think it's wrong, what he did," said 15-
was announced, a district official stated
yearold student Pedro Murguia. "The
that "the district believes strongly in an
drawing of the walls around the school
individual's right of free expression, but as
is offensive to me. I'm Hispanic, and my
we all know, such rights are not absolute."
parents came here from Mexico."
Hoover settled not because she agreed on
Despite the furor and fears about
the limits of free expression but because
"getting jumped in the hall or mobbed or
her lawyer told her that the district's set-
something," Mason said he would not
tlement offer was good, and "it's always
apologize for his cartoon "because it is
wise to walk away from a fight before it
not offensive." School board member
gets to be the lengthy fight this one was
clearly going to be."185
Juan Rangel saw the controversy as an
ˇ Tulia--Seven-year-old Dallas Saenz stum-
inevitable result of letting students say
what they want without supervision.
bled into controversy when he decided to
"Those are not appropriate topics for
get a spiked hair cut to express his per-
them to be talking about without proper
sonality. But school officials sent Saenz
supervision and authority," said Rangel.
home, claiming that his new hairdo was
"The kids will say, `We have a right to
disruptive, and they told him not to
express ourselves,' and you have the other
return until his haircut was acceptable.
side saying this is inappropriate."187
Dallas's parents fully supported their
ˇ
son, saying that they wanted to preserve
Round Rock--When students all over the
his ability to express himself in school,
country were being disciplined for leav-
even though they were fined $600 for his
ing school to demonstrate against pro-
disruption and administrators threat-
posed federal immigration laws last
ened to hold Dallas back a year if he con-
year, in the largely conservative, white,
tinued to miss classes. "Everybody's dif-
Austin suburb of Round Rock, the pun-
ferent. He's not hurting anyone," said the
ishments seemed to be among the
boy's father. Officials at the school sug-
harshest. Indeed, on March 31 Round
gested there are limits to what self-
Rock police rounded up more than 200
expression is tolerable at school. "If it's
students heading for a protest in Austin
no distraction, it's no problem," said
and charged them with violating a day-
Tulia Superintendent Ken Millers. But,
time curfew, disrupting class, or both.
according to principal Johnny Lara,
This despite the fact that the city has an
Dallas's cut was a distraction: "All the
ordinance allowing for free speech and
students were commenting and going on
assembly that, according to the Texas
about the hairstyle. It was very visible."186
Civil Rights Project, trumps the curfew.
ˇ Fort Worth--Seventeen-year-old Brian
Police, however, contended that many
students weren't actually going to the
Mason inadvertently ignited racial ten-
protests but were instead running
sions after his high school newspaper
roughshod in the town, and that divert-
published his editorial cartoon depict-
ing officers to controlling the students
ing the school's principal surrounding
left other parts of the city unserved.
the school with a wall. Mason intended
Josh Bernstein, a senior policy ana-
the cartoon to critique Principal Sharon
lyst at the National Immigration Law
Meng's decision to ban students who
Center, was disgusted by the punish-
participated in walkout demonstrations
ments. "What was being done by those
against proposed federal immigration
students is in the highest traditions of
laws from attending the prom. The car-
this country and we would hope their
toon, however, had the opposite of the
idealism would be weighed against the
desired effect, enraging many Hispanic
rules that they've broken." At least one
students who found it offensive. "I
48