[dropcap size=big]A[/dropcap] senior at an L.A. high school was removed from her post making morning announcements at her campus after she expressed support for her teachers going on strike.
Mia Medina, a student at John F. Kennedy High School in Granada Hills, had been doing the school’s morning announcements for three-and-a-half years. Medina told USA Today that she was removed from her position by Principal Richard Chavez after ending a morning announcement by saying, “Teachers, we support you.”
“Every single morning, I do the morning announcements, and for him to take my job away just because I said that I support the teachers is really unfair,” Medina said.
Free speech teaching moment! Yesterday, a Kennedy High School student was fired by the school principal from doing the school announcements after she simply said, "We stand with you teachers." The community stands behind her and demands her reinstatement. #RespectOurStudents pic.twitter.com/3o92hKbKej
— United Teachers Los Angeles (@UTLAnow) January 12, 2019
According to Medina, she was approached by Chavez immediately after she concluded her school-wide broadcast and asked if someone told her to make the statement. After affirming that it was her choice, Chavez told her that he was removing her from the announcer position.
When word got out, teachers and students alike offered words of support on twitter – with teachers praising Medina’s critical thinking skills, and students calling Principal Chavez’s actions unfair.
Medina said it is highly unlikely that she will cross picket lines to attend class.
“Most of the teachers aren’t going to be there,” Medina explained. “So [the school] is going to cram us into the auditorium. All of the seniors are going to be stuck in the auditorium doing pretty much nothing all day. So I don’t think there’s a reason for me to go to class if I’m not getting an education."
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