Two Massachusetts high school teachers are facing disciplinary action and possibly the loss of their jobs for holding a silent antiwar protest during a school gathering. During a Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School ceremony for seniors about to enter the military, “Marybeth Verani and Adeline Koscher held up a sign reading ‘End War.’”
“The teachers say they wanted to express their opposition because they view the ceremony as a military recruiting tool. The school has received dozens of phone calls urging administrators to fire the teachers. The teachers have been put on paid leave until further action is taken.”
The consequences of war reach far and wide but occasionally there is reason to see light in the future, reason not to give up on young minds. These insightful thoughts on war and protest and free speech were submitted anonymously to Cape Cod Today.
“I am a freshman at Dennis-Yarmouth Regional High School who witnessed the incident at Senior Last Assembly firsthand. During the speech honoring the students who joined the military, Marybeth Verani, who was situated in the bleachers in an unobtrusive location, held a small sign that read ‘End War.’…
“Many viewed [Marybeth Verani’s action] as a personal attack on the students and the military but the protest was aimed at the war itself ─ a war which has nearly no true justification. A majority of students condemned this protest, claiming it to be ‘unpatriotic.’ However, Verani was exercising her Constitutional right of Freedom of speech and those opposing this action are truly unpatriotic because they are opposing the most well known of our inherent rights.
“In a report by WBZ, a freshman was quoted saying, ‘I can't picture anyone not clapping because they’re going to defend our country for us.’
“This view is faulty. A six-month invasion to combat terrorism is now in its seventh year. No weapons of mass destruction or substantial evidence of their existence has been recovered. The best means of defending our country from any threat not yet discovered is readying ourselves for an attack from our own country ─ not invading another.
“Ms. Verani presented her opinion openly as her own. Others posted unsigned signs, in every wing of the school, reading, ‘We are proud to support our troops.’ The latter tactic seems dogmatic. It seems a form of pro-war propaganda. It is extremely unpleasant and troubling to walk the halls of a public school and see only the words of one of two opposing viewpoints.
“Many of the students opposing the peaceful protest may have opinions reflecting those of their peers and parents. The role models in my life remain neutral in this area, thus my beliefs are formed through my interpretation the facts that I receive.
“Most citizens remember the tragic death of Nicholas Xiarhos who had been one of Verani’s students. [Twenty-one-year-old Nicholas Xiarhos of Yarmouth, Massachusetts, a U.S. Marine corporal, died in Afghanistan July 2009 when a roadside bomb exploded.] She is one of many who was and still is affected by the war, so her statements have more relevance to the ongoing war than the thoughts of those who have not yet felt the consequences of the war. Verani had every right to state openly her opinions, without scorn.
“Support our troops by bringing them home.
“Thank you, Anonymous D-Y Student
(Name withheld at student’s request)”
Sources and notes’
“Mass. Teachers Face Punishment for Silent Antiwar Protest,” June 16, 2010, http://www.democracynow.org/2010/6/16/headlines/mass_teachers_targeted_for_silent_anti_war_protest
“D-Y student defends teacher’s protest ─Protest aimed at war, not student,” Cape Cod Today (letters)
June 14, 2010, http://www.capecodtoday.com/index.php
http://www.capecodtoday.com/index.phpLetters to the Editor
The Voice of Cape Codders
http://www.capecodtoday.com/blogs/index.php/2010/06/14/d-y-student-defend-s-teacher-s-protest?blog=36
http://www.wbur.org/2010/05/31/steve-xiarhos
WBZ is a News Radio (1030) CBS affiliate in Boston, Massachusetts, http://www.wbz.com/
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