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changeyourstars8Lawsuit Over Brokeback Mountain in Classroom
Now see, this is actually one case where I'd be fully sympathetic with the guardians of the kid, except for the fact that they're suing for $500,000. I think it'd be simpler to just walk around wearing a t-shirt that says, "I'm an opportunist looking for a get-rich-quick scheme", but hey.
I'll keep an eye out for updates, because I would like to state right now that any sympathy I have for the guardians can be considered null and void if it turns out that the entire reason for their being upset is less "showing an R-rated movie without our permission" and more "EWWWW, gay people!!!" The cynical part of me says of course that's what it is, but at the moment I'm doing my best to be charitable.
That said, what in the world was that substitute thinking? I saw Brokeback Mountain and I liked it a lot, but it's just not going to be appropriate for most 12-year olds. I'm not even talking about the sex scenes, since those were pretty tame. The movie's a long character piece, which for a lot of kids translates into boring. Not to mention it's a love story, which makes the 'boring' factor even worse (at least if those 12-year olds are anything like I was at that age. I would've been sitting there sighing loudly and hoping that eventually werewolves would show up. But then, I was an odd child) ;-) Anyway, some of the violence, even if it's not explicitly onscreen, is pretty rough. Also, R rating. Last I knew, you aren't supposed to show an R-rated movie to kids in school who wouldn't be able get into the theater to see it. Unless you have permission from the parents/guardians, which obviously wasn't the case here.
I do tend to mock parents who throw huge hissy fits over their kid being exposed to 'inappropriate' material at school, but generally that's because they're suing for some ridiculous amount, or the 'kid' is 16-17, or it was a movie they saw on a voluntary field trip, or a book they read that the parents knew early on in the semester they'd be reading, etc. etc. These circumstances don't fit. Once in a while, there is a method to my madness. :-)
Now see, this is actually one case where I'd be fully sympathetic with the guardians of the kid, except for the fact that they're suing for $500,000. I think it'd be simpler to just walk around wearing a t-shirt that says, "I'm an opportunist looking for a get-rich-quick scheme", but hey.
I'll keep an eye out for updates, because I would like to state right now that any sympathy I have for the guardians can be considered null and void if it turns out that the entire reason for their being upset is less "showing an R-rated movie without our permission" and more "EWWWW, gay people!!!" The cynical part of me says of course that's what it is, but at the moment I'm doing my best to be charitable.
That said, what in the world was that substitute thinking? I saw Brokeback Mountain and I liked it a lot, but it's just not going to be appropriate for most 12-year olds. I'm not even talking about the sex scenes, since those were pretty tame. The movie's a long character piece, which for a lot of kids translates into boring. Not to mention it's a love story, which makes the 'boring' factor even worse (at least if those 12-year olds are anything like I was at that age. I would've been sitting there sighing loudly and hoping that eventually werewolves would show up. But then, I was an odd child) ;-) Anyway, some of the violence, even if it's not explicitly onscreen, is pretty rough. Also, R rating. Last I knew, you aren't supposed to show an R-rated movie to kids in school who wouldn't be able get into the theater to see it. Unless you have permission from the parents/guardians, which obviously wasn't the case here.
I do tend to mock parents who throw huge hissy fits over their kid being exposed to 'inappropriate' material at school, but generally that's because they're suing for some ridiculous amount, or the 'kid' is 16-17, or it was a movie they saw on a voluntary field trip, or a book they read that the parents knew early on in the semester they'd be reading, etc. etc. These circumstances don't fit. Once in a while, there is a method to my madness. :-)
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Date: 2007-05-14 05:53 pm (UTC)I'm pretty sure the terror of the gay comes into it as much as the R-ratedness. I don't like that the teacher basically forced the class to watch it, though. I think kids can handle a lot when they come across stuff on their own, but forcing them to watch something can push them faster than their own limits. So, I would never take away a book a kid was reading on her/his own (because if they're reading it spontaneously, they're definitely ready for it), but I think I might be opposed to forcing a class to read the book, depending on the content.