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Hello and welcome to Behind the News.

My name is Doug Henwood.

Two segments today, no surprise there.

We'll hear from the education journalist Jennifer Berkshire or the controversies around school reopening.

Among other things, how much blame or credit, depending upon your perspective,

to teachers unions deserve for blocking the return to in-class room instruction.

And then we'll hear from the economic historian Helen Yathi and how Cuba has handled the COVID pandemic

and what they've got going with vaccine development.

On the social media, I've seen many people, notably parents who are eager to send their kids back to in-person school full time,

complaining that teachers unions are selfishly blocking the return, out of a narcissistic and excessive sense of caution.

Though I often criticize American unions for their weakness, lack of imagination, fear of confrontation,

and subordination to the Democratic Party, I still instinctively take labor aside in any substantial dispute,

around this situation distressing.

What's going on with the unions and slow school reopenings?

Are they rationally protecting their members as any union should do?

Or are they hindering the recovery of an essential public service?

To answer those questions and to alert us to severe dangers to the entire enterprise of public education at the state level,

here's education journalist Jennifer Berkshire.

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