On Nov. 1, students at Morton West High School in Berwyn, Ill., a working-class Chicago suburb, staged a sit-in to stop the war and military recruitment.
The students protested in the cafeteria and refused to leave. The school administration then put the entire school on
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The 10 or more anti-war protesters agreed to leave the cafeteria so other students would be released from classes.
School authorities agreed that if they set up in another area there would be no action taken against them except Saturday morning detention. The protesters went to a hall near the principal’s office.
The area was cordoned off by police tape, but this did not work. Soon, the protest swelled to over 70 students.
School Superintendent Dr. Ben Nowakowski then began threatening no only to suspend students, but also to expel and arrest them. Parents were called to come to the school. The pressure and threats lowered the number of protesters to 37.
At the end of the day, suspensions from 3 to 10 days were given out to over two dozen students. Student athletes and honor students were given 3 to 5 days. Students who benefited from this unequal treatment protested the administrations actions.
The fight back
The students under attack were not intimidated and fought back. So did their parents. They called for amnesty for all the students at a press conference. Parents also denounced the expulsion threats and supported the students’ political demands.
Support from area anti-war and community groups came forth. At a school board meeting on Nov. 7, over 200 people filled the room. Not one person spoke in favor of the school authorities.
Superintendent Nowakowski and the other school authorities launched a “snitch and reward” program to “find the ringleaders.” Students who were approached spoke out against it.
An internet petition supporting the students was initiated by the Columbia College Chicago Students for a Democratic Society. It received endorsements from 8,500 anti-war advocates, including ANSWER Coalition-Chicago (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism). Signatures poured in from across the globe.
Favorable stories came out in such diverse sources as the New York Times and revolutionary Cuba’s Prensa Latina news agency.
One of Chicago’s corporate dailies, the Chicago Sun Times wrote an editorial praising the students and chastising the school authorities’ actions. While Nowakowski was attacking the students for “mob activity,” the Berwyn police chief was publicly said that the police did not arrest any students because their actions were “peaceful and orderly.”
Progressive legal groups threatened legal action against the school. Support also came from veterans and military families and progressive like Michael Moore and Rev. Jesse Jackson.
Victory
On Nov. 13, it was announced that there would be no expulsions. This came just hours after Nowakowski said his decision on the expulsions would take two days.
If this action had taken place in the beginning of the war, the school authorities might have gotten away with their suppression of the anti-war students. The message from Morton High’s courageous anti-war students is “dare to struggle, dare to win.” The time is ripe for such actions.
A letter from the parents noted the importance of the victory. They also pointed out that, because of the students’ actions, military recruiters have been barred from the school for two weeks, pending a review of their access to students.
This courageous act by the students is not simply a free speech issue. The outpouring of interest, support and activism was directly related to the students’ reason for the sit-in. The result is another referendum on the disastrous Iraq war.
The students’ protest should be seen in context of the massive anti-war protests that took place in Chicago and across the country the weekend before, and the constant presence of military recruiters in their school.
These young activists saw their fellow students coerced into joining the ranks to fight and they did not stand by silently. We admire their courage and convictions.
