School closings are nothing new, but in a growing number of districts around the country, what was once seen as a local decision to close schools has now morphed into a politically charged campaign.
People opposed to school closings have almost never organized beyond their own neighborhoods, let alone marched on Washington, until recently.
Helen Moore, a community organizer from Detroit, joined more than 200 protesters from 18 cities in January to call for a moratorium on school closings nationwide.
"I came here to demand. I ain't asking for not a damn thing," she said at a rally in Washington, D.C. "I'm telling you that I'm demanding an education for our children. They are our schools, they are our children, it is our money."
Finding The Trends
In cities like Detroit and Flint in Michigan, Oakland in California, Chicago, New York City and Philadelphia, schools are closing because they're half-empty. The reason they're half-empty has intrigued researchers like Emily Dowdall with The Pew Charitable Trusts.
