Got
to thinking about the whole idea of rights this week, after hearing
about the Straight
Pride protest in St. Charles North High School, Chicago.
To
summarise, for those too busy to hit the link. School holds an Ally
Week, specifically aimed at not bullying folks with a different
sexual orientation. Three kids show up on the first day, wearing
shirts which say Straight Pride, and a lovely biblical verse
advocating death for homosexuals. A small tempest in a tea cup, the
sort of thing that schools deal with every day. Then, suddenly, first
amendment rights get invoked, national news shows up and a fairly small,
local story suddenly hits the
big time, especially after they plan a black shirt protest for
Friday. I am guessing that St. Charles doesn't teach a whole lot of
history. Or that some of the students really are complete pricks.
The first amendment protects your freedom of speech. So yeah, you have the right to say whatever you want. It also protects my right to hit you repeatedly with a baseball bat, that being my preferred form of debating people with different views from me.
Rights,
rights, rights. Every racist, prejudiced hate-mongering idiot bangs
on about them. Yet I see no mention of the duty that goes hand in
hand with the rights. You know, the duty not to be a complete tool to
others. To consider your speech before you make it. To let others
live as they will. To actually admit that others have a different
point of view. And to be adult enough to accept that their view may
not be yours.
Come on, people! Is this 2010 or 1910? Taking
pride in your sexuality is on a par with taking pride in having green
eyes, or being left handed, or having rich parents. It means
precisely nothing. By all means be proud of who you are, but save the
real, shouting, strutting pride for things that you actually do.
yuck. the poor constitution- people just pluck bits of it out of context to suit their jackassical whims and totally ignore its actual intention. before you even get to the amendments, the preamble states that it exists to secure the "blessings of liberty" and domestic tranquility. blargh.
i'm glad you wrote this, but i'm sorry you had to.
Two sayings come to mind:
1) Having a religion is like having a penis: it's ok to like your own and be proud of it, but it's wrong to shove it into people.
2) Forbidding gay people to be gay is like forbidding people to eat onions because you don't like onions
Equality means that no one should be silenced, regardless of whether or not the majority agrees with them. Also, no one should be forced into showing support for/celebrating something they don't actually agree with.
Gotta say that I don't see what was wrong with the "Straight Pride" shirt minus the Bible verse. The students shouldn't have had to cover those up. That's just stupid. See Tinker v. Des Moines School District. Students and teachers don't leave their First Amendment rights at the school door, unless their expression is somehow threatening or disruptive.
It really doesn't matter what you think about what the definition of a tool is and whether or not people should act like one. That's the price we pay for free speech. People have the right to say ridiculous things whether or not you or anyone likes it. It's not about should and shouldn't, it's about can and can't. And unfortunately, people will continue to do it no matter how many blog posts you write, like those in which you exercise your First Amendment right to joke that you'd really like to hit these kids with baseball bats.
Who was joking?
Oh, jeez. Now I know we've made it big: we made it to GuySpeak.
I graduated from St. Charles North, and-- like most of the student population, it seems-- am in shock over the recent shenanigans going on over there. For me, my personal feelings about homosexuality aside (I am very much an ally), it comes down to students being allowed for most of the day to have violent messages on their shirts in a school which has a dress code specifically prohibiting such things. And I can say from personal experience that said dress code is typically enforced. At least, it was not too long ago.
So, I say this is a fail on the administration's part. If you're going to claim there are messages which are inappropriate to wear on school grounds, stick by it.
PS: I propose all faculty members involved get T-shirts that say, "Hypocrisy Pride." I'd pay fairly good money to see that.
Oh, and they teach history there. Depends on what teacher you get, really.