Critics of police unions provide a litany of anecdotal examples of the unions defending abusive, racist, and deadly officer behavior by bad actors who are far outnumbered by more caring and ethical colleagues. Former Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin, for example, was defended by his union through misconduct claims that should have cost him his badge long before he knelt on George Floyd’s neck.

The killing of Floyd has awakened what might be the first domestic union-critical campaign from the Left since the labor movement went mainstream in the 1930s. Yet in exposing police unions, activists risk inadvertently awakening the public to similar behavior by union leaders representing a variety of professions and trades — and right at a moment when teachers unions are stymieing not only attempts to reopen public schools but using their influence to clamp down on any and all student education until they deem the environment safe enough for their clients.