Traffic Snarls Expected Near Prospect Park For Charter Schools Rally; Rapper Common Slated To Speak And Perform

A rally in Prospect Park on Wednesday, September 28 will bring traffic congestion and about 350 buses to drop off rally attendees, according to a community notice released by the Office of the Mayor. In addition, 100 buses will pick up attendees at the end of the event.

Council Member Brad Lander released a statement yesterday explaining the rally is called #PathToPossible, organized by Eva Moskowitz, CEO of Success Academy Charter Schools and Families for Excellent Schools.

The following information details the two areas which will be affected by the rally:

The mission of Families for Excellent Schools is “to ensure that every child attends an excellent school by building coalitions of families and their allies and running campaigns that change education policy,” according to their website.

According to Billboard, rapper/actor Common is slated to speak and perform at the rally. The rally is a “protest New York’s racial achievement gap in public education while celebrating the titular campaign’s efforts to increase the reach and impact of public charter schools. The cause’s specific goal is to spur city officials into doubling the public charter sector, from reaching 100,000 children a year to 200,000, by the year 2020.”

In a press release for the event, Common said “every kid from every neighborhood deserves a great education, and New York City’s public charter schools are bringing this vision to life. I’m proud to support charter school families in their fight to put 200,000 students on the path to possible.”

“I’m not an opponent of charter schools in general,” wrote Lander, however he’s “less-than-enthusiastic about this bus siege of Prospect Park, organized for political purposes.”

Lander elaborated on his concerns about the nature of the rally:

“Eva Moskowitz and her Success Academy Charter Schools have shown time and again that they are willing to put their own political and organizational agenda ahead of the needs of kids.

The purpose of their rally tomorrow is ‘to demand a seat in a public charter school for every child who wants one’ – although there is evidence they push kids out of their schools far more aggressively than other schools, and also resist enrolling their share of ‘over the counter’ students.”

“The only schools successfully teaching our highest-need kids are public charter schools,” wrote Gigi Grubb in an opinion piece for Brooklyn Daily Eagle. “District schools are putting these children on the path to failure. We know exactly what we need to do to stop this.”

On Monday, the Daily News reported that 19 elected officials behind the charter schools system.

“As New York City’s public charter schools reach the important milestone of serving 100,000 students, we know parents will not rest until every child in New York City attends an excellent school,” Families for Excellent Schools CEO Jeremiah Kittredge told the Daily News. “Parents and their elected allies will march in September because public charters can end our city’s schools crisis — if city leaders stand with them.”

According to Lander, the plans for the rally are less than ideal.

“If they cared anything about our neighborhood, couldn’t they have arranged to take public transportation?” wrote Lander. “If it were really a ‘family day,’ wouldn’t it be at a time when families could more likely attend?”