Across the district, teachers and students have been coping with the aftermath of WSFCS’s 46 million dollar debt. Due to this budget deficit, 350 teachers and administrators across the county are being cut from their jobs in an effort to save money as of this past Monday. To combat this issue, affected schools have been protesting in an effort to show their discontent and support for the faculty that will be losing their positions as a result.
As many are aware, a protest was held at our very own school, and even though our numbers were large, a lot of people in the crowd shared the same sentiment: this is kinda cringe. This kind of sentiment and the wrong mentality can affect the right crowd in a negative way – there is nothing wrong or “cringe” with showing support for others who are in a tough situation.
Protesting, as provided by The Constitution, is a right we have as citizens to advocate for change and the betterment of others around us. It’s a fight for equal rights, to speak out against things that are unjust, and there is nothing “weird” about it. This protest, to some, seemed to just be a means to skip class and many complained throughout the event. Their lack of enthusiasm due to this was also evident in the way these students made fun of peers who genuinely wanted to fight for this cause.
While some people would start chants and participate, others wouldn’t join because they feared being ridiculed, picked apart the bad aspects of the protest when those around them did and even left campus because they saw others doing it. If the negative opinions of others affects the way you perceive something that much, why advocate for it at all? In our current culture, it’s encouraged to do anything to fit in as a means to avoid seeming ‘cringe’ or too out-of-the-ordinary, making it hard for people to speak out on things. This has created an overarching “who cares” attitude amongst younger people that has been used to dismiss others and important issues. Due to this, there has been a general lack of empathy towards administrators who are losing positions they worked hard for. Lots of these students have had a hard time putting into perspective how much it doesn’t only affect them but also us.
The overspending by the district shouldn’t have ever fallen back this negatively on us and it is a common misconception it only affects cut faculty but that is not the case. Because of this, we have had to go almost fully digital due to not being able to supply or print paper, there has been cuts to the arts, EC (exceptional children) programs have lost teachers and funding as well as so much more. We all have to bear the brunt of this so there is no reason to have felt like this isn’t something worthy of advocating for.
Even though in the end our school lost some of our faculty, it is important that we spoke out against the district’s decisions and it still matters. There have been lots of questions as to why the protest was even held in the first place if it didn’t save them, and while that would have been nice, that shouldn’t be the only takeaway. It showed that we weren’t complacent in the district decisions to get rid of our staff to make up for what they failed in. We shouldn’t have to be in a position where hundreds of administrators are losing their jobs due to the waste and negligence of our district’s budget. Showing how much we care can stop things like this from happening in the future and ensure that past mistakes won’t repeat.
If you want to enact change, fitting in can never be top priority. Using your voice to state what you believe in and fighting for them is important now more than ever in an age where people would rather look ‘cool’ than risk looking weird for caring about something. It is important to be empathetic towards others because bad situations aren’t exclusive and one day you might need someone to advocate for you. Younger people tend to feel like they don’t have a voice or ‘say’, but even in that state of helplessness, protest is always our strongest option.
