By Ben Velderman
EAGnews.org

CHICAGO – Just when it appeared the “Occupy” protest movement was completely dead, a group of nine parents and students – operating under the name “Occupy Lafayette” – staged a three-hour sit-in at a Chicago elementary school that’s in the process of being closed.

NBCChicago.com reports the tiny group of protestors “took over a classroom” in Lafayette Elementary School Wednesday to draw attention to Chicago school leaders’ recent decision to close dozens of half-empty schools.

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The protest took place on the first official day of schools closures.

“In total, the final bell rung at 28 schools Wednesday,” NBCChicago.com reports.

The school closures – and related teacher layoffs – were necessitated by the district’s $1 billion budget deficit. The huge budget hole was caused by years of reckless spending and shoddy academics, which caused many families to flee the district.

That grim reality left school officials with no other alternative but to close underutilized schools.

But Chicago Teachers Union members and their supporters are still in denial about the district’s financial condition. They see no reason to close the schools and lay off hundreds of teachers.

Parent protestor Rosemary Vega told NBCChicago.com the sit-in was meant to show how the city’s decision to close certain schools is hurting the families whose children attended them.

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Vega said the affected families “are desperate enough to do what is needed” and vowed to keep fighting.

The occupiers were joined by another 40 to 50 people who marched outside the school and prevented a moving truck from getting near the building, the news site notes.

In a press release, Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Jesse Sharkey called the protestors “heroes.”

Police put an end to the tiny uprising by 6 p.m., according to NBCChicago.com.