This should be a story about kids organizing a protest.

This should have been a First Amendment story. Or a school safety story.

This could have been about students who are passionate about immigration and the work of ICE. Or maybe about high school students being politically engaged in their community.

But it’s not. 

The story this week is the story of a bewildered student body and overwhelmed staff, beaten down by a merciless online community. The very same community, which led a relentless attack against the school and each other, is formed by the people our corporation aims to serve. The hypocrisy, the anger, the polarization – all typed in hundreds of comments on social media platforms. 

So now, let us tell you the true story of this week, and the deeper understanding it demands of our community.

During the last week of January, two students approached administrators about hosting a protest about ICE.

On Monday, Feb. 2, those two students and a third approached administrators again: following the ongoing trend of other major high schools across Indiana, they hoped to lead a walkout on Friday to protest the immigration work of ICE. They planned to peacefully leave during STaR, a time scheduled without direct instruction, and rally on the football field with prepared speeches before retreating inside for their next period. 

No interrupted class time. No violence. Not even civil disobedience. Just a safe walkout to support a cause, supervised by the Center Grove Police Department and school administration.

But here’s what really happened. The word “protest” spread like wildfire across social media, specifically finding its way into the Facebook group “Center Grove Chatter.” This online community, composed of 73,200 members, took the plans of these students and tore them to pieces. 

Over the last four days, there have been countless posts about the walkout, but perhaps the most jarring aspect are the comments. A post simply stating “Reason, my kid won’t be able to walk out because I said not to” is ripped by 682 comments. One parent comments “ya’ll will get upset about anything but a pedophile,” while another remarks, “Aren’t you special!! Oh and your kid probably hates you!!” In another post, a member calls the students leading the walkout “Disgraceful, useful idiots!” followed by a comment asking “Why are you mad at the brown pedophiles but not the white ones?”

Thousands upon thousands of comments from community members, berating the walkout. Disparaging the political stance of their neighbors. Condemning their coworkers for their opinions.

And the most disturbing part: many of these comments were from parents hiding behind a keyboard as they complained, argued, mocked and made assumptions about what was happening at school.

On Thursday night, Feb. 5, this climaxed in violent threats made toward the school. The school administration had to adapt amidst such a volatile situation.

On Friday, as students poured into the building, they were met with metal detectors and bag searches. Lines of students, who stood shivering in the cold, wrapped around the bus entrance and Hall of Excellence. Five metal detectors for 3000 students — but what else was CGPD and admin supposed to do? Our school’s priority was to keep students safe, and the turbulence of CG Chatter had made that job more difficult.

But here is what’s so twisted: the precautions taken on Friday were not a result of students’ political opinions or the organized walkout. They were a result of the explosive and uncontrollable nature of an online community. They were a result of the immature and disrespectful arguments taking place on a public platform. They were a result of the so-called “role models” in our community acting like the “children” they claimed students to be. 

Yesterday, approximately 40 students peacefully walked outside the Hall of Excellence doors to voice their opinions against ICE. These students were surrounded by police officers whose police cars lined the road. Despite what political stance one takes, no one, and especially no minor, should ever fear for their safety because of an opinion. 

This must stop now. Parents and other adults, who have preached to students the importance of online etiquette and the responsibility that accompanies social media, caused a week of academic disruption and genuine fear for students. The hypocrisy is astounding, and frankly, unacceptable. 

Any successful community is built on compromise and care for others. If we have lost the ability to negotiate, empathize and restrain derogatory comments on both sides of the political spectrum, then we have destroyed the foundation of our community.

Political disagreement is inevitable, but the way we handle that disagreement determines whether our schools remain places of safety and learning. Students, parents and community members all must disagree without attacking and listen before reacting.

So let us start small. Parents and community members: the next time a post about a student appears on your feed, model the same behavior you would ask of them. And students: continue to engage, but remember that your words carry weight too, so you must speak with intention. Because the comments we write, and the ones we choose not to write, will shape the future of Center Grove.