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Principle violated student’s right to free speech, Canada
By Hempology | June 27, 2007
The Journal, ON
26 Jun 2007
LOCKDOWN ON FREE SPEECH
Several months ago 15-year-old Grade 10 student Kieran King heard a presentation about drug use in a high-school class. Thinking the presentation poorly researched, King sought out information on the Internet about the relative health risks of alcohol, marijuana and tobacco. He told some of his fellow students marijuana appeared the least hazardous of the three.
One student complained to the principal, who said if she heard him discussing marijuana again she would call the police. King felt his right to free speech was being impeded and with the help of the Saskatchewan Marijuana Party, he organized a walkout at his school last Tuesday. Just before the walkout was set to take place, the principal ordered a school lockdown.
King and his brother left the school to join five other people protesting outside. The RCMP was called in to regulate the protest of seven people, King and his brother were suspended and the school performed a threat assessment on King, which revealed he had mentioned marijuana five or six times in the last year. King maintains he’s never even seen or smoked marijuana.
Because he was suspended, King was unable to write his exams and received marks of zero. The drop in marks may hurt his chances of getting a university scholarship.
The principal’s overreaction to King’s discussion of marijuana violated his right to freedom of speech. Calling in the RCMP to manage a peaceful walkout was unnecessary and ridiculous. The principal’s unwillingness to confront the issue in an academic setting is a weak attempt to stamp out what could have been an informed, intellectual and relevant discussion.
The school administrators’ reaction is also counterintuitive to their role as educators. They should be concerned with what students are asking and take what their students say seriously.
King’s punishment should fit his alleged crime. Being suspended for protesting the school’s crackdown on his right to freedom of speech and being prevented from writing his exams as a result could drastically impact his future.
Are we to understand that children aren’t afforded the right to discussion on topics of their choosing, particularly when they’ve researched and can defend their arguments?
King wasn’t armed or dangerous. He was talking.
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