[Onthebarricades] School student protests, October 2007

[Andy]

UK:  Students burn blazers in uniform protest
US:  Students walk out to protest rat infestation
KENYA:  Exams suspended after student revolt

Note on the UK incident:  The school system is never very far from fascism, 
and this incident reveals it at its worst.  "Inclusiveness" by making 
everyone the same?  Why not just go the whole way and do the heil Hitler 
together too?  The supposed arguments for school uniforms are really 
non-arguments.  They're small matters of balance of goods, as against the 
issues of fundamental liberties on the other side; and they're based on the 
principle of imposing rather than constructing "community" which can only 
lead to alienation.  It's also disgusting that rather than being embraced, 
the protest has been subject to disciplinary repression.  And how arrogant 
is the claim that opposition is due to not understanding?!

http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/news/south-wales-news/blaenau-gwent/2007/10/11/pupils-uniform-protest-blazes-out-of-control-91466-19915773/

Pupils' uniform protest blazes out of control
Oct 11 2007 by Dominic Jones, Gwent Gazette
PROTESTING pupils ran amok at Abertillery Comprehensive school last week, 
setting fire to a blazer in a chaotic demonstration against uniform rules.
Police and firefighters were called to the school at lunchtime on Tuesday, 
October 2, to put a stop to the rebellious scenes, with dozens of pupils 
refusing to return to lessons.
Students were angered after being told the week before that they would have 
to wear blazers, and could not wear outside coats in the school building.
On Tuesday, pupils who were not wearing blazers had their names taken and 
were told they would be sent home if they continued to break the rules.
A group of students decided to stage a protest outside the school, chanting 
anti-uniform slogans and burning a blazer in the school bus bay.
Headteacher Pauline Thomas said pupils and parents had ample time to prepare 
for the introduction of compulsory blazers and the protest was the result of 
children not understanding the reasons behind the new uniform regulations.
Mrs Thomas said the idea of school blazers was introduced three years ago by 
the school council, made up of pupils, to improve the school's image and 
preventing discrimination.
The idea was to phase the blazers in, with them becoming compulsory this 
term.
Mrs Thomas said: "The council wanted to replace the old tatty sweatshirt, 
and we were happy to support the idea.
"If the pupils are all wearing the same thing it becomes a more inclusive 
school.
"If children turn up wearing expensive outside coats and garments it 
separates them from the children who don't."
Mrs Thomas said reports of the protest were exaggerated, and students had 
been disciplined accordingly.
She said: "We managed to get the majority of pupils back in class.
"I've obviously had to exclude a few on one-day suspensions. The pupil who 
set fire to the blazer has been excluded for five days."
Speaking outside the school gates, a concerned auntie with a niece and 
nephew at the school said: "I have lived in Abertillery all my life and I 
have not seen anything like this.
"I used to go to Abertillery school and something like this would never have 
happened back then.
"The school should never have let the problem get this bad. It is totally 
out of hand."
The Gazette received numerous calls from parents concerned about the school's 
handling of the situation.
Several were also concerned about the cost of the blazers.
Donna Brown, aged 39, of Gladstone Street, Abertillery said: "My son is in 
Year 11, and there's no way I'm paying money for a blazer when he'll be 
leaving in May.
"I've been told that if he doesn't wear one, he will be sent home and he's a 
grade A and B student."
One parent of two, who did not wish to be named said: "They just don't want 
to wear the blazers.
"I think it's disgusting that the kids had to do this to get their voices 
heard.''
Mrs Thomas said that despite these concerns, she still had the backing of 
many parents.
She said: "The parents have been fantastic. Those of them that have come 
down to see me have gone away happy."
In the week after the incident, Abertillery Comprehensive fell under the 
spotlight of the national media, and despite some further minor disruptions 
Mrs Thomas stuck to her guns, reinforcing the new dress code to parents and 
pupils.
Pupils still not wearing blazers were removed from classes and parents 
contacted with a final warning.
Mrs Thomas said the school had returned to normal by the end of the week.
She said: "There have been no further disruptions. It's all back to normal, 
except now all the pupils are wearing blazers."
Are you a concerned parent? Do you have an opinion on the school uniform 
debate? What do you think about the pupils' protests? Write to the Gwent 
Gazette at 14 Bethcar Street, Ebbw Vale, NP23 6HH or e-mail 
gwent.gazette at mediawales.co.uk

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,306840,00.html

New York Students Stage Walk-Out, Protest Unsanitary Conditions at School
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
NEW CITY, N.Y. -  Students at Clarkstown North High School staged a walk-out 
Wednesday to protest what they claim are unsanitary conditions at the 
school.
The students claim they've seen rats and roaches in the school.
Hundreds of students filled the school's athletic field and banging on the 
fence that surrounds it in protest.
Some held signs reading, ""Clean North" and "Rams not roaches," according to 
the Journal News.
Student had originally planned to march to the Town Hall, but they were told 
by school officials they would be arrested if they left campus, the 
newspaper reported.
The district, located just north of New York City, removed three dead rats, 
including a decomposing one that was crawling with maggots, at the high 
school's annex building, according to the Journal News.
http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071031/NEWS03/710310434

Hundreds of students walk out at Clarkstown North High School
By STEVE LIEBERMAN
THE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: October 31, 2007)
Several hundred students walked out of classes at Clarkstown North High 
School about 12:20 p.m. today, protesting conditions in the building.
The students were on the sports fields at the school, holding signs that 
read, among other slogans: "Walkout CSHN," "Clean North" and "Rams not 
roaches." The school mascot is the Ram.
Students chanted various slogans, including, "Save our school, roaches must 
go" and "No more rats."
Standing near the fence on Congers Lake Road, students said they had first 
planned to march to Town Hall, but school administrators told them they 
would be arrested if they left campus.
The district has in recent weeks has found and removed three dead rats, 
including a decomposing rat that was crawling with maggots, at the high 
school's annex building. District officials said they believe the rats came 
from a nest near a Congers Road home that was recently demolished.
Parents have criticized the administration for waiting too long to inform 
them of the situation.
North senior Stephen Jean-Baptiste, 17, accused the district of letting the 
situation fester.
"It's disgusting," he said. "There are roaches and rats and they're not 
doing anything."
Student Austin Abaras, 14, said he'd seen some insects in the school.
"They have roaches in the bathroom," he said. "It's disgusting."
The district superintendent's office refused to allow a reporter or 
photographer onto school property to speak to students and said the 
principal could not speak with a reporter.
"The principal is not available today," said Maureen Sullivan, assistant to 
Superintendent Margaret Keller-Cogan. "He is actively working with 
students."

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--students-ratprote1103nov03,0,7780598.story

No discipline for students in rat protest at suburban NY school
5:23 AM EDT, November 3, 2007

NEW CITY, N.Y. (AP) _ An estimated 350 students won't get disciplinary notes 
in their files for walking out of classes to protest a rat and roach problem 
at their suburban high school.

Clarkstown North High School Principal Harry Leonardatos says an unexcused 
absence would usually be documented with what's termed a disciplinary 
referral. But he says administrators decided to make an exception for 
Wednesday's protest.

Clarkstown Central School District Superintendent Margaret Keller-Cogan has 
said the school's cockroach problem goes back years. The protest came after 
three rats were spotted in a school building. Two had died in the ceiling.
A vice president of the school's extermination company, Bluesway Pest 
Control, says he'll meet with school officials Monday to discuss strategies 
for attacking the pest problems.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200710292045.html

Kenya: Candidates Suspended Over Riot

East African Standard (Nairobi)
30 October 2007
Posted to the web 29 October 2007
Beauttah Omanga And Samuel Otieno
Nairobi
Homa Bay High School has suspended all their 151 Kenya Certificate of 
Secondary Education (KCSE) candidates following a riot.
The candidates will now sit the examination as day scholars. They rioted on 
Friday, allegedly protesting against " strict rules" by the KCSE 
invigilators. They also damaged school property.
In response, the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) has ordered the 
Nyanza Provincial Director of Education to identify the students who 
organised the strike. Knec secretary, Mr Paul Wasanga, said only the 
inciters should be victimised.
The School Principal, Mr Andrew Buop, said trouble started when some 
candidates insisted on being allowed to enter examination rooms with notes.