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A large demonstration — and a hostile response — could signal a resurgence of a political battle over the publicly funded but privately run schools.
Sept. 21, 2025, 3:00 a.m. ET
On Thursday, thousands of students, teachers and parents flooded the streets of Brooklyn to press the case for charter schools in New York City, home to the nation’s largest school system.
Less than 24 hours later, a pair of influential state lawmakers criticized the demonstration — which occurred during the school day — and called for an investigation into whether the demonstration violated the law.
The huge demonstration — and immediate backlash — could signal a resurgence of an intense political battle over charter schools, which were often the source of caustic fights in New York a decade ago.
Last week’s rally, labeled a “March for Excellence,” was the largest demonstration in New York in recent years promoting charter schools, which are publicly funded but privately run and rarely unionized. The event, organizers said, was “about parents, not electoral politics.”
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It came less than seven weeks before a mayoral election in which the two leading candidates diverge sharply in their stances on the charter schools, which serve about 15 percent of public school students in New York. The number of charter schools in the city is restricted to 275 under state law; more cannot open unless state lawmakers raise the cap.
