Posted on 11/25/2005 3:01:56 PM PST by chicagolady
I am the father of the young man who did not stand for the singing of the Mexican national anthem during a cultural awareness program at Larkin High School.
I have been constantly asked to explain the details of the event, and it is in response to these individuals that I offer the following facts.
Some of the students, my son included, were compelled to attend this assembly. The Mexican national anthem was printed on fliers and handed out to the attending students. The Mexican flag was marched in and placed on a podium by itself. The attendees were then asked to stand and sing the Mexican national anthem.
My son was not alone in his refusal to stand. Statements given to me by other youths and parents put the number of refusals at close to 20.
Larkin staff members immediately confronted the seated youth. Some of the students were threatened with in-school suspension; most of the seated students were intimidated into standing.
My son explained to the angry teacher who confronted him that he did not see a U.S. flag on the podium and he did not believe they were going to sing our national anthem. This teacher stated, "They have to stand for our national anthem, so you have to stand for theirs."
My son stated in response, "Yeah, but they're in our country."
The teacher called my son a punk and sent him to the office. The administrator in the office supported the teacher's demand and told my son that he could have made a more intelligent decision. My son was not formally disciplined. The teacher who confronted my son defended her actions to her students during class the following week.
I called Larkin principal Richard Webb to express my disappointment and concern. I described the manner in which my son had been treated. I was told that my son should have stood and that the school stood by its right to have this assembly in its chosen form.
I then exercised my right as a citizen and addressed the school board.
The press was present at the board meeting and media awareness snowballed from that point forward. Some of my statements to the board included, "I am disappointed that those responsible for creating an assembly intended to educate and sensitize Americans also felt free to act insensitively with regard to our culture. It is permissible to present another country's anthem alongside ours and receive standing respect. It is not reasonable to expect or demand that Americans stand and display respect for another flag and country in absence of the American anthem or flag."
I also asked the board to consider two positive actions. "First, encourage Larkin High School administrators to not underscore one culture to the exclusion of others. This ill-conceived mandatory assembly did nothing but widen the current schism. Second, I would ask the board to lay down some principles for future assemblies. While it is good educational practice to teach about other cultures, it is not an acceptable practice to require mandatory response to the patriotic elements of those cultures."
I was appalled by Webb's printed statement. Apologizing only for the "unfortunate spotlight" placed on the school does not acknowledge the process that brought the spotlight. Lack of proper oversight created an assembly that offended a large number of people. Teachers behaving badly guaranteed parental follow-through. Administrative silence and denial has perpetuated their arrogant image.
Trivializing the incident and belittling those it concerned has only confirmed Webb's lack of grounding with the community.
Since Dec. 8, 2004, educational institutions receiving federal funding are required to hold an educational program pertaining to the United States Constitution on Sept. 17 of each year. This year, Sept. 17 fell on a Saturday.
Our high school apparently chose on Sept. 16 not to hold an assembly on the Constitution of the United States, but to educate our youth on the patriotic elements of another country.
- Bedard is an Elgin resident.
11/25/05
RIGHT ON!This Multi-Culturalism Bull Sh*T has to be De-Railed!! This is The UNITED STATES of AMERICA!!!!!!!!!
You've raised a fine young man.
I think we can see where this young man gets his principles--from his father and family.
^^
Indeed. What a great kid.
Sorry if I disrupted your emotional appeal. In the future read up on protocol before getting all feely on us.
**
Bam!
BTW, thank you for your service, Bear.
He is not my son but I wish he was. We just brought our Illinois Minuteman Meeting to Elgin Illinois and honored the kid as best we could.
I went to St. Patrick's grade school. On March 17 every year...we were inundated with the Irish national anthem, flag, etc.
**
I find this a little hard to believe. Okay, without Googling, tell us the name of the Irish national anthem.
The difference is that these fascist schoolteachers are DEMANDING that these kids pay respect. No one should respect people who demand respect, especially when they tend not to respect you.
I don't agree. But I think the liberals have twisted this concept to the point where they embrace the most corrupt and diseased lifestyles.
"Diversity" should mean we should tolerate lifestyles that aren't toxic to the nation.
Don't kid yourself. They'd love it. Just like the traitors who ran the Vichy puppet government for the Nazis during WWII, the liberals would collaborate with the Mexicans in an instant.
I agree. There's a lot more to this than respect / disrespect for flags and "diversity." In my post above I cited just one of thousands of available references.
We think in terms of legal and ILLEGAL immigration, assimilation, and more recently, cultural "diversity." It's always been America for Americans.
That's not true for many (most?) recent "immigrants."
IMO other countries are sending their citizens (non-resident citizens) here. The non-resident citizens of Mexico and other countries (diaspora) work here. That's all.
America is their "territory." It is a place to plant their flag and benefit the home country -- often in competition with other countries. Nothing more.
The wealth obtained from remittances is the gold -- for more advanced "developing countries" mining technology and businesses is even more valuable than gold.
We're not a country we're a place and the people who run this place are bad in the view of the "invaders" and not deserving of respect. Like the place, hate the management.
Our "education" system is often too willing to agree with the invaders; to wit, America is merely a place, a bad place.
Complaining to the school about what happened is like asking a dog to stop drinking out of the toilet. It's what they do.
Perhaps we do not disagree.
Diversity in the sense it is used by liberals today is a cancer. Basically they say "you do not have to be part of America to be an American" You can reject all things American including the work ethic, political system or culture.
I am not saying that different cultures that came to this country should have left their foods, sayings, beliefs and such behind. That is not only good, it IS what has made this country great. We take the good things others bring and make them American.
In turn, they embrace what America can contribute, and both the immigrant and America grow stronger as a result.
Diversity has a different meaning for liberals than it does for me, that is for sure. For them, it is a code word to describe cultural relativism and everything that implies. For me, it normally describes a range of different things, classes or objects.
Sounds good to me!
Wait a few years and we WILL be standing for Mexican national anthem. I have never seen a country make it so easy to be invaded by another. This English/Spanish on signs and advertising is simply enhancing the efforts for US to be "recovered" by Mexico.
Oh, c'mon you two, just get a room. Swapping bodily fluids in public is so 90's. LOL.
Yeah, I did. It was a private, parochial school that even taught RELIGION and opened the morning class with a PRAYER! How does this compare with our taxpayer funded PUBLIC schools?
I love it.....yeah, but "they're in my country!"
I have been in Mexico on their Independence day and lustily participated with my shouted VIVA! for the "Grito." It was their independence day and I was a guest there and thought it proper to join them in their celebration of independence.
But we have a big problem in this counry with Multiculturalism sublimating our government and tradition to those from elsewhere.
Standing should NOT be forced. Listening to another anthem in school is perhaps interesting, perhaps educational. It should NEVER be treated as a formal requirement.
Please convey my thanks to the Illinois Minutemen for their honoring of the father and the son.
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