August 23, 2012

"'Seniores' and 'Señoritas' events held at an Anaheim high school — in which students dressed as gang members and a pregnant woman pushing a baby stroller..."

"... have been canceled after officials concluded the activities were demeaning toward Latinos and their culture."

Why was this ever approved in the first place?
"I conclude there was a lack of oversight/supervision and that the school administration should not have allowed this activity," Aileen M. Sterling, executive director of secondary education for the district, wrote in an Aug. 10 letter summarizing her inquiry.

"Even if strict guidelines were provided," Sterling said, "the result would still lead to hurtful and demeaning messages about the Mexican culture and to the students of the Mexican, Hispanic and Latino descent."
It took an after-the-fact inquiry.

27 comments:

Shouting Thomas said...

So, they can't stage "West Side Story?"

Known Unknown said...

"a pregnant woman pushing a baby stroller "

I suppose motherhood is demeaning to some people ...

Brian Brown said...

Remember,

teachers are underpaid and we need to hire more of them.

Colonel Angus said...

I don't get the metaphors. Maybe if they dressed as construction workers and hotel housekeepers I could get it.

Crunchy Frog said...

Sounds like my old neighborhood...

Colonel Angus said...

teachers are underpaid and we need to hire more of them.

I don't think they are overpaid inasmuch as the quality we seem to cultivate from colleges is sorely lacking.

Academic intelligence is no substitute for common sense.

Sorun said...

So someone foolish gave high school kids the opportunity to express current cultural stereotypes. Too funny!






Brian Brown said...

don't think they are overpaid inasmuch as the quality we seem to cultivate from colleges is sorely lacking.

Agreed Colonel.
And remember, a lot of those people screaming, banging on drums, and blowning horns at the WI Capitol were teachers.

They seem to be arrested development adolescents.

David R. Graham said...

Anaheim is strongly Mexican and alienated. Recently had riots by Mexicans against policing. Difficult to demean the already-alienated. Very sad, reflects fascist nature of CA state and local leadership. While at university, I worked p/t in Anaheim, at Disneyland. Drugs below and fascism above rip skin a strip at a time.

RonF said...

For homecoming my kids' high school plays a high school in a much wealthier district. The kids decided to have a day where they dressed up like the kids from the other school. The other school dressed up much like this to depict our kids (no, there's few Hispanics in our school, there just isn't as much money). Our kids dressed up in suits and ties and fancy dresses and acted all snooty all day. Everyone involved pretty much blew off the insults and had a heck of a football game afterwards.

James Pawlak said...

It is social/political commentary and, therefore, free speech.

Peter said...

B-but I thought students had First Amendment rights, and the cure for bad speech was more speech?

Does a public school have the right to permit this but not that just because it doesn't like the political content of that?

furious_a said...

Hope someone told the kids beforehand that those jail tats are permanent.

ricpic said...

What's the world coming to when a minority - by definition noble - can't celebrate its culture.

Carol said...

the quality we seem to cultivate from colleges is sorely lacking.

I used to think it was due to four years of that gawdawful Ed School curriculum. But my cousin got emergency credentialing in Socal, took only one year on top of the Econ degree she already had..but she lasted only about six years.

Teaching in the Diversity Zone is hard.

Andy said...

It was impossible for this event to have happened because conservatives told me that racism in American was totally eliminated.

ricpic said...

Stick to the crude invective, hatboy, since sarcasm is so clearly beyond your communication skills, such as they are.

n.n said...

EMD:

I noticed that, too. While gang membership is certainly an unproductive use of their time, motherhood is affording them a distinct advantage over their competitors. The two cannot be reasonable compared, and it makes no sense to propose general criticism of the latter. This sounds like the "keep them pregnant and barefoot" prop used to denigrate motherhood in the past. Perhaps the pregnant mother is underage and not prepared to accept responsibility for her child.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

So, lets see if I got this right..

Republicans went to California and gave students their dog whistles.. and when the students used them.. everybody heard them?

Dog whistles made in China are known for their poor quality... not union made.

The Crack Emcee said...

"Even if strict guidelines were provided," Sterling said, "the result would still lead to hurtful and demeaning messages about the Mexican culture and to the students of the Mexican, Hispanic and Latino descent."

Yeah - they just can't help themselves. Or we can give it a positive spin and see the kids as mocking the Boomers' manipulative enterprise of top/down "diversity training."

Considering the reaction talk of "Gaia" receives, can we call off Earth Day now?

Methadras said...

So being a gang member and a pregnant teen with a baby stroller is demeaning to the culture of... latino's or gang members? Which is the greater insult? The actual play or the reason for the cancellation of it. I'm laughing at both.

Smilin' Jack said...

Why was this ever approved in the first place?

This episode is merely one symptom of the complete breakdown of enforcement of correct thought, speech, and action in our schools. Now these children will have to be re-educated in special camps, at great taxpayer expense. Although the food there won't be too good....

William said...

Who did it and what was their intention? If it was done by Latino kids and their intention was to mock their own stereotype, then good for them. It is a healthy thing for kids to make fun of early pregnancy and gang membership. If such behavior is depicted as uncool and ridiculous, then that is to the good.

furious_a said...

Back in my day they would have dressed as super-fast mice and arrived on burros.

Methadras said...

Andy R. said...

It was impossible for this event to have happened because conservatives told me that racism in American was totally eliminated.


Sounds like you are a little jelly that they got more press than one of your homo-activist soiree's.

Andy, I wonder when you are going to stop living up to faggoty stereotype of just coming into a thread, quazing all over it, and then leaving never to return again. I am, talk about being a thramp (thread tramp).

Andy said...

just coming into a thread, quazing all over it, and then leaving never to return again

You should talk to the people that complain that I comment too much and dominate threads.

Darrell said...

Some of the kids put on long-billed baseball caps, cocked them, and spoke gibberish with mouthfuls of vanilla shakes--spewing all over their faces and necks.

This has to be stopped.