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Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times file photo
I don’t remember the people who led the Chicago Teachers Union right before Karen Lewis. But when Lewis took over the reins in 2010, it was clear she would be memorable.
It was as if Jackie Vaughn, the legendary labor union activist, was reincarnated. Vaughn was the first African-American and first woman to head the third largest teachers union.
Critics, politicians and editorial boards didn’t intimidate either woman. Ironically, both women led the union through some tough negotiations even as they were battling serious illness.
Lewis developed brain cancer in 2014, just as she was contemplating a mayoral run. Her passing was announced Monday.