And what's more, provided no option for students who did not wish to attend or who were offended by the speaker -- making them a captive audience.

A Tucson High Magnet School student will tell state lawmakers next week that she was forced by school officials to listen to a pro-immigrant speech.

Senior Mon-yee Fung,17, voluntarily attended an assembly where co-founder of the United Farm Workers Union Dolores Huerta spoke, but could not leave after Huerta began saying "Republicans hate Latinos."

"I wanted to listen to what they had to say, but all they had to say was hate speak," said Fung, head of the school's Teenage Republicans Club. "They're saying that I don't like Mexicans or that I don't try to understand what they're doing, but I am trying to understand."

State Rep. Jonathan Paton, R-Tucson, wants Fung to tell her story to Fox News today at 5 p.m.

"She was forced to listen to a political speech for over 40 minutes," Paton said. "To me that's a real problem because we shouldn't have the schools as a forum for political speech. They should be a forum for education."

Now her attendance clearly was not voluntary, based upon this admission by the principal of the school.

Tucson High Principal Abel Morado said he was unaware of the incident involving Fung.

"I will take the young lady's word for it," he said. "It may have been a supervision issue. We ask teachers to properly supervise their students during an assembly and sit with their class."

Students were told they could go to the assembly or the library, but the library locked because of miscommunication.

"I did learn after the fact that the library was closed," Morado said. "It may have been that the librarian chose to go to the assembly. That's my responsibility."

In other words, you could choose to attend the assembly -- or attend the assembly. So you see, there really was no free choice on Fung's part. Besides, if attendance was voluntary at this political event, doesn't that include the right to leave in protest of the hateful and malicious falsehoods being spewed by the speaker?

Now I have no problem with the choise of speaker -- Dolores Huerta is a figure of historical importance in contemprary Hispanic history -- but I do believe she crossed a line in this setting. That Huerta did not see this is troubling -- and that she remains unapologetic for her defamatory comments is more disturbing still.

Huerta said she was invited to speak at Tucson High as part of the effort to keep students in school and disagreed with Paton's assertion that political speech has no place in school.

"This is a terrific opportunity for young people to learn what the democratic process is about, the way that bills are passed," Huerta said. "I explained this whole procedure to the students."

Huerta said her "Republicans hate Latinos" comment was based on the number of anti-immigration bills sponsored by Republicans.

"Large numbers of the Republican Party are anti-immigrant or anti-Latino," she said. "I can justify that."

Wrong, Ms. Huerta -- there are large segments of the GOP that are anti-wetback, just like Cesar Chavez was. You know, the guy who you worked with all those years in founding and runing the UFW. Chavez recognized that those who come to this country illegally depress the wages of citizens and legal immigrants, and that illegals are exploited by unethical employers. So unless it is your contention that Cesar Chavez was anti-immigrant or anti-Latino, your statement is way out of line.

I'm also cuious -- precisely who invited Huerta to speak? the article does not say, and it would appear that the school administration was not involved. After all, if they were, they surely would have brought in another speaker to provide the other side, in the interest of intellectual honesty.

Or maybe not.

Morado said the school is a "wonderful venue" to see the opposing sides of an issue, but acknowledged that no effort has been made on his part to bring in somebody who supports the controversial immigration bill, HR 4437.

"I don't see that it is my role to turn around and say that "OK, we've had this speaker, now let's turn around and get this speaker," he said. "If there was somebody in favor of that and they wanted to speak at Tucson High, I wouldn't oppose that if my students invited them or if my teachers invited them."

Excuse me? You don't see it as your role to provide a balanced look at a hot-button issue when you have brought in a speaker from one side of the issue? Are you running a school, or an indoctrination center. Never mind, sir, you don't need to answer -- the above makes it quite clear what the honest answer would be. Not that you would give us an honest answer.

Oh, and while we are at it, maybe you could address this little issue of censorship.

Flung also said she was asked to remove a poster recruiting young Republicans because it was "too inflammatory."

The poster read "Be an American, join the Teenage Republican Club."

I get it -- "GOP=PATRIOTIC" is inflamatory, but ""GOP=RACIST" is just fine. Sounds to me like there needs to be a housecleaning at this school -- starting with the principal.

Posted by: Greg at 04:15 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 908 words, total size 5 kb.