Judge won't block Chicago school closings

With a little more than a week until the first day of classes in Chicago public schools, U.S. District Court Judge John Z. Lee has ruled that he will not bar the school system from closing 49 elementary schools and a high school program. The Chicago Sun-Times reports that the ruling essentially knocks down the last legal hurdle preventing the district from permanently shuttering the targeted schools. The judge reject arguments that the closings would violate the rights of students who are African American or have disabilities.