Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 28, 2015 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 454 |
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 28, 2015 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 12,434 |
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 28, 2015 | Registered: 11 years ago Posts: 935 |
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 28, 2015 | Registered: 11 years ago Posts: 294 |
This gets a big atheist Amen from me!Quote
yurble
Schools should get the fuck out of the sports business and drop this whole letter crap to begin with. Their mission should be education, not enabling social cliques that have nothing to do with academics.
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 28, 2015 | Registered: 10 years ago Posts: 379 |
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 28, 2015 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 2,308 |
Quote
marco polo
Did the school sell the letter? Or did his mom "go online" and buy a look-alike from somewhere? Like it or not, the answer to this question does matter. It is fundamental to what the outcome of this case should be.
If the school sold the letter, then the kid should be allowed to wear it, because such a sale would constitute permission on the school's part. However, if the school did not sell it (i.e. his mom bought it elsewhere) then the school is right and mom is wrong.
(I've always been under the impression that schools award varsity letters, rather than sell the to just anyone. Correct me if I am wrong.)
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 28, 2015 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 454 |
Quote
StudioFiftyFour
Quote
marco polo
Did the school sell the letter? Or did his mom "go online" and buy a look-alike from somewhere? Like it or not, the answer to this question does matter. It is fundamental to what the outcome of this case should be.
If the school sold the letter, then the kid should be allowed to wear it, because such a sale would constitute permission on the school's part. However, if the school did not sell it (i.e. his mom bought it elsewhere) then the school is right and mom is wrong.
(I've always been under the impression that schools award varsity letters, rather than sell the to just anyone. Correct me if I am wrong.)
I disagree.
Nobody needs any school's permission to wear virtually anything they want with a few narrow exceptions.
How hard is it to obtain a varsity letter, anyway? Hmm... well, Ebay says I can order one for less than $20
And if the kid didn't "earn it," so what? Our schools are not semi-pro sports institutions. They're supposed to be institutions of learning. If a few jocks and this dumb principal got all butthurt over a disabled kid wearing a letter, they can all go pound sand. They should stop worrying about being on a ball-throwing team and start worrying about thinking for themselves.
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 28, 2015 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 7,149 |
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 28, 2015 | Registered: 11 years ago Posts: 44 |
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 29, 2015 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 3,978 |
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 29, 2015 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 2,308 |
Quote
marco polo
Varsity letters are given for more than just sports. At my school, the debate team, band, and other non-athletic things could earn them as well.
If you mean to make your argument from the standpoint of the First Amendment, there are SCOTUS decisions that might give the school grounds to try restricting the use of "official" varsity letters and whatnot, probably based on notions that unearned wearing of the letter is contrary to the school's educational mission. Mind you, I said try. I'm thinking maybe based on Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier here; the school could argue that part of the school's mission is, or should be, to teach kids that such things are earned, not simply sold or given. Allowing any random student to wear a varsity letter they didn't earn could be seen as sending a message that the athletes', musicians, debate team, math team, etc. that their efforts don't really matter.
The school might be able to make an argument based on Bethel School District v. Fraser, but I think that would be a long shot for them, at best. Bether v. Fraser seemed to deal with the specific issue of profanity/obscenity. Still, the school could argue that it's "offensive" to the "community standard" that varsity letters are earned, not given. But as I said, that really does seem like something of a stretch.
(I'm opposed to "everyone is a winner" because I think it is ultimately harmful. I think it teaches kids that effort doesn't really matter, and that things will be given for free to placate hurt feelings.)
On the other hand, Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District makes it clear that students do not "leave their rights at the door." Even so, the school could argue that the "everyone is a winner" message is disruptive in that it could demoralize or offend students (again, not just athletes) by giving them the impression that their efforts/work aren't important. This also strikes me as a weak argument, but the school could still put it forth.
It would probably have to go to court, and in terms of outcome it looks like a toss-up to me, depending on who hears the case. I'm sure moo could find some attorney willing to represent her, if it came to that.
I really just think the mom is just using the issue (and her kid) to get attention. That is what it sounds like to me, although IMHO the article is flat-out sloppy journalism. It leaves out a lot of relevant details. The article also bothers me because it's making it all about the emotional tear-jerk rather than the objective facts. Crap like that is why I've lost faith in journalists, and have, in general, quit watching the news.
It seems clear that the school isn't using the kid's Down's status as a basis for anything, or else every national news network would have been all over it. (They aren't.) I think that if it were any random student, not a member of anything, the school's reaction would have been the same. I also think the news wouldn't have bothered with the story, if it were some "neurotypical" Joe. It also seems clear that the moo is using her kid's Down's status as leverage, which I think is a sleazy tactic, and also insulting to her kid. That's the bulk of my problem with what she's doing.
Just to put it out here: When I was in school, I wasn't a member of anything that awarded varsity letters, so I don't have any horse in the race in that regard. Also, if the school had used the kid's Down's status as a basis for discrimination, I would have a problem with that. (I admit I do find retarded kids' behavior annoying, but recognize that their condition isn't their fault and that they ought not be punished for it.) I like to argue things, and I expected better from the OP (on Facebook) since she was allegedly a member of her school's debate team. Her whole diatribe was essentially ad hominem, emotional, and void of any evidence of questioning. It's a sloppy approach. She is also a journalist, so I expected better of her in that regard, being biased as her friend, despite having little faith in journalism in general.
TL;DR: I think the school's stance makes sense, that the news article is muddying the waters, and that moo is just attention-whoring her kid and generally making trouble at this point. If the kid weren't retarded, I doubt we would have heard about this at all.
Anonymous User
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 29, 2015 |
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 29, 2015 | Registered: 18 years ago Posts: 9,976 |
Quote
“I would definitely be willing to look at it and be sure that kids are being treated fairly,†said Lynn Rogers, USD 259 Board Member.
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 29, 2015 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 5,716 |
Quote
jmc
This gets a big atheist Amen from me!Quote
yurble
Schools should get the fuck out of the sports business and drop this whole letter crap to begin with. Their mission should be education, not enabling social cliques that have nothing to do with academics.
Re: Mom upset that school wouldn't let kid wear varsity letter. March 29, 2015 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 12,434 |