Thousands of black and Latino kids lost their schools in 2013 | MSNBC

Thousands of black and Latino kids lost their schools in 2013 | MSNBC:

Thousands of black and Latino kids lost their schools in 2013

12/28/13 12:00 AM—UPDATED 12/28/13 03:57 PM

Students walk the halls of Normandy High School in St. Louis, where hundreds of students transferred over the summer.

TRYMAINE LEE FOR MSNBC

In Philadelphia, hundreds of children left home a little earlier as they headed back to school this year. A slew of school closures over the summer meant a longer, and often less safe, journey to other elementary and middle schools further away. 

In the St. Louis suburbs, thousands of students transferred this Fall from failing school districts when a court order opened up new opportunities. But the exodus put an even greater financial strain on the districts they left behind. Now the students who chose to stay closer to home could soon find themselves displaced as the state mulls shutting down or taking over their schools. And in Chicago, the closure of nearly 50 schools has created “school deserts” in some neighborhoods, while the district starves other schools to the point of closure.

All across the country, from the old industrial Northeast to the West Coast, through the Midwest and to major cities in the South, mass school closings—the product of deep budget cuts and flawed policy planning—have forced tens of thousands of children further from home. But not all children. Interviews in major cities and a review of census and other data make clear that the vast majority of those affected are African-American and poor.

In district after district, officials have argued that the schools involved had been underutilized or were underperforming, and that by closing them, students have an opportunity to attend better-equipped schools. In Chicago, Mayor Rahm Emanuel said that “consolidating schools is the best way to make sure all of our city’s students get the resources they need to succeed in the classroom.”

But after years of closures and consolidation in districts across the country—Chicago alone has