Now that we’ve seen schools accept, organize and even encourage national protests and walkouts on gun control, it’s clear this may start something that will only make “education” even harder in public schools.
It may also only confirm what some — myself included — believe is the liberal political view of many of our schools and teachers. So what happens if other students want to protest other hot-button issues that might not be so liberal?
It didn’t take us long to find out.
In California, a Rocklin High School teacher is on paid administrative leave over her “views about the national school walkout.” The teacher of an advanced placement history class thought it was important to discuss whether protests in schools are appropriate at all. And if they are, should all protests regardless of topic be treated the same? The teacher used another hot-button issue — abortion — as an example.
She was suspended.
So were several students around the country who chose not to participate, with at least one who remained in his classroom to do homework.
The school said it was really because he stayed behind and the teacher locked him in the classroom while the teacher left to join the protest.
That didn’t help clear anything up for me. Why didn’t the teacher stay in the classroom if she had a student in there? Isn’t that, and not protesting during school hours, their job?
In an interview, the suspended Rocklin teacher said she “used the example which I know it’s really controversial, but I know it was the best example I thought of at the time — a group of students nationwide, or even locally, decided, ‘I want to walk out of school for 17 minutes’ and go in the quad area and protest abortion, would that be allowed by our administration?”
This seems like a legitimate and timely topic to debate. Free speech isn’t only about things we agree with.
That’s an idea schools used to encourage.
Instead, she was suspended because a student (or two, depending on the source) and a parent complained.
“If you’re going to allow students to walk up and get out of class without penalty then you have to allow any group of students that wants to protest,” she said.
Sure sounds logical, and I still don’t see any reason to suspend her.
But this same school was also on the hot seat after a 2017 incident in which a kindergarten teacher read books on transgender issues to her kindergarten class, and after lots of complaints by parents, decided to keep doing it.
Parents had a bunch of upset kids who were pretty confused afterwards. I’m an adult and this topic confuses me too.
Let’s see. On one hand at this school, there is an age-appropriate and timely topic where the teacher is suspended for discussing because of a couple complaints. On the other, a teacher teaching a topic I would argue is not age appropriate, where a bunch of parents complained, is supported?
One of the students in the AP history class of the suspended teacher has decided to find out if all student protests would be treated the same by the school.
The principal has refused to talk to CBS on camera, but has agreed to meet with the student organizer. That’s not sitting well with the school newspaper editor, referred to as a “peer” of the principal.
She (the editor of the school newspaper) is reportedly staunchly opposed to the idea and reportedly also takes a “stance against anything anti-abortion” happening on the school campus.
“Abortions aren’t really anything that has to do with school or students here,” she told the station. “They have their First Amendment, they can go protest about that anytime anywhere.”
But the student organizing this protests points out that is exactly the point; is there a double standard for protests on school grounds during school time?
I suspect we already know the answer.
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John McCroskey was Lewis County sheriff from 1995 to 2005. He lives outside Chehalis, and can be contacted at musingsonthemiddlefork@yahoo.com.
