The rioting that has broken out throughout the Middle East in reaction to the Danish cartoon (then reprinted elsewhere), depicting the image of the Prophet Mohammed in a satirical and (for many) disrespectful manner recalls an earlier incident at L-S.
With cartoon controversies, as with so much else, L-S has clearly led the way.
In the late 1980's the school newspaper, then called the Promethean, ran a cartoon commenting on Israel's Lebanon invasion and the subsequent massacres in two Palestinian refugee camps in that country.
The cartoon, drawn by a very skillful and strongly-opinionated student artist, depicted General Ariel Sharon and Prime Minister Menachem Begin standing amidst the wreckage of the camps, with heaps of Palestinian bodies scattered about. Both men wore shown wearing military uniforms...with swastika patches on their sleeves. Below this image appeared these words: "Israel Uber Alles."
When info about the cartoon was leaked out by someone on the newspaper staff, the "you-know-what" hit the fan. The town's only rabbi and his supporters came in and lodged a strong protest, condemning the cartoon (and any one who supported its publication) as "anti-Semitic." Various teachers and students made political arguments in opposition to the rabbi's, or invoked the 1st Amendment. Passion. Anger, Discussion. Debate. Fireworks. Let's just said a school-wide discussion ensued, one of those rare moments when the boundary between hallways and classrooms vanished.
Poor Superintendent Brad Sargent! He himself was not Jewish and, moreover, he came from a small town in western Mass. where, he later recalled, there was quite a bit of bigotry directed against strange people who called themselves "Jews." He had struggled to overcome these prejudices of his childhood.
In the end, Brad publicly said that he thought the cartoon went too far...but he also felt that the 1st Amendment protected the right of a student newspaper to publish it. He was in a very exposed and no-win position, and chose to stand on principle.
The cartoon was published along with a double-page spread of opinions for and against it. Originally, the rabbi had said he wouldn't and couldn't write anything for an anti-Semitic newspaper, but I believe he changed his mind and shared his perspective.
Much like today, the debate focused on the meaning of, and relationship between, Freedom and Responsibility. It was lively times at the ol' regional high school.
Bill Schechter / 2006
