There has been much hoopla surrounding the notion that charter schools may be a viable option for urban youth. However, the existing information on this issue may be easily dissimulated considering less sloganeering about charter school theories and more research on how charter schools enhance the academic experience of the students they serve are needed. Some of the problems uncovered by this research include: (1) Charter schools may preserve inequities among students; (2) Charter schools have not fulfilled their promise to close the academic achievement gap while dollars are being split between public and charter schools to improve education; and (3) Charter schools--in general--present irreparable financial harm to school districts; in the long run students in both the charter and public schools suffer. This article discusses each of these issues, and the author concludes that charter schools have yet to prove their academic viability, to fulfill their promise of closing the academic achievement gap, or to commit to working with public schools on academic excellence for all students.