By: Will Bedwell
One belief of the American mindset has always been that Americans can and will change things. This mindset has caused constant upheaval and reform in the U.S. social system. In the early 1900s, when industrial workers tired of dangerous work environments, they stood together to unionize and demand changes. During the 1960s and 1970s, those who opposed the Vietnam War took to the streets carrying antiwar banners and shouting for change. As well during that time period, many with new views on sex and sexuality ran to the streets, shed their clothes, and well…. you get the picture. Even in this century, citizens who had grown tired of Republican executive policy elected a candidate who promised change. Despite this strong American spirit, however, students in the U.S.’s public high school system feel they are without any ability to change the status quo; a status quo they complain about on a daily basis.
Students tend to have two areas of complaint about the U.S.’s social system: those in government (i.e. foreign policy, healthcare, stimulus package, CIA cameras around every corner, etc), and those in his or her school system ( i.e. scary grease-coated school lunches, inevitable uniforms, mandatory vocabulary word drawings somehow abstractly expected to teach comprehension, etc). Students, the majority being under the voter age, have a hard time changing laws or electing the crooked politicians who make laws. But, since students do hold strong opinions, they need a way to affect the government’s and the school system’s decisions; so, students must find a system that makes their voices heard.
Suggestions are often for students to write certain officials about policies and laws. Sadly, far too often these “grown-up” political ears are clogged with lobbyists’, millionaires’ and their own personal interests instead of the American people’s interest. Even when policies are being made to help students, the students’ actual opinions are often neglected. An example of such was when Lamar County decided it will implement uniforms next year; the school board took no direct polls about the students’ opinions on uniforms.
History has shown that one reliable way to gain attention is through demonstration and protest. When tired of the British Empire’s rule, a small Indian man stood up against the empire. His name was Mahatma Gandhi. During the civil rights movement, Martin Luther King, Jr. led peaceful protests demanding equal rights for all people. Currently, even right-wing conservatives are having tea parties in protest to taxes and government spending.
These examples show not only that demonstrations and protests work at changing policy, but that those most successful are peaceful. Violent demonstrations only cause problems, discrimination and hate for the protestors. This occurred at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Anti-war protesters fought with police while marching in front of the convention. Many question who actually started the fighting, but either way, the result lost most Americans’ respect for the protestors and the Yippie movement as a whole.
The time is nigh for high school students to stop complaining about policies and start challenging them. If students truly want change, they must stand up and make their voices heard (peacefully, of course).
When thinking about students’ “all bark and no bite” approach to school rules and government laws, I am reminded of something my mother has always said: “Don’t whine about it unless you intend to do something about it.” Students should realize they accomplish nothing by sitting in class crying over what they find unfair, but should actually attempt to change what they find unfair.
