Saddened and disturbed by high school events

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To the Editor:

As a community member, I have been saddened and disturbed by recent events. I have followed Ms. Weintraub’s work with admiration and respect for years; she is not a whiner, and when she says she has been bullied, I tend to believe her.

However, all benefit of the doubt has been removed by the obvious act of bullying that painting over the murals represents. You say the person responsible has apologized — none of the statements quoting him sound apologetic to me. Regardless of the school’s policy for making space for new work, the timing and the anonymity mark this as an act of bullying.

You say that it is unfortunate that the students are caught in the crossfire of an adult conflict. Bullying is an issue they have all been dealing with. They are finely tuned to sense hypocrisy. The way the adults around them behave in this matter may provide some of the most valuable lessons they ever learn in life.

I was in high school eons ago, caught in another moral crossfire, the Vietnam War. The courage and lack thereof of the adults who were supposed to be our role models were not lost on us. We are all watching to see if you will take this moral issue seriously. If you don’t, it sends a message loud and clear: Bullying is allowed at our high school.

Rebecca Gilbert
Chilmark

This letter was addressed to Principal Sara Dingledy.  —Ed.