// October 1st, 2008 // 3 Comments » // local, people, school, teenagers
I am no longer surprised to see how half an hour of talking to a reporter will play as a single blurb. The only point that my random quote made is that I am AGAINST random searches in schools. Those searches won’t be random. Children of particular religions, races, genders and groups will be harassed with constant searches. All the introspective art students who like to dress in black will be targeted because they look different. Just to give the appearance of randomness, innocent students will be tossed to the search wolves. Just read the commenter who wants the schools to profile children based on their religion and tell me you think this will be fair or reasonable.
I have been inside Brushy Mountain, Taft and Haslam. They will tell you that random searches don’t keep out weapons or drugs. Bad people will find a way to do bad things. Those searches are part of a methodic system designed to break the inmates spirit. My children are not wild horses that need to be saddle broke. I want them to search out the things that they are passionate about. I want them to explore who they are are and where they fit in this world. I want them to believe in their dreams.
Searches without reasonable cause will result in expensive art supplies being confiscated because they might be used for graffiti. They will result in phones and cameras being confiscated because they might be used for cheating. In a system with ROTC officers requiring girls to flash their breasts and special education students being physically injured in “therapeutic” holds, searches only open the door for excessive physical force and inappropriate groping. Will we believe the word of the authority figure or the student who is denied any rights?
In response to a senseless murder in one of our schools, our new Superintendent requested a large number of additional cameras in the schools. Cameras don’t stop crime. At best, they report it after the fact. Many years ago, my oldest son was physically assaulted at KAEC. I asked to see the incident tape. It didn’t exist because they only randomly record and then they tape over those random recordings. A few years later, there was a riot on his school bus. I asked to see the tape. There was no tape because the camera was broken. Last year, our elementary school playground was badly vandalized. There are cameras, but there was no tape.
When a few of the high schools started requiring uniforms this year, I knew that next year it will be all of the schools. I don’t care if the students wear uniforms. They look very cute. I also know that it doesn’t make the school safer. It just offers a false sense of security.
Stop trying to make our schools a prison. My children and all of their friends are not criminals and do not deserve to be treated like criminals. Using fear mongering as an excuse to be treated badly has to stop.
Update: The school board erased the word pat-downs and the measure for random searches passed unanimously. Our school board is a monarchy. They put zero value in parental input.
See also: Threat Assessment in Schools: A Guide to Managing Threatening Situations and to Creating Safe School Climates
