On February 1st, Alexa Gonzales, a middle-school student in New York City, was arrested for doodling on her desk – nothing special – nothing harmful – nothing threatening – just “Lex was here 2/1/10.”
Really! No kidding!! Seriously!
Officers hand-cuffed her and marched her across the street to the local precinct, at the principal’s request. The arrest was blamed on a zero tolerance policy which forbids the defacing public property.
Did young Alexa do something wrong? Sure. Should she have been punished? Sure. But I’ve done this same thing and so have you. What student hasn’t pushed the envelope at some point?
The larger question here is this: Do zero tolerance policies allow cowardly school officials and policymakers to hide behind these rules rather than acting with the students’ best interests in mind?
What are we teaching the emerging generation with policies and actions such as these?
With what perceptions will they enter society?
Will they ever learn that ALL decisions need to be made within the context of the situation?
Will they too, over time, depend on zero tolerance policies to escape from taking responsibility?