Unity Turned the City Blue and Pushed the Para Bill Forward

For months, the Unity Caucus has been working toward one goal: getting the Para Respect Check Bill before the City Council. It has been a long road. Paraprofessional leaders in Unity drafted the bill and then spent months meeting with council members one by one, building support from the ground up until the bill earned a veto-proof majority.

Then came yesterday.

From the break of dawn, Unity members turned the city blue. Photos, messages, and signs poured in from every borough, showing unwavering support for the paraprofessionals who hold our schools together. Outside City Hall, paras spoke openly about the challenges they face and why this bill matters to their daily lives and their dignity.

Inside the chamber, the impact was unmistakable. Council members pressed the DOE and Office of Labor Relations in a tough, extended round of questioning. Council Member Keith Powers even remarked that he had never seen this level of visible support for a bill before. Paraprofessionals and Unity leadership, including Michael Mulgrew, delivered testimony that made one message impossible to ignore: our paras deserve respect, and they deserve it now.

But the story doesn’t end with a powerful hearing.

The next step is straightforward: the committee must reconvene and vote to advance the bill to a stated meeting, where the full Council can pass it into law. Unity is pushing to secure the earliest possible date so this bill does not stall or lose momentum.

And that’s exactly why we must stay focused.

While the Unity Caucus remains fully engaged in moving the Para Respect Check Bill across the finish line, this very morning, members of ABC’s failed slate took to social media to attempt to undermine the bill and slow the momentum our members achieved yesterday.

At a moment when our paras need unity, they showed division.

At a moment when educators citywide are fighting for respect, they showed that they are still out of touch.

We cannot let them distract us. The work is too important, and the stakes are too real for the paraprofessionals we support.

The path forward is clear.

We keep showing up.

We keep organizing.

We keep standing with every paraprofessional until the Respect Check is not just a bill, but a reality.

If your school took part in yesterday’s actions, please continue sharing your photos and messages. Send them to media@unitycaucus.org so we can keep amplifying the strength that has brought us this far.

We are closer than ever, and we will not stop until the Respect Check is signed, sealed, and in our paras’ hands.

--Unity Caucus