The following is an excerpt from The Hartford Courant, dated June 5, 2001... presented here without permission

 

McBullies In Stonington

editorial
The Hartford Courant
June 05, 2001

 

Officials at Stonington High School ought to have their heads examined for their atrocious behavior at a schoolwide assembly last week. Their first thoughtless act was to order all students to attend an assembly hosted by representatives of fast-food giant McDonald's. The supposed reason for the gathering was to hone job interview skills, which the folks from the land of burgers and French fries, wearing the familiar McDonald's hats, would teach. In the process, perhaps they might recruit summer help.

Why a public school would allow any company to turn a class assembly into a commercial for its fast-food enterprise is baffling. McDonald's representatives served juice and cookies, offered food coupons to students who filled out job applications and conducted mock job interviews. Allowing the company that kind of entree into the school was inappropriate, to say the least.

But that was only the school administrators' first mistake. When sophomore Tristan Kading volunteered for one of the mock interviews, he took the opportunity before the assembly to say he hated large corporations like McDonald's and opposed its false advertising of its French fries. No stranger to protests against everything from deer hunting to Nike sneakers to neo-Nazi sympathizers, the young man already had it in for McDonald's because he views it as responsible for destroying rain forests to raise beef for hamburgers.

School administrators, angry at his protest, quickly forced Mr. Kading out of the room and told attendees he was "an embarrassment to the school." That was their second mistake. Whether or not one agrees with Mr. Kading's opinion or timing, his behavior scarcely warranted public humiliation.

As if that weren't enough, Principal Stephen Murphy took advantage of Mr. Kading's fear of suspension by forcing him to publicly apologize over the school intercom. After meeting with Mr. Kading's parents, however, Mr. Murphy got on the intercom himself to apologize if he "unintentionally humiliated" their son.

Perhaps the humiliation was unintentional, Mr. Murphy. But it was also insensitive - and, well, stupid. You and your subordinates who participated in this nonsense deserve a reprimand from the school board. Further you should be ordered to take a course on civil discourse between master and student.