I can't stop thinking about this story--the class president banned from his own graduation because of threats on his life. The Education Wonks blogged about it a few days back, which was where I first saw it.
Edwonk characterizes the banning as "letting the bad guys win," and I understand that point of view completely. Still, we're talking about a kid here. It's hard for me to see why he needs to risk his life proving a point. His mother disagrees, saying the threats against him are not credible.
I don't lay hands on my daughter, but I wouldn't hesitate to physically restrain her before I'd let her risk her life to speak at a graduation ceremony. Tyrone Lewis, the kid in question, has been shot at once, and it doesn't take a huge leap of imagination to envision it happening again, perhaps more successfully, and with thousands of innocent bystanders.
I think the police were absolutely right to preclude such a deadly incident, and if they erred on the side of caution, that's fine with me.
There are things worth risking your life for. Your high school graduation ceremony is not one of them.
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