Ripon High cheerleaders suspended over Britney Spears routine

Modesto Bee ^ | November 15, 2007

[Sopater]

Six of eight Ripon High School cheerleaders were suspended from school for two days over a cheer performed at a football game. The girls danced to a Britney Spears song and lifted their skirts at the end to spell out the school's nickname, Indians. Superintendent Leo Zuber said he couldn't discuss the issue because of confidentiality requirements on disciplinary matters. Parents can appeal suspensions, and Zuber acknowledged he has received one. He said he will investigate whether proper procedures were followed and whether suspensions were warranted. Bee staff writer Inga Miller contributed to this report.

[Sopater]

Video on website...

[Thrusher]

For those of us in cubicles...

TTIWWOP!

[jdm]

Six of eight Ripon High School cheerleaders were suspended from school for two days over a cheer performed at a football game. The girls danced to a Britney Spears song and lifted their skirts at the end to spell out the school's nickname, Indians.

There are seven letters in Indians.

I-N-D-I-A-N-S

...but it took eight cheerleaders to spell it?

LOL.

[robomatik]

INDIANS #1

i guess one cheek each for "#" and "1"
;^)

[Sopater]

[Red Badger]

One must have had “GO”...........

[cinives]

you forgot the exclamation point at the end ...

[tioga]

I think the “adults” here over-reacted.....there was nothing wrong with the cheer.

[jimtorr]

In the video at the Modesto Bee website, the girl says they were wearing white shorts, and they had put “I-N-D-I-A-N-S-#1” on the butts of their shorts. That’s why it took eight.

The cheerleader is articulate, but clueless. They really didn’t have a clue that the stunt might be objectionable.

[driftdiver]

These girls have a bright future in stripping.

[johniegrad]

U-rah-rah, INDAS

[torchthemummy]

I all for modesty but this was tame. On the other hand they should have been suspended for cheering to that floozey Britney Spears’ song.

[jdm]

I was wondering about that!

[Thrusher]

ACK!

Guilty!

[DoughtyOne]

The girls had acceptable shorts on underneath their uniforms and it baffles me why there was so much commotion over what they did. It seems to me it was a harmless school spirit prank, no big deal at all.

The school staff are the ones whose behavior I can’t justify.

[exit82]

Ripoff.

[DoughtyOne]

There are probably eight varsity cheerleaders. They all wanted to participate.

[jimfree]

Parents can appeal suspensions, and Zuber acknowledged he has received one.

Masterful writing - Zuber received a suspension? From a parent?

[kjam22]

I disagree... she knew it might be an issue. That’s why they didn’t ask permission. And, when told to leave the just did what they wanted. I’d kick em out of school and tell them they could finish in the summer.

[DoughtyOne]

Count me as one who hasn’t a clue why anyone would find this objectionable.

[mylife]

Ree! Ree! Ree! Kick em in the knee!

Ree! Ree! Ras! Gooooo.... Indas!

[FoxInSocks]

If you can, like, watch the whole, you know, six-minute interview-w-w-w, then you would find out, you know, that they were actually asked to leave, you know, several times, but then they stayed and kept, like, cheering. I mean, they tried to pretend, umm, that they didn’t know they had to, you know, leave.

I mean, the cheerleaders that were interviewed, I mean, they seemed kind of bratty, but cheerleading is, like, their lives.

And one cheerleader, she’s taking like two AP classes and is already getting, you know, bad grades, but the two-day suspension will make her grades, you know, go even lower.

[kjam22]

It’s not a matter of whether or not it’s objectionable. The time to argue that point was before the game.

[Moose4]

Sounds like they didn’t get the two days for the cheer routine, as much as they did for back-talking their coach and the vice-principal when they told them to leave (multiple times). I wouldn’t have suspended them for the routine, but for what they did to the VP, I don’t think it’s out of line.

}:-)4

[kjam22]

yep.. they’re seniors. I’d make them finish in the summer.

[DoughtyOne]

If you’re going to pull the cheerleading squad off the field, you should at least have an adult reason to do so.

What these girls did was a harmless prank. It wasn’t offensive in the slightest, and it would take a pinhead to make a mountain out of this molehill.

If the school officials had a problem with it, they would have far ahead of the game to give the girls a few hours of detention the following week, and not make a fool of themselves at a public event.

The girls objected to being kicked out of the game. And if you were being kicked out of a game unfairly, I think you might have objected as well.

[Doomonyou]

“Girls, your suspended for two days for that! Don’t forget to pick up your NEA approved condoms on the way out.”

[GaryLee1990]

WHO CARES??? I don't even know why I'm wasting my time even commenting about this.

WatchingHillary.com

[em2vn]

It might be objectional to the very delicate wanting to be offended but otherwise it’s nothing.

[Last Dakotan]

I’m amazed that there still is a high school with a mascot of “Indians”.

[waimea.man]

The comments below the video are pretty interesting. One person says she was in the crowd that night and “Not only that, but many of us witnessed their complete disrespect for their authorities including cussing and inappropriate sign language.” Evidently they got suspended more for their behavor after the cheer than the cheer itself. And if they swore at the administrators and flipped them off, then I tend to side with the school.

[Domandred]

No no no. The problem was the politically incorrect “indians” term used. The school could care less even if they were actually stripping.

[DoughtyOne]

If it wasn’t objectionable then the matter should have been a non issue. I do see this as a control issue.

Look, I don’t approve of a lot of things kids do today. That doesn’t mean that it’s open season when they do something that wasn’t on the script.

Some teacher was worried someone was going to think they approved of this, and they melted down over it. Too bad they didn’t notice the people in the stands thought it was a hoot.

[Sopater]

And one cheerleader, she’s taking like two AP classes and is already getting, you know, bad grades, but the two-day suspension will make her grades, you know, go even lower.

And AP classes are like, you know, college classes and stuff. I can't like miss those classes and still get my, you know, low passing grade, so it'll be the school's fault you know, if I'm not smart when I like graduate.

Anyway, it's like, not fair because, you know, I love cheering.

[waimea.man]

Read the comments section, from people who were there. Not everyone in the crowd liked it.

[FoxInSocks]

If the school officials had a problem with it, they would have far ahead of the game to give the girls a few hours of detention the following week, and not make a fool of themselves at a public event.

Actually, a threat of two hours' worth of detention accompanied the first request for the cheerleaders to leave.

The punishment escalated because the cheerleaders kept ignoring further requests. I can well imagine the teenagers' we'll-show-them attitudes.

[Sopater]

I’m amazed that there still is a high school with a mascot of “Indians”.

Maybe that's why they got in trouble. Maybe they're not the "Indians" anymore.

[GaryLee1990]

That would be cool if it spelled Injuns instead of Indians.

WatchingHillary.com

[waimea.man]

They should all just bury the hatchet.

[waimea.man]

And they didn’t have any reservations.

[DoughtyOne]

What the kids did that you have mentioned I disagree with as well. As a parent and a leader though, you have to realize that you can’t hold kids responsible for doing unacceptable things when you have acted in a manner that makes a mountain out of a molehill. IMO the school leaders turned these events into a death spiral. When the teachers acted in an unacceptable manner, the kids resorted to the same type of behavior.

“I know what you did wasn’t offensive, but you didn’t check with me first so I’m throwing you off the field.”

Frankly, I’d have flipped the son of a B off too, and my language would have probably have mirrored what the kids did.

[cinives]

LOL and smoke a peace pipe

[DoughtyOne]

Throwing a kid out of an event is not just two hours detention is it. It was the last home game of the year and these teachers need to mellow out.

[weegee]

Did they wear undershorts or did they go “Britney”?

[Dacula]

The BAD part of this is that they will ALL grow up and vote for democrats!

[Fledermaus]

How many times did they use “like” and “you know” when talking?

[FoxInSocks]

Frankly, I’d have flipped the son of a B off too, and my language would have probably have mirrored what the kids did.

Seems rather childish. You could join the kids on their deserved suspensions.

Throwing a kid out of an event is not just two hours detention is it.

It's also not the most draconian punishment ever meted out. Big deal, they missed half a game. It wasn't even close -- Ripon won, 59-12. Their cheering obviously wasn't the linchpin of the Indians' victory.

It was the last home game of the year and these teachers need to mellow out.

Last game, first game, in the hallway, it doesn't really matter. Disrespectful and disobedient behavior should be addressed, not ignored. The cheerleaders might learn something about personal responsibility, but I doubt it -- not with Brittany Spears as a role model.

All that said, perhaps their cheer/dance didn't initially warrant expulsion from the field. I think that's a separate issue.

[trimom]

Maybe if your grades are too low, you don’t belong in the AP class and for sure, you may need to give up some extracurriculars.

Cheerleading didn’t used to include shaking one’s booty to a bump and grind.

[DoughtyOne]

This was one of my favorites...

hobbsfarm said:

They may think the whole crowd was going crazy with enthusiasm for their routine, but I was sitting in the crowds and there was a lot of surprise and disappointment mingled in w/ those screaming students and parents. Those beautiful girls represent Ripon High School, and have a lot of freedom when it comes to the way they provocatively move their bodies already. The coaches have to draw the line somewhere. They knowingly and secretively performed unauthorized moves. Not only that, but many of us witnessed their complete disrespect for their authorities including cussing and inappropriate sign language. If these girls think it's okay to disrespect those in authority over them like that and then create a campaign to defend their poor behavior, then I wonder how they will keep their job if they treat their bosses that way. I fully support Ripon High's Vice Principal, Cheer Coach, and Principal. They are doing an excellent job. ~Stephanie Hobbs

November 15, 2007 - 3:03pm

I almost break down and cry when I hear of surprise and disappointment expressed on this level.  Excuse me while I blow my nose.  Sniff, Sniff...  I'll continue now... sob... Reading how much leway these girls already had to provactavely move their bodies, I harden my heart towards any extracuricular moves that might be expressed fifty yards form the nearest mind at risk.  Eyes are dry and I'm ready to judge now.  And so when I read of the knowingly and secretively performed unauthorized moves, I know they were evil personified.  Oooo, these girls really did it now!!!  One could almost envision the hedonistic writhing and the evil body sweat generated on pearly white bare skin... if we weren't able to view the video of the simple showing of red English characters on the white material that covered it.

Sheesh, some school officials have almost as thin a skin as some members of the general public.

What these girls did was of no consequence.  When school officials tried punish them, they objected.  And when they objected the school officials went even more balistic.  And when they did, the girls went balistic too.

Public education leadership at it's best...