To the Editor:

I am writing in response to Mr. Philip Christe's letter questioning the Fox Lane High School Respect Day. There are a number of serious misrepresentations and omissions within his letter.

Prior to the day, he wrote to me requesting answers to many questions and asking to come to the school event and videotape a number of presenters. I responded to many of his questions and also indicated to him that he could not attend this educational program and tape the activities. The federal laws are very clear on this matter, requiring me to seek permission from the parent of any student taped during a school event.

In addition, since the purpose of this event was to provide students with the opportunity to discuss sensitive, personal issues, I did not believe that the presence of outsiders, let alone those with video cameras, would be conducive to the attainment of our goals. Despite my written position on this matter, Mr. Christe chose to intrude into the school with the media in tow. He refused to leave and forced me to resort to a threat of police involvement ,to  remove him from our high school. Only after he sought advice from legal counsel did he choose to leave. The day was an event planned for our students, not a media event nor a forum for a political/religious agenda.

I find it outrageous that the volunteer efforts of the Urban League should be so grossly misrepresented. It is accurate that Mr. Christe interviewed the speaker for  nearly two hours on May 20. His letter also accurately reflects in quotation marks some of the many words that were spoken. But, it is only a careful reader who would have realized that Mr. Christe then chose to take his own words, not written in quotation marks, and trail them behind words actually spoken. The presentation of the Urban League was reviewed before the event. The only material that was distributed was a booklet produced by the State of New York's Department of Health which has, as the major them, complete abstinence as the ONLY way to insure "safe sex." This is consistent with the underlying philosophy of our health education curriculum.

Our Respect Day was not done in secret, It was organized by a committee consisting of professionals, students and parents, All parents of Fox Lane High School students had received, weeks in advance, a description of all of the activities (As Mr. Christe does not have a student in the school, he was not on the mailing list.). Why would we want to keep secret a day designed to educate and enlighten our youth on the issues surrounding the concept of respect.

Richard M. Kraemer Principal, Fox Lane High School

back to Phil Christe Webpage