The Panel for Education Policy (PEP) enacts policy for the New York City Department of Education. Every member is appointed, not elected. A plurality of these voting members are selected by the Mayor directly. The PEP replaced the Board of Education when Mayor Bloomberg took control of the schools in 2002. It is intended to be a democratic forum where people voice concerns, prior to the panel's vote on educational policy.

200 parents, teachers staff and students had convened on October 25, 2011, to discuss new standards being implemented in schools when the meeting was massively mic-checked for three full minutes by members of Occupy Wall Street.

This is what democracy looks like.

For more about General Assemblies, watch Consensus (Direct Democracy at OWS).

Learn more about Occupy the DOE here and here.

Filmmakers - Meerkat Media