Dorsai - Jan

He got a very pained expression on his face, and turned back to me.

"So you chose to tell her that her speech was inappropriate because YOU decided you didn't like it?"

"Yes", he said, primly.

"And what is the basis for that decision – that is, what are the guidelines for appropriateness? Where are they written down? When and how are they made available to the student? How long have these guidelines been in effect?"

He sat there, looking at me blankly, for several seconds before admitting "We, er, don't have written guidelines."

"I see – you have no written guidelines. Let me guess – you never gave Kelly any guidance or instruction on what you thought was 'appropriate'."

"Well, er, no, I didn't."

"So she had no prior idea of what was acceptable to you. With no direction from you, how is it, then, that the students are to know what subjects are allowed, and which aren't?"

"This situation has never come up before."

"Indeed? That would hardly be something to brag about, sir, if your intentions in running this school were honorable. Clearly, they aren't – otherwise, you would have been teaching these kids to think for themselves, independently; and situations such as this would have come up sooner. None the less, I don't see how or where you feel that you have the power or authority to deny her the right to give the speech she prepared."

He puffed himself up again, and tried to threaten us, saying "It is well within my power to remove her as Valedictorian!"

"And if you do, I will make it my personal crusade to not only run you out of this school, but out of the entire field of education – after I sue you, this school, and the diocese. By the time I'm done with you, you won't be able to get a school job as a custodian!"

He paled, and said "You wouldn't dare – you'd lose in court!"

He went absolutely white when I gave him my best Godzilla-eyeing-Bambi smile, and said "Fine. Call the Bishop, and lets get him in on this as a conference call. Do it now, or I walk out of here and go straight to my lawyer's office."

His hands trembled as he picked up the phone, and he had to dial the number twice before getting it right. He told them who he was, and that he needed to talk to the Bishop – now. A few seconds later, he was telling the Bishop that he had a problem, that someone was threatening to sue, and wanted him to listen in. He listened for a moment, and put the phone on speakerphone.

"This is Bishop Ferguson. Who am I speaking to, please?"

"Yes, Bishop, my name is Dan Marshall. There seems to be a problem with the pompous twit you have running this school, and I've decided that it's not worthwhile to put up with his foolish arrogance any longer."

"What is the problem?"

"It seems that Mr. Jenkins has taken it upon himself to screen Valedictorian speeches before allowing the students to give them."

"That is his job, sir."

"And I recognize that duty – but for him to do so entirely without oversight, using only his own opinions as a standard, could hardly be considered proper, I would think. Nor do I consider it appropriate for him to do so without providing any guidelines – either verbal or in writing – to the students involved."

"Is this correct, Mr. Jenkins?"

"Er, yes, sir, but…"

"That's enough. We'll discuss this later. What else is happening, Mr.

Marshall, that would cause you to threaten legal action?"

"Mr. Jenkins also took it upon himself to try and deal with this matter with a manumitted student of your school – essentially, denying her her legal right, as an adult before the law, to act on her own behalf. I came here only after he insisted that she call – and I quote – a 'responsible adult' to represent her. I believe that such actions would constitute a violation of her civil rights – something that may well leave this school open to civil and criminal action."

"Indeed, it may. But why would YOU threaten to sue?"

"I have told Mr. Jenkins that since he provided no instruction or direction, I do not see how he has any authority to deny the young lady involved the right to make her speech, as written. His response was to threaten to remove her as Valedictorian. It was at that point that I said that I would sue him, the school, and the diocese, if he did."

"You understand, of course, Mr. Marshall, that suing us would be a lengthy, costly process."

"Indeed – one that I would cheerfully devote time and money to, even as I took every opportunity to paint a picture of the Pope, and entire Catholic church, running roughshod over the rights of a single, attractive female student of this premier private school; who was declared Valedictorian, and then had that honor forcibly removed after she wrote a heartfelt speech to her fellow graduates."

"But neither the Pope, nor the Church, have any interest in the speech of a single student in a single school."

"No doubt – but in this predominantly Baptist part of the country, such an image would be easy enough to generate."

"Are you threatening us?"

"Not at all – only pointing out the adverse effects for YOU, if this should go to court."

We all heard him sigh before he asked "Why is that you are so adamant about this matter?"

"Because of the attitude taken by this petty, tyrannical, pompous, ignorant, stupid, overbearing jackass you have holding down a chair in this office. If he had any two of ethics, a sense of fairness, or two brain cells to rub together, I believe we could have settled this amicably. Instead, he's tried to bully and berate the student, threatened her AND me, and generally been a pain in the ass. People like that aggravate me to no end, and I'm not going to give this twit *anything*."

"I see."

"Please understand, sir – my position is that the young lady should be free to give the speech she originally wrote. Whether you choose to disclaim it, ignore it, or otherwise disavow it is up to you. We can do it easy, with Little Hitler here prefacing it by saying that it's her speech, and not condoned by the Church or some other folderol, or it goes to court. If it does, I might lose, or I might win – but either way, the Church comes out looking none the better for the fight. It is your choice, sir.", I said, and then shut up. I'd pointed out an 'out' for him, and hoped that he'd see it as a way for all of us to avoid even bigger trouble.

After a couple of minutes, we heard him say "Very well, then, Mr.

Marshall. There is much to be said for the validity of your points and opinions. Mr. Jenkins?"

"Yes, sir!"

"I wish you to take note of the following."

Jenkins hastily grabbed a pencil and note pad.

"First: the young lady is to give her speech, as written, as Valedictorian. She has earned the honor, and we will not remove it from her. You are also to forward a copy of it to my office, for review.

"Second: When you introduce her, you are only to say that her speech is her own, written by her. No editorializing or other disclaimer. If she has learned enough at our school to make this kind of stand, then it is our duty to let her speak freely.

"Third: You are to develop a set of guidelines for future speeches, properly worded, so that future students may have independent guidance.

These guidelines are to be objective, and sufficiently detailed as to prevent future confrontations such as this. Further, no ONE person shall have final approval of the content. I would suggest a member of the clergy, a member of the administration, and one of the independent teachers, for a proper balance and perspective.

"Fourth: you are to apologize to the young lady – not only for your ignorance in knowing her status as an adult, but for any inappropriate tactics you may have employed in attempting to deal with this farce.