Ripped By mstoll
What are you reading, Andy?
The Little Engine that Could.
Do you think it'll be banned?
I don't know, but if I were you, I'd read fast.
What does "banned" mean?
It means that a certain authority decides
that a certain piece of material can't be used
at a certain place or time.
What does "banned" mean?
Hey! How you doing, Andy?
What's all that?
This, Jen, is your defense.
Now, when you and Mom and Dad walk
into Dr. Hewitt's office tomorrow,
I want you to have every legal fact,
argument and precedent at your disposal.
Now, you can either use these books
to brilliantly articulate your position or, failing that,
you can simply drop them on Dr. Hewitt's head.
What does "banned" mean?
He keeps saying that.
Can you please explain it to him?
Yeah, yeah. Well, Andy, "banned,"
or "banning," or "to ban,"
comes from the Germanic root "bannan..."
...meaning to command.
But you can simply think of it as a... as a...
as a legal prohibition, a censure, a condemnation.
Now I don't know what "banned" means.
How do you think I feel?
I'll never know!
You know, Jen, I got to tell you,
I really admire the way you've handled yourself.
I mean, your-your sensitivity, your intelligence,
your strength of character over the last few days.
- Thank you, Alex. - I mean, when I look at you,
I see someone who has got a great future.
Someone who could do anything they set out to do.
Jen, I guess what I'm trying to say is this:
Someday, you could even work for me.
Oh, joy.
Of course, you'd have to start in the mailroom,
you know, minimum wage, but, uh, you'd have Sundays
and-and-and legal holidays off.
And, uh, Christmastime, you come to my house for eggnog.
Thank you, Alex. It makes it all worthwhile.
But I've got to admit I'm still a little nervous
about going to see Dr. Hewitt tomorrow.
What if she suspends me?
Suspend her right back.
- I'm serious, Alex. - I know, I know, I know.
Look, hey, you know, even if you get suspended,
you've still got the job with me, right?
Of course, with the suspension, you're going to have
to start on the loading dock.
I understand.
"But I reckon I got to light out
"for the territory ahead of the rest,
"because Aunt Sally, she's gonna adopt me and civilize me,
"and I can't stand it.
I've been there before."
Mal, is that you?
What are you doing?
I'm reading.
When did you learn how?
When I found out that Cosmopolitan magazine
was banned in certain places, I became enraged.
Then I saw Huckleberry Finn sitting on the coffee table,
and I said to myself,
"What better way to show Jennifer my support?"
So I picked it up, and I started reading.
And you know what?
I love it.
I love reading.
I'm going to teach Nick how to read.
Oh, Jen, I'm really looking forward
to that meeting with your principal.
We've got some very persuasive arguments we want her to hear.
I'm really glad you guys are coming with me tomorrow.
Well, we wouldn't have it any other way.
We're all in this together.
You know, maybe you should get to bed early tonight, honey.
You got a big day tomorrow.
I'm too nervous to sleep.
Want me to read to you?
Principal's office.
What a scary place this used to be.
It still is for me, Dad.
When did you ever get in trouble, Steven?
Elyse, I spent a lot of time on a bench
outside the principal's office.
You were hall monitor.
And I had to keep my eye on a lot of really bad kids.
Sometimes they'd try to make a break for it,
and, uh, if I couldn't catch them, it was, uh,
back to milk monitor for little Stevie Keaton.
You're a real bad seed, Steven.
Actually, I really was big trouble in high school.
You, Mom?
Mm-hmm. Oh, yeah, I used to question everything.
I remember when the administration said
that girls couldn't take woodworking shop.
Well, I organized a protest.
And all the freshman girls took over the shop
and started sawing chairs apart
until the administration gave in.
Elyse, I'm-I'm afraid, as your hall monitor,
I would have had to apprehend you
and escort you directly to Miss Dougherty's office.
Ooh, I'm really scared.
Well, I don't know what your principal was like,
but I hope you're ready for Hewitt the Hun.
She takes no prisoners.
Oh, don't worry, Jen. I'm not afraid.
Good morning, Mr. And Mrs. Keaton.
Jennifer.
This is Mr. Carter, the superintendent of schools.
Hello there.
I believe you know Mr. Flaherty.
- Yes, Mr. Flaherty. - Good morning.
- Dr. Hewitt, good to see you. - Morning.
Would anyone like anything to drink?
No, thank you.
Jennifer?
Whiskey, please.
Jen, please, let... let me handle this, huh?
Uh, Dr. Hewitt...
Sit down, Mr. Keaton.
Yes, right away.
Now, this is the situation as I see it.
There is a policy in this district,
passed by our board of education,
which states that certain books are unacceptable
for our children of high school age.
Huckleberry Finn is among them.
Therefore, Jennifer's book report is unacceptable.
Dr. Hewitt, have you ever read the book?
Whether I've read Huckleberry Finn is not the issue.
The question is whether it's appropriate for Jennifer.
What right do you have to decide
what's appropriate reading material for our daughter?
I mean, personally, I find that tremendously offensive.
It's not Dr. Hewitt's decision, Mrs. Keaton.
It's a decision of the school board.
Then I am offended by the school board.
Where's that whiskey?
Uh, Mrs. Keaton, uh, the state requires us to teach
certain specifics in the basic curriculum.
But how those subjects are taught
and what textbooks are used are all left up
to the individual school boards, and with good reason.
Because the school boards represent the values
of the people in the community.
What you have to understand is that it is our job
to nurture, guide and protect these children.
But just what is it that you're protecting them from?
I mean, it seems to me that the best thing
that a school can do is... is teach children that...
that moral questions are complex,
that in a democratic society,
different people have different views.
As a teacher, I've always felt that freedom of speech,
free expression, is an essential part of a good education.
Of course, that's just my opinion.
I could be wrong.
But that goes against everything you've ever taught me.
You're not wrong.
But he is a teacher in this school district.
Mr. Flaherty...
I'm sorry, Jen.
Well, we're certainly not going to let this go unchallenged.
We're talking about the First Amendment here.
Oh, then I suggest you contact a lawyer, Mr. Keaton.
Believe me, we intend to.
We intend to, as well.
Yeah, well, uh, we intend to more than you intend to.
"Well, I got a good going-over in the morning
"from old Miss Watson on account of my clothes;
"but the widow, she didn't scold,
"but only cleaned off the grease and clay, and looked so sorry
that I thought I would behave a while if I could."
Your turn, Nick.
"Then Miss Watson,
"she took me in the closet and prayed,
but nothing come of it."
Hey, I'm lucky.
I got a short one.
Back to you, Mal.
"She told me to pray every day
"and whatever I asked for, I would get.
But it warn't so."
Hey, uh, that's, uh, my sentence.
Oh, I'm sorry, honey. Here.
"But it warn't so."
Just back from Evelyn Wood?
Oh, hey, hey, hey, come on, Alex. Want to help us out?
We got plenty of sentences in this book.
No, Nick, no. Come on. Thanks. Thanks anyway.
No, no, I'm funny that way.
I like to read two, sometimes three sentences in a row.
Alex, give us a break.
You're always criticizing me and Nick for not being cultured.
Well, hey, can't do that anymore, huh?
No, you can't, 'cause we're reading the classics.
You guys should read War and Peace next.
I'll never see either of you again.
Hello.
Uh, yeah, sure.
Yeah, just a minute, please.
Hey, Jen! Jen, it's, uh...
it's Bill Godfried from the Lei and Herald.
Tell him I'm not in.
You got it.
Hello? Hi. Yeah, I'm sorry.
She says she's not in.
Hey, Jen.
He sounded real anxious to talk to you.
No, thanks, Alex.
In the past week, I've done interviews
with every newspaper in Ohio.
They don't know when to stop.
I didn't realize
book banning was everybody's favorite subject.
There you go.
Hello.
Look, I'm-I'm kind of tired of talking about this, okay?
Can't you understand that?
We've been over this a thousand times.
Okay.
Uh, we'll see you Saturday, Grandma.
Well, she won't be bothering us anymore.
I don't know what's going on.
Suddenly my life has turned upside down.
Mr. Flaherty didn't turn out to be who I believed he was.
I thought he was on my side,
but the minute we stepped into Dr. Hewitt's office,
he just wimped out.
That's too bad.
All my friends want to talk to me about
is failing in English, book banning
and what I'm going to do when I'm suspended.
Well, I've always found that a picnic lunch
followed by an afternoon of bowling... an excellent way
to spend the first day of suspension.
Oh, Jen! Jen!
I'd like you to meet your lawyer, Susan White.
Susan, our daughter, Jennifer Keaton.
- Hi. - Hello.
Susan's mother was at Berkeley with your father and me.
Actually, she was born in the commune
that we all lived on together.
We used to call her Raindrop.
Now she's at the law firm of Hughes, Frank and MacGregor,
and she's offered to give us some advice
on how to deal with the school board.
Jennifer, I am so pleased to meet you.
You know, I'm truly impressed by the stand you've taken.
It's a real thrill to meet someone of your generation
who's interested in something other than just...
maintaining the status quo so they can make a fast buck.
You don't even know me.
I've got a sixth sense about these things.
I guess you're working for free at Hughes, Frank and McGregor.
Yeah, Raindrop?
Susan White, our son, Alex Keaton.
Mmm.
Aren't genetics wild?
And this is our daughter Mallory and her, uh, well, Nick.
Oh, please, have a seat, uh, Susan.
You, too, uh, Jen.
Now, basically, what Susan is planning to do is, uh,
let us know what our rights are, tell us how to handle ourselves
at the school board meeting tomorrow
and, if necessary, help us out
if this comes to a court challenge.
Now, the way I see it, Jennifer,
we have a couple of court cases working for us.
Of course, there's the Supreme Court's
Island Trees decision from 1982.
Well, yeah, I briefed her on that already.
And, uh, before that,
Tinker v. Des Moines School District from 1968.
Tinker was... was '69.
I could sue the pants off you.
Let's go, come on. Pull out your briefs, R.D. Let's go.
Hey! Hey, hey, hey, hey!
Order in the living room, for goodness.
This is very, very exciting.
It's just like People's Court.
Now, Jennifer, I know you've been through a lot,
but it would really help to go over
what your role is going to be at the meeting.
You've become the symbol
for this fight, and there are going to be a lot
of people there looking for you and waiting
to hear what you have to say.
Really? I was hoping my part was over.
Oh, no, I'm afraid it's just beginning.
May I remind you
to try to keep your remarks short and to the point?
Uh, Mrs., uh, Hummler, I believe you're next.
Thank you.
My son is a student in Mrs. Mitchell's English class,
and I personally read the textbook they use.
I-I couldn't believe some of the language.
It-it's-it's gutter language.
And no one can tell me
that our children can't get a good education
without reading words like...
Well, I can't even say those words.
But my son sure can now that he's read that book.
Now, that's not the point.
Your son probably knew those words
before he read the book.
Now, listen, mister,
I don't know what goes on in your house,
but no son of mine uses language...
Don't you tell me what goes on in my house!
Order!
Everybody will get a chance, but we need order.
We won't tolerate this cross talk.
This is going to be a long night.
I'd like to think that we were sending
our daughter to a school that would allow her
to read any book that's in the public library.
I mean, otherwise, what kind of message
are we sending to our kids?
Are we saying that they can't be as open-minded in the school
as they can outside the schoolhouse doors?
Elyse, I-I was going to make that point.
- Oh, Steven, come on. - N-Never mind. Never mind.
The point is, I have personally reviewed
all of the books in question.
Obviously, many of them have passed muster with the board.
Where do you come off deciding what passes muster?
Well, excuse me, but I have a PhD
in education; and furthermore,
the people of this community voted for me
because they thought I was qualified
to make these decisions.
Hey. I voted for you.
- But I also voted for Richard Nixon. -
Is... Uh, wait, is that funny? I-I don't think that's funny.
When a certain girl in my class,
who shall remain nameless...
Jennifer Keaton...
did her book report on Huckleberry Finn,
I was really behind her.
I mean, I want to be a writer one day,
and I may not be the best writer in the world, but I try.
And I'd like to think that people in my own high school
could read what I write.
The book I'm writing now
is called Smart Women, Foolish Outfits.
Um, uh, I'd like to read that after Huckleberry Finn.
There are so many communities across this country
that have been torn asunder by this issue.
And as a lawyer, I've seen friends and neighbors
get involved in legal mudslinging
that completely obliterates the real issues at hand,
which are freedom of thought and freedom of speech.
Damn. Everyone's saying what I was going to say.
Let's take a look at one of the seminal cases in this area,
Tarrington v. Thomas Jefferson High School.
Now, in this case, Justice Turner wrote that if the...
No, wait, hey, hey, hey. No. No.
Justice MacNamara wrote the majority opinion in that case.
Justice Turner... merely concurring.
Um... Excuse me just for a second.
I have a big... bug crawling on me.
Do you want to take over?
And so,
in Harrison v. The Lake Erie School District,
the court affirmed,
albeit with serious reservations,
the doctrine stated in the Kramer case.
So, any questions?
Is your head getting bigger?
"Other places do seem so cramped up and smothery,
"but a raft don't.
You feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft."
This book is just too beautiful to ban.
My own daughter.
At least I've got, "Hello, I'm Steven Keaton" left.
Hello. I'm Steven Keaton.
Perhaps a... a recap of this evening's better points
would be in order now.
A school has rules and regulations
which might not stand up elsewhere
but are necessary to education
as in the recent Hazelwood decision
where the, uh, Supreme Court held up
that a school administration has the right
to censor student newspapers.
If we can require our children to do homework,
to dress in a certain manner,
to be in class for a certain period of time,
then we can certainly advise them on what to read.
We always hear in school that we young people
are the future of America.
Well, if we're going to be the future of America,
we're going to have to know about our past.
And not just the glory stuff we see in movies
or read in some history books, but the true story.
What people thought, what they felt,
why they liked each other
and even why they hated each other.
And there's no better way to learn that
than through great literature.
If you take that away, what are we left with?
Hear, hear.
Well, uh, I'd like to thank you all for coming.
Be assured that all opinions
will be taken into consideration.
If there are no further comments, uh...
Mr. Carter, I have something to say.
Mr. Flaherty.
I've been a teacher now for six years at Harding High School.
When this book banning rule went into effect,
I upheld it because it was in my job contract to do so,
although...
philosophically, it goes against everything I stand for.
But when I saw one of my students stand up
for what she believed was right...
...I thought to myself,
"What the hell is wrong with you, Flaherty?
"You're an English teacher. You love books.
And you are not just going to let this happen!"
I want the board to know... I want Dr. Hewitt to know...
that I am willing to risk my job
to fight for what I believe is right.
And I have to thank one of my students,
who shall remain nameless...
Jennifer Keaton...
for giving me the courage
to stand up and do what I should have done
as soon as this whole thing started.
Thank you, Jennifer.
I'm a teacher,
and that should mean something.
"And the little engine looked at the hill and said,
'I think I can."
"I... think I can."
"I think I can."
This is getting pretty exciting.
Uh, I wonder what happens next.
He gets up the hill, Nick.
Great. Thanks a lot, Andy. You ruined it for me.
Hi! So, how did it go, Andy?
Did you have a good time with Nick?
Yeah.
Nick's reading much better, Dad.
When he gets to a word he doesn't know, he sounds it out.
Yeah. That was a good tip.
Honey, why don't you go on up and get ready for bed?
We'll be up to tuck you in in a minute. Okay?
- Here, Uncle Nick. - Hey, thanks.
Night, buddy.
So, uh, how was your meeting?
Oh, great. You should have heard Jennifer!
She was eloquent and inspiring.
Ooh, Jen, I didn't know you were such a rebel, huh?
You're just like James Dean but a girl.
Oh, God!
I haven't read Huckleberry Finn in two hours.
Shame on me. Come on, Nick.
Do you remember where we left off?
Oh, I-I don't know, babe.
Now I'm reading two books at once.
Well, Jen, you're off to a great start as an activist, huh?
No, I think I'm going to retire, Dad.
I can't do this again.
I can't believe I even did what I did.
I had no idea it would be so hard.
That's what making a commitment's all about.
No matter how difficult it is or how tough it gets,
you got to stand there and stand up for what you believe in.
You know that.
Good news!
The school board decided there was enough opposition
to further scrutinize the banning issue
and put it to a referendum!
That's great news, Susan.
Good news!
The school board decided there's enough opposition
to further scrutinize the banning issue and put...
put it to a referendum.
I told them first.
Sure. Sure. You ran two red lights to get here.
Why do I scare you, Alex?
You don't scare me, Raindrop.
- I have had it. - All right...
You get over here.
- Alex! Raindrop! - She started it!
- Raindrop! - She started it!
Please!
Good news!
We heard!
What did you hear?
The school board's reconsidering,
and there's going to be a referendum.
Really? I didn't hear that. That is good news.
What I came to say is that a good number of my colleagues
on the faculty at Harding have decided to band together
and buck the administration.
We're walking out until your suspension is revoked.
Oh, Flaherty, all right!
That's great.
Thank you, Mr. Flaherty.
- You've always been my favorite teacher. - Oh.
We're a good team. We made a great first step,
- but there's a long fight ahead of us. - Yeah.
So we have to make sure we stick together.
"And we could hear them yelling and barking
"at each other all up and down the bank
till we were so far away the sounds got dim and died out."
"And when we stepped onto the raft, I says,
"Now, old Jim, you're a free man again,
and I bet you won't ever be a slave no more."
"Chug, chug, chug.
"Puff, puff, puff.
"Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong.
"The little train rumbled over the tracks.
She was a happy train."
Sit, Ubu, sit. Good dog.
Ripped By mstoll