A new video featuring additional footage by Labor Beat updates the Chicago struggle against school closings.
"61 Schools", a new video by Chicago's Labor Beat, tells the story of the growing resistance to the attempt by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his appointed school board to close or otherwise radically change 61 of Chicago's remaining real public schools. The video was compiled during the events leading up to the massive March 27 rally, march, and civil disobedience against the latest plan to privatize public schools under the aegis of corporate "school reform."
At the Labor Beat web site:
http://www.laborbeat.org
Also, archived on YouTube at:
http://youtu.be/bQWVg5xwWKo
Jitu Brown of the Kenwood Oakland Community Organization (KOCO) spoke to the March 27 crowd in Daley Plaza agains the 2013 Hit List. Substance photo by David Vance.On March 21, 2013 Chicago Public Schools announced that it would close 61 school buildings in the largest such action in U.S. history. This followed two months of phony hearings in which CPS pretended to listen to evidence, pleas, and anger of school communities who need their public, neighborhood schools.
We visit some of the last in this series of hearings (Garfield, Fullerton, and Pershing in late Feb.), and witness dramatic and emotional statements from teachers, parents and students. They demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of what CPS is really doing behind-the-scenes while making pretense of listening to communities threatened by closures. Includes scenes of the big Wednesday, March 27 rally against closings in front of City Hall.
Pauline Lipman (Univ. of Illinois-Chicago Professor of Educational Studies and member of Teachers for Social Justice) provides the running analysis. Lipman says that there is a "nexus of economic interests" in the city. They serve corporate objectives that exploit minority/working class communities, moving people around like pawns. There is no demonstrable evidence that these school closings and privatization plans improve education for Chicago students. In fact, they create serious problems. They are a business plan masquerading as an education plan. Lipman also reminds us that there is a strong movement growing for an elected representative school board, to replace the mayor-appointed board now ransacking the public sector. Forces opposing school privatizations are in a fight with those economic interests for political control of the city.
Length - 25:49
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