For Talking Back at the Teacher – Willful Defiance
Willful defiance is a phenomenon imperiling the academic achievement of minority students, particularly African-Americans. Five years ago, Damien Valentine, a John Muir Middle School student in South Central Los Angeles at the time, was suspended and sent home for a day and a half for refusing to change his seat because he was talking. He was only in the seventh grade.
For Wearing Neon Shoes
Canton High School in Mississippi suspended close to 100 students on the first day of the new school year in 2012 after sporting neon-colored shoes, neon shoe strings and other “gang-related” colors.
