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Student prevented from writing final exams for expressing opinion on pot
By Hempology | June 22, 2007
Ottawa Citizen
22 Jun 2007
SMELLS LIKE TEEN SPIRIT
Teenagers are good at seeing through lies and half-truths. That’s why baseless propaganda, like the old movie Reefer Madness, doesn’t work. Why would anyone take advice from someone who doesn’t know what drugs actually do?
The adults of Wawota Parkland School in Saskatchewan are acting like insecure children, because they feel threatened by the actions of one bright, principled, inquisitive teenager.
This year, the school gave a presentation to students about the dangers of drugs. Kieran King, 15, didn’t react as the teachers expected. He started questioning, out loud, whether cannabis is really more dangerous than legal drugs such as alcohol or tobacco.
Kieran doesn’t do drugs. He thinks drinking and smoking are stupid and dangerous. He’s not encouraging substance abuse: He’s standing up for the facts and expressing opinions.
The school wouldn’t allow students to join a protest about the issue outside. Kieran and his brother went; the school suspended them, preventing Kieran from writing his final exams.
According to the Saskatchewan Marijuana Party, the school even threatened Kieran with legal action.
Instead of smearing a young man’s reputation, the school and school board should be lauding his spirit and diligence. Education is supposed to nurture independent thought and the love of truth.
Adults will have more luck convincing teenagers of the very real dangers of many drugs if they come clean about the statistics and admit there are contradictions in law and social attitudes.
The “trust us, we know better” approach doesn’t turn teenagers into good citizens; it makes them bitter, angry and rebellious.
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