Maybe there's hope after all
Congratulations to the students at Snow Canyon Middle School.
Tuesday, these young people decided that they didn't like what was going on at their school. They were upset because they couldn't dress in Halloween costumes to celebrate the holiday. It got to the point where they were not getting the answers they wanted so they walked out of class at lunch time, went across the street and had a protest walk.
Now, before we go any further on up this road, congratulations must also go out to principal John Goldhardt, who was admirable in the way he handled the situation.
There were no suspensions, however the students who participated received unexcused absences for the class time they missed. Plus, Goldhardt said: "Protesting is absolutely a good thing — it's part of democracy."
It's not often that the target of a protest understands the process and respects the opposing view.
It took guts for these ninth-graders to do what they did.
Now, whether students are allowed to wear Halloween costumes or not is not the issue here. The issue is that the students understood that they could actually show a united voice and act in a peaceful way to demonstrate that voice.
Whether next year the school allows costumes on Halloween remains to be seen.
However, there is a lesson here for the parents of those children and that is: Do not be afraid.
Do not be afraid to break from the flock and let your true feelings be heard. Do not be afraid to ride against the wind. Do not be afraid to express yourself because you know what? There are probably a lot of others who feel the same way you do, but are so timid or beaten down that they accept what is driven their way.
Congrats, young people, for reminding us that democracy is important, that you can stand up for what you believe in and that it doesn't matter if you win or lose as long as you display the courage of your convictions and make your voices heard.
We've been silent for too long.
It's time we learn from our children.
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Comments
I truly don't see it that way. I think Halloween has been so commercialized that it has fostered the "Gimme" mentality to the point that these juveniles saw nothing more than what was in it for themselves, the chance to show off their costumes for attention and popularity points so rampant for this age group. It's also a pretty good excuse not to focus on their school work. I praise the principal for keeping education as the top priority. I think he made the right call because the school was accommodating other dress up days already and Halloween has become a season, not just a one day event, with carnivals, parties and other activities that provide plenty of dress up opportunities. The real issue was over how the students wanted to celebrate Halloween during the school day and they threw a fit because they did't get their way. It was an adolescent temper-tantrum and I don't think that sort of behavior should ever be rewarded or hailed.
Posted by: Jennifer Weaver | November 1, 2006 12:27 PM