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Sep 3, 2008 10:01 pm US/Central
Organizers Call Off CPS Boycott
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Makeshift classrooms were set up in the lobby of the Thompson Center and other downtown buildings as part of the school funding protest led by Sen. James Meeks.
CBS
State Sen. James Meeks has called off a boycott of Chicago Public Schools staged to protest Illinois' education funding system.
Late Wednesday night, Meeks declared he is calling the governor's bluff.
Gov. Blagojevich has said he won't meet to discuss school funding until the boycott is over.
"Just as we're honoring our committment and calling the boycott off, we're asking the governor to honor his committment and to meet with us tomorrow," Meeks said.
Organizers said Wednesday evening that the two-day boycott of CPS was a success and brought attention to the issue of school funding while showing students what a well-funded school looks like.
On Tuesday, when school started for CPS, more than a thousand students boarded buses to suburban Northfield, where they symbolically registered at the affluent New Trier High School.
Earlier Wednesday, students skipped classes to attend impromptu lessons in the lobbies of 18 downtown Chicago government and business buildings, including City Hall, the James R. Thompson Center and Boeing's headquarters.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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