The principal of Hilo High School intervened yesterday to cancel the scheduled appearances at the school early next month by local peace activist Jim Albertini.
It was an abrupt about face for Principal Robert Dircks, who had informed Albertini on Tuesday that problems had been resolved and that Albertini’s presentations could go forward.
Albertini said he was informed of the cancellation late Wednesday afternoon by Joseph Watts, the teacher who extended the invitation and organized presentations to several classes.
Albertini, in a press release, said Watts “informed him that in the last 24 hours Principal Dircks received threats and decided to cancel my speaking because ‘it was going to disrupt the school.’”
The source or nature of the alleged threats was not identified. However, an email blast on Tuesday from Robert Gowan, a Kona coffee grower who heads a conservative veterans group, Gathering of Eagles, called for opposition to Albertini’s appearance. The email subject: “Albertini and crew attack military Mom who is Hilo H.S. librarian.”
Gowan’s email was brief: “this is how they invade our schools and indoctrinate our youth, right here at home…” It then linked to my post here on Sunday (“Controversy brewing over academic freedom at Hilo High School“). It was sent to an undisclosed list, and later forwarded by several recipients, including Carolle Brulee-Wilson, currently the East Hawaii representative on the State Advisory Committee on Veterans’ Services.
Oddly, the “mission statement” of the Gathering of Eagles organization includes explicit support for the First Amendment and right to dissent.
We believe in and would give our lives for the precious freedoms found in our Constitution. We believe that our freedom of speech is one of the greatest things our country espouses, and we absolutely hold that any American citizen has the right to express his or her approval or disapproval with any policy, law, or action of our nation and her government in a peaceful manner as afforded by the laws of our land.
So far, I haven’t seen any references to Department of Education policies regarding such situations. The previous post referenced the DOE-backed “Students Bill of Rights” that includes the right to hear and discuss a full range of viewpoints.
Interesting, if there had not been any comment on your blog and consequent actions by other outside groups, this whole situation may have been easily and quietly resolved by the principal, teacher and speaker between themselves. By making this an “issue” on the blog world, the results are that the students get no view point on issues that affect their lives.
As they say, “Let no good deed go unpunished”. So being niele and having your two cents resulted in less free speech and limited the students’ education.
That is why not every issue in the world is so important that it needs to be exposed on the worldwide web.
At Roosevelt High School in the late 1960s and early 1970s we had two wonderful teacher who were always on the opposite side of the policial spectrum, Mrs. Okubo and Mr. Jenkins. Sure there were arguments and debates, but it sure did educate the students of the diversity of ideas. Afterall, that is what education suppose to be.
Great logic there, Russell. This is all Ian’s fault for drawing attention to this issue and trying to inform people and provide a public forum for the exchange of views.
I totally agree, Eric. It’s the Washington Post’s fault that Nixon LIED about Watergate !!!!!!! And kids who got sexually molested by priests and dared to speak out are to blame for all the trouble engulfing the modern Catholic Church!!!! burn them newspapers to the ground!!!! arrrrrr!!!!! o.O
Let’s be clear that the principal cancelled, because of pressure from a conservative veteran’s group. He received “threats” but we don’t know if they threatened bombs or bullets or picketing or just angry words. Whatever.
It is not Ian Lind’s fault, it is the fault of people who don’t want Jim Albertini to be heard, because somehow the First Amendment doesn’t cover what he has to say. The ones who lose are the students.
Many thanks for expanding the knowledge of this suppression of Democracy at Hilo High by a group calling themselves the Eagles. I suppose that they go around wrapped in a flag! In their ignorance do they not see the hypocrisy in what they quote and their actions??? Jim just might save the life/soul of some ignorant high school student by discouraging his joining the military which is only about violence, aggression, and “kill anything that moves” philosophy.
Agreed Patty. It’s those like the GoE that think supporting the Troops and being against our two ‘wars’ (not wars, cause war profiteering is illegal remeber) of occupation are mutually exclusive. But you can’t ever counter them or you’re unpatriotic and a pinko liberal. They support the first amendment as long as you are exactly aligned with there misguided views. [slightly edited]
My experience exactly, even as parent of 2 veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom & Operation Iraqi Freedom, I was verbally attacked for my opinion. Other brainwashed parents hugely offended & enraged by any notion their children having to kill or be killed for… what? Yet why did their children join military? To fight for freedom for BP & EXXON to sucked out Iraqi oil, or because of promised benefits, education, job training, or citizenship?
Thank you Ian, as always.
And thank you too, Russel Yamashita.
You and your readers might be interested in knowing that it was during that same late 1960s and early 70s time period that Jim Albertini was a social studies instructor at the elementary school I attended in Kaneohe. I didn’t have him as a teacher, however; he was one grade above mine.
But everyone in my school was affected when he and activist colleagues committed civil disobedience at Hickam Air Force Base by pouring symbolic blood over military records: the U.S. government under Nixon had blood on its hands because of its actions leading up to and during those Viet Nam war years…
An instant hero was made, in my eyes. He brought discourse to the classroom then, and is still involved in this work, today.
Isn’t it ironic, or at least curious, that the military gets access to students in any school receiving federal funds, but that a taxpayer with a different point of view is excluded solely because of that difference? Parents can opt out of the military contatct, why couldn’t this be resolved , as a matter of equity, by offering a similar opt out?
Personally, I think trying to shield kids from different points of view is what breeds ignorance, which breeds fear, which breeds hate, and so on. I wouldn’t opt out because I want my kids to to be exposed, to learn, and be able to make their own informed judgments. But, hey, what’s good for the goose (the military), should be good for the gander (peace activists).
Just sayin’.
There was a provision made for parents to opt-out of Albertini’s presentation.
Yes, but, unlike the military recruitment gig, that wasn’t enough to resolve the problem.
Thanks for shining a light on this story, Ian.
I suspect that most readers are not aware that Principal Robert Dircks replied to an e-mail he received from DM, a 1960 graduate of Hilo High School. DM posted that e-mail as part of a comment on Ian’s first post about the controversy. It’s interesting reading.
DM’s comment appears as the 39th (and currently the last) comment on that posting.
Readers can find it here:
http://www.ilind.net/2013/02/17/controversy-brewing-over-academic-freedom-at-hilo-high-school/#comments.
Dirsks acknowledges the value of presentations like the one that Albertini was to make, but he states, “The event has been cancelled due to the volume of concerns raised by a number of community members, which included a threat to our operations.”
In the end, then, Dirsks surrendered to the bullies and wackos with scarcely a whimper. Shame, Shame.
I hadn’t realized that there was a new posting (this one), or I’d have posted the email here. My mistake.
I couldn’t decide whether the email was boilerplate response or not.
I suspect that it was. I mentioned that I was a HHS grad, and also that my mother was a HHS teacher for many years.
I think if Dircks had actually read and responded to my email, that he’d have alluded to either one of those statements.
As you say, Mr. Mike — Shame, Shame.
Interesting to me that state Superintendent Matayoshi, a graduate of this school, has neither intervened nor commented.
Because it is much ado about nothing.
Sadly, it’s been my experience that conservatives such as Mr. Gowan are only interested in protecting their *own* rights, and not that of others.
Perhaps if this old war group is scared of the 1st Amendment and is going to focus on young students they should change their name to the “Chicken Hawks”?
Readers will be interested to know that the Hawaii Tribune-Herald has a long story today, February 22, covering this controversy.
Here’s the link:
http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/sections/news/local-news/activist%E2%80%99s-talk-hilo-high-cancelled-over-controversy.html
Non-subscribers who click on the link will find that the page goes dark almost immediately and that a large box containing an invitation to subscribe covers much of the page. If they scroll down but keep their their eyes focused on the area above that box, however, they will find that they can read the entire story. (it may take a minute to get the hang of it.)
In this and similar circumstances, temporarily disabling Javascript in whatever browser you’re using is mighty helpful.
Why, you are so right, DM. Temporarily disabling Javascript solved the problem. Thank you.
It made today’s paper. Even the librarian didn’t think an outright cancellation was necessary.
http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/sections/news/local-news/activist%E2%80%99s-talk-hilo-high-cancelled-over-controversy.html
As a Hilo High School alumnus I’m ready to publicly burn my diploma.
As a teacher, I found Principal Dircks comment that:
“As educators we have an obligation to expose our students to a variety of college and career ready curriculum and activities in order for them to compete within a global society.”
– to be depressingly candid in his estimation of the chief misguided aim of public education in our age. To “compete within a global society” is another way of stating that young people being educated is primarily about their uncritical perpetuation the global version of capitalism. That, does a real disservice to what is pono for our communities; namely, a robust understanding of how our unique competence to function as a healthy, connected community, need balance the global market’s inherent disregard for this.
Strikes me as a shameful regard for education, by one entrusted by the public to know better.
Mr. Dircks’ response was indeed boilerplate, as shown in our report on his reply to another member of the public last night on BigIslandNow.com.
We will have an update on the matter a little later today, including the DOE’s refusal to comment on the nature of the threat(s) received.
You seem to have cut off part of their statement Ian: “We
believe in and would give our lives for the precious freedoms found
in our Constitution. We believe that our freedom of speech is one
of the greatest things our country espouses, and we absolutely hold
that any American citizen has the right to express his or her
approval or disapproval with any policy, law, or action of our
nation and her government in a peaceful manner as afforded by the
laws of our land…” “so long as it agrees with what we already
believe to be true, otherwise, you’re a dirty rotten
commie.”