In BloomKlein's New York,

there is at least one courageous politician who is willing to say "no" to charter schools:

But when Bill Perkins, the state senator from Harlem who represents many of the parents, took the stage, they drowned him out with boos.

Some parents confronted him later in the vestibule outside the Senate chamber, demanding that he meet with them that afternoon and chanting “Move Bill, get out the way, get out the way,” before he could even speak.

As advocates of charter schools, including the Bloomberg administration, try to persuade legislators to lift the limit on the number of such schools in the state, no one is as likely to stand in their way as Mr. Perkins, whose district encompasses nearly 20 charter schools. Several more are planned next year.

Over the last decade, as charter schools have multiplied, Mr. Perkins has undergone a dramatic shift and emerged as their most outspoken critic in the Legislature, writing guest columns in newspapers and delivering impassioned speeches criticizing the “privatization” of public schools.

I hope there is a nationwide movement against the privatization of public education. Our very democracy is at stake.