Wednesday Open Thread

My apologies for the tardiness of this thread; my internet service has been spotty.

Update from the School Board meeting tonight; President Harris announced that there will be several "silent" observers at the superintendent semi-finalists' interviews tomorrow and Friday.  She did not indicate which groups will send a rep nor how the Board will take in their feedback.

A story from KING 5 news on students organizing this Saturday's big March for Our Lives for common-sense gun control.  Details at the Facebook page for this event.


Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos faced some scalding questions when she appeared before a House Appropriations Committee:

DeVos, already reeling after a series of rocky, high-profile interviews, unveiled some details of a federal commission on school safety that she will be chairing. The commission, formed after the Florida high school shooting in which 17 people were killed, will comprise herself as well as the heads of the Homeland Security, Health and Human Services and Justice departments. 

DeVos also faced sharp criticism from Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., who complained that minority students were being disciplined much more frequently than their white peers for similar infractions. The Obama administration issued guidance in 2014 that instructed schools to pay attention to the problem and make sure they weren’t discriminating against minority students.

“Your head is in the sand about racial bias and racial discrimination,” Lee said. “Madame Secretary, you just don’t care much about the rights of black and brown children. This is horrible.”

One bright spot; there was a "yes" extracted from DeVos on whether private schools that accept public funds via vouchers would have to follow federal regulations on non-discrimination.

Finally, a high school student - unhappy over the mass shootings at high schools - called up his local congressional representative; this from Slate.

(Seventeen-year-old Noah) Christiansen got into trouble after the student walkout he participated in last Wednesday as part of a coordinated nationwide protest movement to demand solutions to school gun violence. Christiansen and his fellow students were marked tardy for walking out of class at 10:17 a.m. to mark the 17 people—mostly students—who were killed in a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

Christiansen told the Washington Post that during the walkout, his classmates passed around pieces of paper with phone numbers of legislators to call. Christiansen called the office of Rep. Mark Amodei, a pro-gun Republican, to complain, and reached a staffer in his office. 

He told the Post that he said, “I believe bump stocks should be banned, the minimum age should be raised, and Congress people not already asking should get off their fucking asses and do something about gun control.” 

The staffer thanked him for his comments, Christiansen said. But the school later told the student that staffer called the school to alert it toChristiansen’s use of “offensive” language. That afternoon, Christiansen was suspended for two days for “disrespectful behavior/language” and barred from assuming his role as the class secretary-treasurer, according to the ACLU.

Amodei, who told the Los Angeles Times he would review the protocol for taking calls from the public, defended his staffer, saying he wouldn’t apologize “because my guy accurately described what happened” and “he didn’t ask for any specific thing or beat the kid up,” he told the Nevada Independent.

“Welcome to the world where words have impact,” he told the Times. 

On Monday, the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada sent letters on behalf of 17-year-old Noah Christiansen to request Robert McQueen High School in Reno, Nevada, remove the record of his suspension and apologize to the student. The student’s punishment, they argued, amounted to an infringement on his First Amendment rights and could deter other studentsfrom reaching out to their representatives.

First, good for Noah for trying to be politically active.  Next, no, he shouldn't have cursed when he was stating his position.  However, it's pretty childish on the part of the staffer to not realize that Noah is a child who made a mistake.  Tattling on him and then having the principal suspend him was way out of line.

And how odd is it that Congressman Amodei referenced not asking for Noah to be "beaten up?"  But clearly, they wanted him disciplined and that was wrong.  That's for his parents to do but he has rights as a citizen to express himself.  Good for the ACLU for stepping up to help him.

What's on your mind?