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Massive School-Closing Protest March Planned

(CBS) – It's being billed as the mother of all marches.

Chicago teachers are in the planning stages of a massive three-day walk to protest a decision to close 53 schools. Participants plan to march to each of the targeted buildings on May 18, 19 and 20.

CBS 2's Dorothy Tucker has learned the details on the rally.

Rosemary Maurello is among the many teachers expected to join the three-day walk to protest school closings.

"It's not just affecting me. It's affecting my students. I'm a mother of three. It's affecting my kids," she says.

The impact of the closings is why the members of the Chicago Teachers Union think they'll see massive crowds like the kind that showed up during the teachers' strike.

This weekend's march will include community groups, clergy, and members of other unions.

"We want the mayor and the Board of Ed to know that these people impacted by these harmful policies are not going to take it," the CTU's Jackson Potter says.

The march is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. Saturday morning. Protesters will gather on the Northwest Side at Lafayette; on the South Side, at Owens.

They'll walk a route that includes 12 miles on Saturday, another 12 on Sunday, stopping at every school slated for closing.

"There will be definitely opportunities for people to have speak-outs about these different experiences and how devastating the impacts will be," Potter says.

Monday afternoon, the march will culminate downtown. Wanda Adams is a grandmother from Owens who plans to be there.

"If they see the masses come out, it will help them recognize they need to take a second look," she says.

Part of the plan may also include overnight stays in city churches. Some clergy members have agreed to provide shelter and food if marchers need a place to stay Saturday and Sunday nights.

For details, click here.

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