria para medir la cantidad de azúcares naturales y otros sólidos disueltos presentes en líquidos como el jugo de naranja, y sirve como referencia para garantizar el sabor y la consistencia del producto. La decisión, anunciada por el Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos (HHS)y la Administración de Alimentos y Medicamentos (FDA), responde a la presión ejercida por la industria citrícola y busca facilitar el uso de fruta nacional tras años de dificultades por enfermedades y fenómenos climáticos adversos.

Según el comunicado emitido por el HHS, el secretario Robert F. Kennedy Jr. oficializó la medida en un encuentro con autoridades locales y representantes del sector en Lakeland, Florida. De acuerdo con la FDA, la nueva regla también incrementa el porcentaje permitido de jugo de mandarinas y tangerinas en la mezcla final, lo que otorga mayor margen a los productores. La actualización fue respaldada por organizaciones gremiales y funcionarios estatales, que destacaron la urgencia de adaptar la normativa a la realidad actual del sector.

El estándar federal para el jugo de naranja pasteurizado se mantenía vigente desde 1963. El ajuste responde a la disminución en los niveles de azúcar de la fruta, sobre todo en Florida, principal estado productor en el país. Según datos del Departamento de Agricultura (USDA), la caída en la producción y calidad del fruto se agravó en la última década por la expansión del citrus greening, una enfermedad bacteriana sin tratamiento efectivo.

¿Por qué Estados Unidos modificó el estándar de azúcar para el jugo de naranja?

El cambio en el estándar federal surge como respuesta a un contexto de crisis productiva en la citricultura estadounidense. Según el Departamento de Agricultura de Estados Unidos (USDA), la enfermedad conocida como citrus greening (Huanglongbing) ha afectado a millones de árboles en Florida, reduciendo el nivel de azúcares en los frutos y provocando que el jugo de naranja nacional quedara por debajo del mínimo requerido durante varias temporadas.

La industria, encabezada por la Asociación de Procesadores de Cítricos de Florida y Florida Citrus Mutual, presentó una petición formal para modificar el estándar, argumentando que la normativa vigente no reflejaba la composición real de la fruta cultivada en el país. El comunicado de la FDA señala que la reducción del mínimo de Brix “permitirá a los productores y procesadores aprovechar mejor la cosecha local y disminuir la dependencia de importaciones de jugo desde Brasil y otros mercados”.

En la presentación oficial, el secretario Robert F. Kennedy Jr. afirmó: “Estamos eliminando una regulación obsoleta que obligaba a los productores estadounidenses a depender de importaciones y de un estándar de azúcar desactualizado. Esto permitirá ahorrar más de 50 millones de dólares al año y fortalecerá las cadenas de suministro nacionales”.

El grado Brix es una medida que indica la concentración de sólidos solubles, principalmente azúcares naturales, presentes en el jugo. Desde 1963, la normativa federal exigía un mínimo de 10,5% Brix para que un jugo fuera comercializado como jugo de naranja pasteurizado en Estados Unidos. Con la nueva regla, el mínimo se reduce a 10%, permitiendo que más jugo producido localmente cumpla con la regulación.

De acuerdo con la FDA, la diferencia entre 10,5 y 10 Brix es mínima y “la mayoría de los consumidores no percibirá cambios significativos en el sabor”. El profesor Randy Worobo, experto en ciencia de los alimentos en la Universidad de Cornell, explicó a Newsweek que “la variación es tan leve que el paladar promedio no la detectará, dado que existe una variabilidad natural en el jugo de naranja”.

La agencia también aclara que la nueva normativa no autoriza la dilución del jugo con agua ni la reducción de su concentración a partir de jugo concentrado, ya que el producto debe seguir siendo 100% jugo de naranja.

Además de la reducción del mínimo de Brix, la FDA elevó el límite permitido para el uso de jugo proveniente de variedades de Citrus reticulata (mandarinas, tangerinas y sus híbridos) en el jugo de naranja pasteurizado, pasando del 10% al 15%. Según la agencia, esta medida otorga flexibilidad a los productores, pues estas variedades han mostrado mayor resistencia a enfermedades como el citrus greening.

El Departamento de Agricultura de Estados Unidos ajustó sus propios estándares de clasificación para jugo de naranja, alineándose con la nueva regla de la FDA. El objetivo es facilitar la utilización de fruta nacional y reducir la necesidad de importaciones para cumplir con los requisitos federales.

Según la FDA, la modificación del estándar permitirá a los procesadores reducir costos de producción, ya que no tendrán que mezclar jugos importados de mayor dulzor para cumplir con la norma anterior. La agencia estima que la industria podría ahorrar hasta 52,3 millones de dólares anuales por este concepto.

El impacto en los precios al consumidor no es inmediato ni garantizado. La medida podría ayudar a estabilizar los precios del jugo de naranja, que han registrado alzas en los últimos años debido a la escasez de fruta y al aumento de los costos de importación, según la Asociación de Procesadores de Cítricos de Florida. No obstante, las empresas podrían destinar el ahorro a cubrir pérdidas por enfermedades y eventos climáticos extremos, en lugar de trasladarlo directamente al precio en góndola.

La actualización recibió respaldo institucional por parte de organizaciones y autoridades estatales. Ashley Moody, senadora republicana de Florida, celebró la medida señalando que “garantiza que los agricultores puedan seguir operando y manteniendo la producción frente a los desafíos actuales”.

Por su parte, Shannon Shepp, directora ejecutiva del Departamento de Cítricos de Florida, sostuvo que la decisión de la FDA “reconoce la realidad productiva de Florida y apoya la continuidad de las familias citrícolas”. El presidente de Florida Citrus Mutual, Kevin Koppelman, afirmó en un comunicado que “modernizar este estándar asegura que podamos aprovechar al máximo la producción local y sostener la industria frente a la crisis”.

La reducción del estándar de azúcar no afecta los parámetros de seguridad alimentaria ni la calidad nutricional del jugo, según la FDA. El ajuste forma parte de la estrategia federal “Make America Healthy Again”, que busca fortalecer la producción nacional de alimentos y adaptarse a los desafíos sanitarios y climáticos.

De acuerdo con el Departamento de Agricultura, la industria citrícola genera miles de empleos en Florida y otros estados, y su sostenibilidad depende de la capacidad de adaptación frente a enfermedades y fenómenos meteorológicos. La actualización permite aprovechar la fruta nacional, evita el desperdicio y reduce la necesidad de importaciones, aspectos que pueden contribuir a la estabilidad económica del sector.

¿Cuándo entran en vigor los nuevos estándares para el jugo de naranja en Estados Unidos?

La FDA y el HHS informaron que la nueva regulación entra en vigencia de inmediato, aunque los cambios en el etiquetado y la oferta comercial podrían verse reflejados de manera paulatina a medida que los procesadores adecuan sus líneas de producción. El Departamento de Agricultura continuará monitoreando el impacto de la medida sobre la calidad y el mercado del jugo de naranja.

El sector citrícola espera que la actualización ayude a estabilizar la producción y mantener la competitividad de la industria ante los desafíos sanitarios y climáticos. No habrá cambios en los mecanismos de control de calidad ni en los requisitos de inocuidad alimentaria, según la FDA.

A House task force chairman says companies helping foreign nationals travel to the United States to give birth so their children obtain U.S. citizenship could be engaging in a criminal conspiracy.

Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, who chairs the House Oversight Committee’s Task Force on Defending Constitutional Rights and Exposing Institutional Abuses, told Fox News Digital that his panel has subpoenaed several so-called «birth tourism companies» as it investigates firms advertising services to help foreign nationals travel to the United States to give birth.

«Right now, under current law, birth tourism is illegal. You cannot come into the United States for the purpose of giving birth,» Gill said.

TRUMP BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP FIGHT COMES ROARING BACK WITH ‘INVADERS’ PLAY AFTER KAVANAUGH ROADMAP

«And I believe that there’s a compelling legal case to be made that these businesses that are facilitating this process — facilitating somebody coming into the United States to give birth — lying on their immigration forms or on their visa forms — are engaging in a form of criminal conspiracy, and that’s what we’re going to get to the bottom of,» Gill said.

State Department regulations prohibit foreign nationals from obtaining visitor visas when consular officers determine that their primary purpose is traveling to the United States to give birth so their child obtains U.S. citizenship.

While Gill’s task force has been quietly looking into several companies since at least 2025, the national scrutiny intensified after photographs circulated in July of a billboard advertising for the Women’s Center at Mission Regional Medical Center in Mission, Texas – a stone’s throw from Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico.

The Spanish-language billboard advertised a now-defunct «Have My Baby In Texas» website, and quoted Mission Regional providing births for $3,950 and Caesarean Sections for $5,525. It also displayed a phone number that included «001» – the country code required for international calls to the U.S.

MAINE GOP HOPEFUL VYING FOR TRUMP ENDORSEMENT PREVIOUSLY RAN BIRTHING CLINICS CATERING TO MIGRANT WOMEN

Demonstrators holds up a banner during a citizenship rally outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

Gill and others have since issued responses to the controversy, with the State of Texas also launching its own investigation of the hospital.

«I think it’s astounding,» Gill said. His task force is investigating several similar operations, including one in Miami, and has requested records from that business and three others nationwide.

Gill said birth tourism is an «obvious and clear abuse» of the U.S. immigration system and of the benevolence of the American people and the nation’s institutions.

TRUMP BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP FIGHT COMES ROARING BACK WITH ‘INVADERS’ PLAY AFTER KAVANAUGH ROADMAP

Demonstrators rally in support of birthright citizenship outside the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC on April 1, 2026.  (Mandel Ngan/Getty Images)

«We are the ones who often end up picking up the tab for a lot of these services,» he said, arguing that birthright citizenship was intended for former slaves and their children when the Fourteenth Amendment was ratified in 1868.

«It had nothing to do with hordes of illegal aliens crossing our southern border and giving birth in America and using those babies to anchor illegal aliens into our country. And for all of America’s history, we’ve always had a very clear understanding that there are certain people who are born within America’s boundaries, within America borders, who are not American citizens, the children of an invading army.»

The latter point was captured by Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., and put into legislation Fox News Digital exclusively broke earlier in the week.

That proposal would codify President Donald Trump’s executive order deeming the illegal immigration crisis an «invasion» and cite the 1898 Wong Kim Ark Supreme Court case’s exemption of citizenship for people not «bound to render obedience to the sovereign (U.S. government) whose domains are being invaded.»

Gill said he had heard about but not fully read Banks’ bill – but underlined he believes it to be a «phenomenal» plan of action.

«I think that that is the type of legal clarification that could help us out quite a bit in the long run,» he said.

«Remember that the goal is to make sure that our children’s birthright isn’t being taken away from us because foreigners are coming in and having babies in our country and then buying up our homes and taking American jobs and using welfare that the American people are paying for.»

Gill said the crisis touches on the biggest issue from the 2024 election cycle, which he considered to be the illegal immigration crisis writ-large.

«In this case; seeing people cross the border so that their children can be anchored into the United States. That is such an obvious abuse of the American People economically, socially, culturally. It’s a huge risk to America’s national defense.»

A Mission Regional spokesperson told Fox News Digital on Friday the hospital remains an «award-winning, nonprofit» infirmary that has been operating as such since 1954.

«We recognize that a very limited marketing campaign may have caused unintended misunderstanding and was immediately discontinued. The campaign was meant to highlight services available to the communities we serve and was never intended to encourage any unlawful activity and Mission Regional Medical Center remains committed to serving the Rio Grande Valley with integrity, compassion, transparency, and full compliance with all applicable laws,» the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said the billboard campaign returned very little patient volume and no financial benefit to a community they said has a high uninsured-patient rate and limited maternity care.

«The hospital does not support or facilitate unlawful activity and has never operated its obstetric program with the intent of attracting individuals who are unlawfully present in the United States, promoting birth tourism, or encouraging travel to the United States for the purpose of obtaining U.S. citizenship for a child,» the spokesperson added.

Citing a separate order from Austin, the spokesperson said 99% of all emergency and inpatient patients who responded to a state-required survey were legal U.S. residents or citizens.

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«Birth tourism should never be big business in the United States. This tactic exploits U.S. immigration law, and those who willfully mispresent their intentions to temporarily come to the U.S. are breaking the law,» Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chairman of the greater Oversight Committee said in May.

In a concurrence to the Supreme Court’s June 30 ruling striking down Trump’s birthright citizenship order, Justice Brett Kavanaugh indicated that Congress could still act through legislation. Gill, Banks and other lawmakers have said they plan to pursue that route as they seek to restrict birthright citizenship.