Drawing The Curtain On Freedom Of Speech

What should have been a teaching moment, an opportunity for a discussion of free speech and what offends us fell victim to a scared administrator in Fulton, Missouri, my home state.

High-school drama teacher Wendy DeVore is resigning after the school superintendent cancelled TWO student plays amid complaints about content.

From the AP report:

But after a handful of Callaway Christian Church members complained about scenes in the fall musical "Grease" that showed teens smoking, drinking and kissing, Superintendent Mark Enderle told DeVore to find a more family-friendly substitute.

Teens smoking. GASP! Drinking. GASP! And kissing. GAAAAAASSSSP! The teenage high-school experience isn't suitable for high-school teenagers anymore. And this is after the script had already been sanitized for high school audiences. The New York Times points out DeVore rated the production PG-13. That should've been enough.

The irony surrounding what was to be the next play speaks for itself:

DeVore's students were to perform Arthur Miller's "The Crucible," a drama set during the 17th Century Salem witch trials.

Note that this play was chosen before the cancellation of Grease.

The irony deepens when you see what play went on instead:

DeVore chose Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," a classic romantic comedy with its own dicey subject matter, including suicide, rape and losing one's virginity.

But I guess because it's written in Old English, nobody will understand it anyway.

According to the Times, Dr. Enderle seems more concerned about tough questions than standing tough for his faculty and students:

Dr. Enderle said he did not base his decision to cancel "The Crucible," which was first reported by The Fulton Sun, a daily, just on the three complaints and the video [of a dress rehearsal]. He also asked 10 people he knew whether the play crossed a line. All but one, he recalled, said yes.

"To me, it's entirely a preventative maintenance issue," Dr. Enderle explained. "I can't do anything about what's already happened, but do I want to spend the spring saying, 'Yeah, we crossed the line again'?"

"Preventative maintenance." Call Roget's. Censorship has a new synonym.

Nevertheless, the superintendent said he was "not 100 percent comfortable" with having canceled "The Crucible."

Not only is he devoid of backbone, he's also wishy-washy. Do you want this person leading a school district?

This could've been an excellent topic for a town-hall meeting with parents. Hopefully, somebody would have stood up for the kids and their teacher.

From AP:

"We have become a laughingstock," teacher Paula Fessler told The Fulton Sun.

Make a ridiculous decision, and you deserve the ridicule. Unfortunately, the ridicule here is obtuse, hitting the citizens of Fulton, Missouri instead of their school superintendent. Fulton is not a backwater bastion of intolerance. You will recall it's where Winston Churchill made his famous "Iron Curtain" speech.

Now, we have the Velvet Curtain. On one side, we have the First Amendment. On the other, we have those who say it doesn't apply to kids, doesn't apply to indecency, doesn't apply to anything we don't "like." They have mentally added another amendment to the Bill Of Rights: The Right Not To Be Offended.

That right does not exist. If something offends you, then use the one that does to state your beliefs as a counterpoint. But also choose to turn away, close your ears and your eyes. The arts and the media feed off of your patronage. Refusing to patronize offensive content will send a much more powerful message than taking a pre-emptive strike. As we have seen time and time again, controversy drives publicity, which drives curiosity.

The student actors at the center of this are concentrating on putting on a fantastic show, Shakespeare or otherwise. Huzzah to them! Unlike their high chancellor in the faculty, they know where they stand.