Highlights of District 214 Public Comments
May 26, 2006

Bill Dussling announced that the fire marshall estimated 500 people in the room and 500 more wanting to get in.

Leslie Pinney questioned the procedure for speaking. The online procedures instruct interested persons to e-mail or contact Bonnie Schaap in the Office of the Superintendent, yet even after they followed the procedures and received confirmation from Schaap (being told they were ON the list), once they arrived, they found that their names were NOT on the list.  Instead, the early speaking positions were handed out to students. CLICK HERE for documentation of this maneuver by the District.

The following are highlights of the public comments.

Children Supporting Books in Question
(about 51 children spoke in favor of the books)

1 - Girl: Authors are not trying to sexually arouse children.

2 - Girl: Consider the consequences of book banning at a global level.

3 - Girl: Has read Perks 4-5 times. "These situations will happen..."

4 - Girl: Burden of proof is on opposition to prove a decline in morality. "The intellect of the students are hurt..."

5 - Boy: Objections to Perks are based on homosexuality, nudity, and drugs. "I'm bisexual. Are you going to ban me, too?" Called school the "house of learning."

6 - Girl: The same language is on TV and in school hallways.

7 - Female Sophomore at Wheeling: Talked about this Board meeting controversy during 90 minutes of class time, where teacher lobbied against "banning." Ended with "I'm cool, I'm done."

8 - Boy: "Who has had sex?"

9 - Girl: Pities those who don't read these books.

10 - Girl: Teacher introduced her to Perks, which is about gays, sex, masturbation. "Face it." The message is "love yourself."

11 - Girl: "My generation is exposed to different things."

12 - Girl: "Finding your own truth."

13 - Boy (stoned?): Everyone is exposed. Schools have to keep up.

14 - Boy: Reading about sex does not change his morality. Compared opposing view to Nazis.

15 - Boy: Feels disrespected...

16 - Boy: My education is going down the toilet.

17 - Boy: Wearing black to mourn the books.

Children Opposing Books in Question
(1 child spoke in opposition to the books)

1 - Girl: This is not about banning; it's about removing from a required reading list. Desire not to read books about and discuss abuse because I have lived abuse.

Adults Supporting Books in Question
(about 41 adults spoke in favor of the books)

1 - "The Pin Lady" (the woman who created the yellow pins that say "Open Books, Open Minds"): Made a comparison between leaving these books off the required reading list and the extremist Islamic madrassas in the Middle East.

2 - Woman: Objected to Culture Campaign's involvement, citing the mission statement (...Christ-followers...) and calling separation of church and state a "sacred" value. Viewed Fallen Angels as a counter to military recruiters.

3 - Man: The Bible contains child murder and death penalty for disrespect to parents.

4 - Reverend Julie Denny-Hughes: We enjoy individual freedom, no government interference in religion. The government (schools) has a different job to do. Leslie should leave her religious convictions at home. Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's...

5 - Man: Called Leslie uninformed and "mightier than thou." Accused Culture Campaign of feeding Leslie information on the books, prompting her actions [Editor's Note:  This is simply NOT true].

6 - Woman: Expressed "faith in educators." Objected to Leslie contacting Culture Campaign. Said that Pastor Don Howard sent the board a letter calling them "anti-Christ scum."

7 - Female teacher: We should trust teachers, educators, texts, and the board - not fear and ignorance.

8 - Retired male teacher: "One match can ignite 1000 books, but one book can ignite 1000 minds."

9 - Man: Books are neither moral or immoral, just well written or poorly written.

10 - Woman: Leslie is trying to ignite a larger campaign and incite ideological followers.

11 - Woman: Resents Leslie, saying she is promoting her own self-interest. Compared this concern to Germany.

12 - Female teacher: Must keep up with the needs of the times. Students want to read these books.

13 - Woman: Teachers are best qualified because they have degrees, have read the books, know tests and standards, and know the students' maturity level.

14 - Female teacher: Need to be "inclusive."

15 - Female librarian: Freedom to read is essential and is guaranteed in the Constitution. Should rely on "professional" judgment.

16 - Grandmother: Banning books is retro. Should trust teachers.

17 - Female journalist: When I was here, parents understood that teachers were experts and religion could be taught in private schools.

18 - Woman: Impressed with the kids who spoke. Those opposing the books are naïve.

19 - Woman: Used a pro-war quote about liberty and safety out of context to make her point.

20 - Man: Called those opposing books "wusses" who complained about being uncomfortable. Since no lawsuits have been filed against any school district for teaching Perks, "no harm, no foul."

21 - Girl: Have friends who are gay. Real life is explicit. Trust students.

22 - Man: Objections are disingenuous.

23 - Female teacher: Compared opposing "narrow" viewpoint to Nazis, Mao, and the Taliban.

24 - Pastor Seth Moland-Kovash, Youth and Family, Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Arlington Heights - Commend teachers. Read the books and commended Perks, Things They Carried, and Freakonomics.

25 - Woman: Student speeches were exciting. Look for three documents on ncte.org: guidelines, censorship, and students' right to read.

26 - Man: Impressed with the kids. Teachers are doing a great job. Debate scares me.

27 - Woman: Quoted a poem by "The Prophet."

Adults Opposing Books in Question
(about 35 adults spoke in opposition to the books)

1 - Mother of a junior boy: Objected to Perks. Wanted her son to opt out of some materials, but he is concerned about teasing. If there are alternatives to this controversial material, why can't that alternative be used for all students? If the language in the excerpts were used at work, it would be considered sexual harassment - so why isn't it considered sexual harassment to place children in the position of discussing these materials in a mixed classroom setting?

2 - Bruce Tincknell of IFI: Consider community standards, decency, vulgarity, obscenity. Department head Venegoni admitted he has not read Perks, but has recommended it. It includes oral sex, masturbation, male homosexual rape, date rape, sex with a dog, female gratification with a hotdog - called by some "teachable moments." Read excerpt until a male student yelled out "I masturbate."

3 - Female graduate from Rolling Meadows: Students should have a right not to read these books. She attempted to opt out, but her teacher laughed and refused to provide an alternative - told her she didn't have to read the objectionable book, but she still had to pass the test on the book to which she objected.  Of course, she failed the test. She made a 5 on her AP test nonetheless and a 30 on her ACT. Other students who opted out received harder assignments - for example, a 5-10 page research paper in place of viewing a movie shown in class.

4 - Tom Morrison: Recalls graphic depictions of violence and sexual activity, calling them "a violation of my mind." Images were created and have stayed with me. Where are the books that exemplify what is best?

5 - Man: Pornography and trash will tear you down.

6 - Man: These books are not the reason for high test scores or achievements. People are speaking about the good messages they take from these books, so it's logical to conclude that they will also take away the bad messages. If the board chooses not to restrict these books, they must improve the opt out program.

7 - Man: Opt out needs improvement. These books offend my morals.

8 - Woman: FCC, newspapers, Internet, movies all have ratings and standards. Why don't we view books for children with the same standards?

9 - Mother of #6: Watched her son opt-out and still score 5 on AP and 35 out of 36 on ACT, so you can be successful without reading smut. Compared opt-out to solitary confinement, where students are sent to a room to read/study alone, receive little interaction with teacher and no interaction with other students. When her son approached the teacher to opt out of the first book, the teacher concluded that he wouldn't be able to read ANY of the books she had selected for that year. That's how common the inappropriate material is!

10 - Woman: Get it together on opt-out. Parents should have a choice. Words are not just words.

11 - Man: Feels insulted and degraded by some of the comments toward those with more conservative standards. Works with gang members, trying to teach them what is/is not appropriate. He tells them not to have pre-marital sex, and they tell him they're reading about it in school. Just a little bit (drugs, sex, etc.) grows. Minds are not opened by the books in question, but by a desire to learn. Opt out does not work.

12 - Female teacher: Words stay in our mind. Not all books should be taught in English class. If a student e-mails his teacher a book report on a book like Perks (including the language in the book), the student would be violating the school's Internet policy.

13 - Woman: It is insulting to students to use these books rather than classics, as though they are not intelligent enough to understand unless we bring it down to such a debased level. Choose better. Language used in the books can't otherwise be spoken in class.

14 - Woman: Objecting to Perks and Garcia Girls. Mentioned need for viable opt out. Why isn't the alternate assignment THE assignment? Students referring to this as a 1st Amendment issue - Is District 214 educating them so poorly? Explicit sex does not belong in the classroom.

15 - Peter LaBarbera of IFI: The ridicule and abject religious bigotry expressed by some students does not commend their education. (Jeers.) Preposterous to compare Perks to passages from the Bible.

16 - Man: Language commonly used by students is coarse, crude - citing the frequent use of the f-word. This is what happens when the best reading materials are not provided and when the schools are involved in supporting Day of Silence and the like.

17 - Woman: These books would be x-rated. Some say it's bad to "ban" books, but in reality it's bad to omit good books.

18 - Man: Son was too embarrassed to ask the teacher to opt out. After graduating from public school this man went to Vietnam and closed bars with Kerovac, but would not recommend reading his books in high school because we do not need to accelerate the process of corrupting minds.

19 - Female teacher: Concerned about these books. "Beyond my comprehension." Graphic sex, rape, torture, bestiality overshadows value.

20 - Man: When you put a book on the required list, you are placing it above others. Are these books really higher than the thousands of other books available?

21 - Man: Books contain continual profanity. Why, given that the policy states that subjects should be taught with the least controversial materials?

22 - Man: I read the books and the excerpts are representative. Policy requires teachers to identify controversial material, but teachers are not providing parents with notice.

23 - Man: It's apparent that teachers have not presented the issue fairly.

24 - Muslim doctor: Material is offensive to Muslims and pornographic. The limit of personal freedom is when it infringes on the freedom of others and the schools should not have the freedom to choose literature for my children which is unacceptable, vulgar, etc. Referred to Bill Clinton's "I did not have sex with that woman" and its impact on kids, believing that oral sex is safe and fun.

25 - Man: Education should lift up and inspire. These books degrade to the lowest common denominator.

26 - Woman: The board claims to want parental involvement, but parents are not included in the selection process. Confused about the material: If students are so articulate and intelligent, why is the debased material necessary to reach them? If you know them so well, why aren't you aware that the opt out process is so difficult?

27 - Woman: Contacted principal and teachers, but received incomplete information and lack of response.