3 - How Targeted Citizens Fight Back

Summary

Chapter 3 examines how the closure process facilitates increased participation of affected citizens at the local level, in part, through the channeling of resources by the school district, which wants to be perceived as collecting community input. The resources provided by the district and community organizations facilitate increased protests of closure decisions. From their actions, this chapter demonstrates that affected citizens become the most likely group to attend a community meeting, to support an elected school board, and to turn out to vote. And yet, in the end this chapter raises the question of whether their actions lead to lasting policy change.