Lightfoot denounces 'Scooby-Doo' meme posted by teachers union as 'clearly racist'

In the latest back and forth between two fierce political rivals, Mayor Lori Lightfoot expressed outrage Thursday over a tweet by the Chicago Teachers Union that she called "clearly racist" and an example of a "right-wing" tactic.

There's no love lost between the mayor and the union, which gave Lightfoot her first major political test with an 11-day teachers strike last fall, just months after her election.

After months of accusations by the union that Lightfoot's school policies are racist, the tables turned as the mayor accused the union of tweeting an offensive meme.

The union tweet, posted Wednesday evening, is a play on the ending of many episodes of the mystery cartoon "Scooby-Doo," when the characters on the show capture and unmask the villain. In this case, the meme reveals the villain is Lightfoot in a Chicago police officer's uniform. She is tied up with a rope around her torso and surrounded by the show's characters, who are all white.

• For the full report, visit chicago.suntimes.com.