JASON RANTZ

On Trump school protests, Kshama Sawant is wrong

Jan 18, 2017, 7:47 AM | Updated: 9:24 am

Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant is upset with Seattle Public Schools for adhering to a longstanding policy to hit students with an unexcused absence if they skip class to protest President-elect Donald Trump on Friday. She said that the district should “respect the right of students to protest.”

Her position conflates two unrelated topics and, with respect, she’s flat out wrong.

According to The Seattle Times, a number of students are expected to walk out of school on Friday in protest of our next president. In a letter, Sawant said she wants the district “to recognize these protests as legitimate actions in defense of the rights of students, their families, and fellow community members.”

Tangney: We should applaud students for taking political stances

For their part, district officials say they cannot participate in any political activity because they’re a public institution, and it’s common for students to receive an unexcused absence when they choose to leave campus for a non-school sanctioned activity.

Sawant is correct to assert these students have a right to protest; she’s, without a doubt, incorrect to claim that the unexcused absence is inappropriate or somehow an affront to their rights. Your right to protest doesn’t mean you get coverage from consequences. Workers, for example, who decide to skip out on their jobs on Friday so they can speak out against Trump face termination, even if they have a right to protest.

Is the school district supposed to allow any student the right to leave campus to protest on any given day? If so, if they protest daily, does that mean they get to graduate having never been to class? Of course not.

Simply agreeing with the protest’s message doesn’t mean these students shouldn’t be held to the rules. That’s what this is really about: Sawant supports the movement, wants to continue to build it (and she wisely understands she needs young blood to join and empower the movement), so she’s trying to intimidate the district into allowing these students to disobey reasonable rules. I suppose it’s admirable in that she’s doing it so they can be more politically engaged, though somehow I doubt Sawant would be up in arms if the students got an unexcused absence for protesting at a Planned Parenthood.

Want to protest? Go for it. You have that right. But do so knowing you’ll get hit with an unexcused absence, and if that’s all that’s stopping you from going out and marching, then you just learned a great adult-lesson: actions have consequences.

Jason Rantz on AM 770 KTTH
  • listen to jason rantzTune in to AM 770 KTTH weekdays at 3-7pm toThe Jason Rantz Show.

Jason Rantz Show

Jason Rantz

Burien lawsuit...

Jason Rantz

Exclusive: City of Burien sues King County for breaking contract in homeless camping ban

The City of Burien filed a lawsuit against King County for its refusal to enforce a homeless camping ban that was lawfully adopted.

13 hours ago

Image: The Stevens County Sheriff's Office says it recently received an odd call from a Sasquatch h...

Jason Rantz

Rantz: Sheriff’s office asked legality of hunting Sasquatch in Stevens County

A Sasquatch hunter had an interesting question for the Stevens County sheriff. Is it legal to hunt Sasquatch?

1 day ago

Image: Children bike past Wilson Elementary in Spokane....

Jason Rantz

Rantz: ‘Racist’ Spokane elementary school’s ‘slaves and hobos’ ignites controversy

After a teacher told students they could dress as "slaves and hobos" for an event, the Spokane NAACP cried foul.

2 days ago

Images: At left, Bellevue Police Department Officer Kevin Bereta is seen in his uniform. At right, ...

Julia Dallas

Bellevue officer injured in VP Harris motorcade recalls road to reclaiming benefits

Bellevue Police Officer Kevin Bereta's life changed while he was on VP Kamala Harris' service detail during her visit to Washington.

2 days ago

permanent supportive housing...

Jason Rantz

Rantz: You’re being lied to about permanent supportive housing in Redmond

Redmond residents rightly push back against permanent supportive housing as a solution for the homeless, as Seattle media get in the way.

3 days ago

WA State Attorney General Bob Ferguson campaigning.  (Photo by Karen Ducey/Getty Images)...

Jason Rantz

Rantz: On crime, Bob Ferguson campaign made its first massive blunder

The Bob Ferguson campaign wants you thinking his top priority is crime. His entire political history says otherwise.

4 days ago

On Trump school protests, Kshama Sawant is wrong