Closed for Democracy
How Mass School Closure Undermines the Citizenship of Black Americans

This book analyzes how public-school closures and the costly battles waged to stop them undermine the citizenship of Black Americans.

Sally A. Nuamah (Author)

9781009247450, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 22 December 2022

240 pages
23.5 x 15.9 x 1.8 cm, 0.49 kg

'Closed for Democracy is a rigorous and compelling account of the costs of participation for Black citizens in US democracy, given the continued lack of responsiveness to their needs. As Nuamah shows, even when Black citizens 'win' policy battles, they lose. This is a must-read for anyone interested in political loss, public things, democracy-building, Black political behavior, and educational policy.' Juliet Hooker, Professor of Political Science, Brown University, and author of Theorizing Race in the Americas: Douglass, Sarmiento, DuBois and Vasconcelos

Every year, over 1,000 public schools are permanently closed across the United States. And yet, little is known about their impacts on American democracy. Closed for Democracy is the ?rst book to systematically study the political causes and democratic consequences of mass public school closures in the United States. The book investigates the declining presence of public schools in large cities and their impacts on the Americans most directly affected – poor Black citizens. It documents how these mass school closure policies target minority communities, making them feel excluded from the public goods afforded to equal citizens. In response, targeted communities become superlative participators to make their voices heard. Nevertheless, the high costs and low responsiveness associated with the policy process undermines their faith in the power of political participation. Ultimately, the book reveals that when schools shut down, so too does Black citizens' access to, and belief in, American democracy.

Introduction Closed for school, open for Business: When citizens become targets in the era of mass school closures
1. What targeted citizens Think: Racial differences in public opinion on school closures
2. Who targeted citizens Blame: Blame, approval, and black power
3. How targeted citizens fight back: Participating while poor and a minority in the policy process
4. Who wins and who loses in the era of mass school closures?: Toward a theory of collective participatory debt
Conclusion closed for school, closed for democracy: Why closing schools undermine democracy
Epilogue Close to home
Bibliography
Appendix.

Subject Areas: Politics & government [JP], Educational strategies & policy [JNF], Sociology [JHB], Ethnic studies [JFSL]