UN I O N
speci a l post-el ection edition T HE november 2016
Volume xxVIiI Issue III
MHSTHEUNION.com For the latest updates
STUDENT VOICE OF MILPITAS HIGH SCHOOL
Morales explains actions at walkout, says his intentions were not political by BROOKE TRAN Kevin zhang
After Principal Philip Morales was placed on leave for using profanity and purportedly taking a political stance against President-elect Donald Trump, he gave The Union his perspective on the walkout that we would like to publish. Rather than being an anti-Trump rally, the event was an open space for people to express their political opinions and connect with one another, according to Morales. He acknowledges that his statement of “F--k Donald Trump” was unprofessional, but it served a less politcal purpose than one would assume.
“I don’t take a political stance; I’m against hatred, period. In any form, under any president, I’m against hatred.” Principal
Philip Morales
“I think the term FDT was more of a rally call. It started to get that sense of ‘I wanted to say it because I want to show unity in the group that was there,’” Morales said. “Because a lot of the students that were talking, they were talking about fears that they experience way before Mr. Trump. Even under Obama, [or] even prior to that, these are hatred issues that have been going on for a long time. My point in using that term [FDT], was a way to say I connect with you; I understand where you’re at.” Addressing the profanity issue, one reason for his leave, Morales explained that his usage was not the casual profanity we hear on a daily basis. “We use profanity when we’re angry, when we’re scared, when there’s fear or there’s uncertainty. The students that I thought would never use profanity [surprised me by] using profanity, and people we hear every day using profanity [were] using profanity,” Morales explained. “I don’t think it was recreational. I think it was really a sense of fear, and that’s why they’re using that term.” As for the issue of taking a political stance during the protest, Morales stated that his objective was not to take a side, which is hard to understand if one was not there. He realizes that his comment may be taken as strong opposition to Trump, but at that moment during the walkout, he felt it was a meaningful statement. “At the beginning when I started, what I said was this was not about
blaming anybody. It’s not about blaming Mr. Trump or Hillary Clinton, or political parties. It is the reality that we are living in, so that space was an opportunity for people to voice their concerns, to voice their fears. I don’t take a political stance; I’m against hatred, period. In any form, under any president, I’m against hatred,” Morales stated. “I get that [people saw my statement as disliking Trump], but if you were there and had the entire picture, and saw what was happening and what I was doing, because when everyone was out there and was saying ‘F Donald Trump,’ I wasn’t going ‘Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!’ I was kind of quieting people down, [saying] ‘well wait a minute, hold on.’ I wasn’t rallying in that regard, and again it was my way of saying ‘I hear you, I’m with you, we can’t stop here, and we need to move forward.’” As for his leave, Morales openly accepts the consequences for using profanity in a way that can be interpreted as political bias in the workplace. “What I learned is that I have to model, even in the strongest and most uncertain of times, that we’re going to be okay. But, I’m a human being too, and it’s hard when you’re standing with your students, and you hear the pain that they’re going through, the fear that they’re going through. All I want to do is take that all away; I don’t want my students to go through that kind of pain.” He continues, “I think about my babies, my toddlers who have to grow up in this culture division. You learn a lot, and a big one is just that you can’t use profanity in the workplace.” From this incident, Morales said that we need to unify and understand one another. According to Morales, he plans to implement new programs including daily reflections on understanding and support, a pledge of commitment to respect one another, and assembly walls for positive thoughts. “We are going to be the model of all our schools,” Morales continued. “We’re going to rise above it. . . People can say whatever they want to say. We’re going to show them by our actions that that’s not who we are.” “But in the end, I’m very, very proud of my students,” Morales stated. “Because it showed a lot of courage, and I said it then and I’ll say it today, I still stand behind my students, 110 percent. I’ll be the biggest advocate for them, no matter what, and I will stand with you again if I have to, for what’s right.”
Ca-Zao Bui | THE UNION
Students cheer after Principal Philip Morales’ statement at the walkout on Nov. 10. The walkout took place during fourth period where students gathered on the bleachers by the football field to express their fears and concerns.
Student walkout leads to Morales’ brief leave by brooke tran kevin zhang
A student-organized walkout sparked by the presidential election took place on the bleachers by the football field on Nov. 10. When Principal Philip Morales heard of students’ plans to walkout, he arranged to prevent students from walking off campus while still allowing them to express their concerns and voices in a safe environment with MHS staff and administration supervision, he said. Some among the group of protesters took turns speaking with a megaphone, most ending with the repeated phrase, “F--k Donald Trump.” The speeches revolved around supporting ethnic minority groups, women, and LGBTQ community. At the end, Morales stood with his students and voiced his own concerns, also ending his speech with “F--k Donald Trump,” resulting in being placed on administrative leave by Superintendent Cheryl Jordan. “I encouraged teachers to not confront students who felt the need to walk out,” Morales explained. “I told teachers that they shouldn’t be walking out or leaving students behind. If there were some students walking out of class and some students didn’t, then [the teachers] would need to stay with their students to make sure they were safe, as well. It wasn’t an anti-Trump rally. Although at some point, I guess you could say it kind of turned that way.” The point of the walkout was for
students to be able to speak freely and have their opinions heard, according to English Teacher Ginger Roy. Students had felt strongly enough after the election that they believed they were morally obligated to express concerns about hatred and discrimination, Roy said. “I think that this election has been particularly inflammatory because of the positions that the President-elect has made clear that he has taken against specific groups,” Roy stated. “I think that people who are part of those groups felt very marginalized, and I think that [the results of the election] felt very personal for them, and so I think that they think they just needed a way to process that. And with the protests going on across the country I think that it was just their way to say I feel this way too.” At the end of the walkout, Morales concluded by voicing his opinions and promoting unity, he said. According to Morales, he was encouraged by students and hoping to promote a sense that he stood with his students, he also ended his statement with “F-k Donald Trump,” causing him to be put on administrative leave for profanity and allegedly taking a political stance. Although the statement was meaningful, he should have rephrase it, Morales said. “I would find a different way to still get my message across without having to use profanity or having to take a position,” Morales said. “I would definitely not go down that path again.
And that’s a big part of learning, you make a mistake you got to learn from it, and try not to make it again.” Many, including Senior Annie Dinh, are content with the punishment given to Morales, as what he did was indeed unprofessional, but not deserving of being fired. “Especially as our principal, it wasn’t professional,” Dinh said. “Even though he wasn’t fired, and I’m glad he wasn’t, I’m also glad that he didn’t get off without anything.” Other individuals, such as Roy, look past the profanity and believe his statement was acceptable given the context of the situation. “What he was trying to say to them is I hear you, I feel your pain, I am a person too... I think because he knew that every person at that protest shared his political beliefs, shared that sentiment, that he wasn’t going to alienate anyone, I personally think that it was okay,” Roy explained. “As far as the profanity, obviously technically that was not right, however, I feel that the people who are really so upset about that have not been on a high school campus recently.” “I know that I am very, very glad that he was back after one day,” Roy continued, “and would have been very upset had he not been because I feel what he did was make a true connection with our student body that has been lacking from administration for a couple of years now, and I think that he really reached a lot of students in a positive way.”
MUSD staff working to encourage accepting environment by ca-zao bui
justin nguyen | THE UNION
Words of encouragement posted on Biology Teacher Karen Truesdell’s door provide comfort to students who feel oppressed in light of election results.
MHS staff members, MUSD leaders, members of the community such as parents and former MHS students, and four current MHS students met at 8 a.m. on Nov. 14, to discuss the aftermath of the Nov. 10 walkout that took place on campus during fourth period. Those at the meeting included Superintendent Cheryl Jordan, assistant principals, and counselors. The meeting was organized by Jordan and took place in the MHS library with the intention to discuss building community and unity among students to “solidify peer accountability in maintaining a MHS community that is free from bullying and is accepting of different viewpoints,” the meeting agenda stated.
In light of the presidential election, many students of color are “fearful about potential actions by government around immigration status,” the agenda continued. Jordan also wrote on the agenda that she had “received some messages from parents stating that their students who are white or mixed have been told they are ‘ privileged’ and don’t want to come to school because they are afraid.” Those present at the meeting broke up into groups to brainstorm ideas of how to provide safe methods for students to express their feelings and fears while promoting an atmosphere free of bullying and discrimination. One idea discussed was to develop a leadership team consisting of students from different backgrounds
and social circles on campus in order to bring together different types of students for input on matters that would affect the rest of the student body. Other ideas included ASB chalking positive messages throughout campus. A journal-writing session during SSR in which students write down their thoughts and pass around their journals for others to read was also brought up as a possible outlet for students to express their feelings. Another potential plan involved having a day of team-building workshops for students to come together and bond. These plans to encourage unity among students are still in the works and will be discussed to a greater extent before being implented. Those present at the meeting agreed.