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The sound of classroom silence.

As part of a rally by parents, education advocates and civil rights groups who represent Communities for Los Angeles Student Success, or CLASS, 375 desks were set up this morning at the LAUSD headquarters in downtown Los Angeles.

With downtown LA’s skyline as the backdrop, the empty desks represented the number of LAUSD school students who drop out of school each week, organizers said. The desks were placed along Beaudry Ave., which was closed to traffic for the rally, and were clearly visible to those attending today’s school board meeting.