Thread: Teen reporter targeted for immigration column

Source: http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/artic ... E_ID=44645

Oregon high school hosts pro-Mexico protest in response to op-ed piece

Posted: June 8, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Ron Strom
© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com

A 17-year-old student who wrote an anti-illegal immigration column in his school newspaper was targeted by a radical Hispanic group that sponsored a protest where students marched through campus behind a Mexican flag.

Trent Demarest of Corvallis High School in Corvallis, Ore., tells WND he decided to make his last column of the school year about what he considers one of the most important public-policy issues facing the U.S.: illegal immigration.



"It wasn't the first time I've written a controversial opinion piece," Demarest said, "because I'm the only conservative on the high-school newspaper staff in a very liberal town."

Demarest said he was taken aside by his faculty adviser the day after the column was published in the High-O-Scope newspaper.

"She told me: 'There are a lot of people really upset about your article. I've gotten outraged e-mails from teachers and there are kids who want to beat you up,'" Demarest explained.

In his column, Demarest takes President Bush to task for his immigration policies.

"I can't support anything President Bush has been doing regarding our borders lately, because in reality, it's pathetic," wrote Demarest. "And as September 11 taught us, pathetic policy today inevitably leads to tragedy tomorrow. I am sick and tired of watching him fiddle while America burns. He has done nothing about the single greatest problem facing our country today: open borders and the resultant unchecked human tide that surges from Mexico every day."

Demarest said the first on-campus protest was organized by students, the leader of whom claimed the column included "racial slurs." Many of those who protested, up to two-thirds, had not read the piece, Demarest says.

In the column, Demarest said those coming to the U.S. illegally from Mexico are "not all happy little Hispanic agricultural workers" – a phrase he admits was "a poor choice of words" and for which he submitted an apology in this week's edition of the school paper.

Demarest said those participating in the first protest of his column were not necessarily Hispanics, but rather "the uppity-ups in the English Department."

The second protest, held on Thursday, was more about "brown pride," Demarest said, and was sponsored by the MEChA chapter at Oregon State University, which is also located in Coravallis.

MEChA is a radical pro-Mexico student group that says it is committed to "the physical liberation of Occupied America" and a separate Hispanic nation in the Southwest U.S. It's motto is "Por La Raza Todo, Fuera de La Raza Nada: for the race, everything; outside the race, nothing."

The protest consisted of about 50 people marching around the campus in silence behind a Mexican flag.

According to the Corvallis Gazette-Times, about 10 percent of Corvallis High's 1,400 students are Latino, many of whom refer to themselves as Mexicanos.

Demarest says the school paper has received many letters about the column, some from people "almost proud to be illegals." He says he personally received letters from teachers who demanded he retract back everything he wrote.

The teen, who plans to continue writing and editing for the paper next year as a senior, says he has had some anonymous threats, but nothing he is too worried about.

"Some have threatened to beat me up to the vice principal," he told WND. "I don't really care; it's not like I'm scared or anything."


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I wonder what the vice principal is doing about those who've threatened to assult this young man. If anything.

Probably nothing. In my school, if a White kid attacks a minority (Black, Hispanic, gay/lesbian, etc) they get automatic ISS/OSS regardless of who caused it. And recently the homosexual kids have been running around telling people that if they dont accept homosexuality then they will be charged with hate crimes and with the state of the local PD, I have no doubt it would actually happen. In the beginning of the year, the PD's Bias Crimes Unit comes to the school and tells teachers to "rat out" any student who as much as says (MOD EDIT: SEE THE RULES) says something offensive to gays, etc they also say that if they recieve a report that the teacher failed to report the incident then both the teacher and the student(s) who did the "hate crime" will be charged.

I would imagine the situation is similar with the illegal immigrants. The amount of PC bulls--t that is allowed to go on in our society is amazing.

Regirl1, I want to post this.

Can anyone get us the full text of this kids opinion piece? It would be a good addition to this article.

W

College students protesting at a high school cannot be legal! In fact I am going to check. They aren't going to shut us up!!! This is unacceptable.The teachers picketted first! Disgusting!
We need to drop this kid a note of support. We also need to ask the principal what he is doing about the threats.


P.S. Let me see if I can dig that up for you, William. It's got to be around somewhere...

Here's another article I found on it. A little more info...
http://www.drugpolicycentral.com/bot/ar ... es6830.htm

Column sparks protest

By BECKY WALDROP

Gazette-Times reporter RYAN GARDNER/Gazette-Times

Corvallis High School students carried a Mexican flag through campus Thursday afternoon as part of their silent protest of a recent editorial column that ran in the school's newspaper, the High-O-Scope. Students described the school as less inclusive than the community as a whole.

Corvallis high Latino students object to editorial in High-O-Scope

About 50 Latino Corvallis High School students marched during a lunchtime demonstration wearing T-shirts promoting respect and cultural pride as they observed a day of silence in protest of an anti-immigration opinion column printed in the school newspaper.

The column, which was published in the May 19 edition of the monthly school-sanctioned High-0-Scope newspaper, included characterizations of Mexican people as "drug dealers" "happy little Hispanic agricultural workers" and described "the single greatest problem facing our country" as "open borders and the resultant unchecked human tide that surges from Mexico every day."

Principal Jay Conroy said the school newspaper is a forum for free speech, but that the "happy little Hispanic agricultural worker" wasn't protected by the First Amendment because it created what he called a significant disruption to the learning process.

"Our problem is in his generalization," Conroy said.

Conroy said those words weren't in the two drafts the student submitted to his two student editors and the High-O-Scope advisor, CHS teacher Melody Castle. Articles are to be reviewed and approved for appropriate format and content.

Failing to follow these guidelines is grounds for loss of credit for the assignment, detention, loss of position on the newspaper staff or being removed from class, Conroy said.

"I cannot go into the behavioral issues, if any, that surround the writing and publication of the article," he said.

Conroy said he didn't expect school policies regarding the school paper to change as a result of what happened.

"We see the newspaper as an excellent opportunity for learning," Conroy said. "We're committed to helping students learn about the rights and responsibilities of printing a newspaper."

The last issue of High-O-Scope will include an article by reporter Trent Demarest that explains his column and an apology for his comments and the generalizations in the first article, Conroy said.

Latino students at CHS say that's not enough. On Thursday before lunch, six student representatives met with a reporter and two Corvallis School Board members to talk about racism at Corvallis High. Students described the school as a less-inclusive than the community as a whole.

"I want people to get to know each other better," said sophomore Nancy Ayala through a translator. Ayala moved to Corvallis 11 months ago and is learning to speak English.

"Everybody deserves respect. Everybody has feelings. People are entitled to an opinion, but not to address each other with insults."

The students gave numerous examples of incidents they feel were racially motivated and targeted students based on race and ethnicity. About 10 percent of Corvallis High's 1,400 students are Latino. Many of them refer to themselves as Mexicanos.

Junior Joe Polanco said that he was involved in a fight that broke out at a lunchtime dodgeball game last fall between a team of all white students and a team of Latino students. Student behavioral issues regarding the fight were not disclosed by high school administration. The Latino students said they think the incident was covered up.

Polanco said he and other Latino students were assaulted at school and police should have been called. He said he was tackled and that he tried to walk away.

"I said, `Why are you doing this?' " Polanco recalled.

After the dodgeball incident in December, Conroy said he invited student leaders from the teams to his office for pizza to talk about how they could work things out and avoid future confrontation.

"The principal had lots of meetings talking to me. He thought that pizza was the solution. That's not enough. The cops should have been called," Polanco said.

Junior Mariela Vidrio said school administrators wanted proof that racism had occurred, which is why students decided to use the article as a catalyst for changes.

"We finally have proof," Vidrio said pointing to the High-O-Scope.

Senior David Vidales said when he read the editorial it felt as though the author was referring to his family as terrorists and drug dealers.

An apology won't change the school atmosphere, students said. They'd like teachers and school employees to have cultural sensitivity training. They want others to be more inclusive of their celebrations and traditions.

They'd like administrators to allocate money in the school budget for an ethnic studies class in addition to U.S. history and global studies. They want someone who speaks Spanish to help students and their families prepare for college and life after graduation.

They want respect and not to feel intimidated for just being at school.

Said junior Ramon Obledo: "I would like to feel safe."

Becky Waldrop covers public policy and education for the Gazette-Times. She can be reached at becky.waldrop@lee.net or 758-9510.