A step in the right direction

By Liz Tjaden

For a young journalism student, there is nothing more disheartening than being told that their story will not be printed because administration doesn’t agree with it. First Amendment laws have been argued and discussed in many high schools and colleges all over the country. Should student voices be censored? Hell no.

A few weeks ago, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the Teacher Protection Law that blocks censorship in schools for student journalists. Teachers and advisors have been removed from their positions for standing up to the administration when it comes to censorship in student newspapers.

Others have the right to freedom of speech, why not students? Just because someone has the title of being a student does not mean that their rights can be taken away from them. If anything, I would want my students to write controversial pieces. We need to learn at a young age to make a voice for ourselves and to take negative criticism with a grain of salt.

Learning how to go after a story and get the facts is what we should be important. Instead, we often teach students to quiet themselves when faced with controversy.