Some students lost opportunity

To the Editor:

Once more I am so very proud to have been a long-term member of the Goodhue School teaching staff. Goodhue, Lake City, Cannon Falls, and most other schools in our nation have made available to their students the opportunity of hearing the wonderfully motivating, live message from President Obama on their opening day of school.

Everything I have seen him do and everything I have heard him say promise that this will be a priceless opportunity for the young people who were allowed to hear him speak live Tuesday. The students in these schools are indeed fortunate.

Unfortunately, there are a few schools, some in our own area, who succumbed to political pressures of extremists and denied their students the opportunity of hearing this address live. Not only have they imparted a message of disrespect to our president and his office, but they have lost a teachable moment in critical listening and analyzing a brief speech (18 minutes, I understand) that will have been heard by so many.

Those schools have lost much in their hastily made decision to censor the words of our president, who was elected by a majority of the voters in this country.

My wish for all is an enjoyable and successful school term.

Dorothy Eckblad

Red Wing

Tags: opinion, letters, obama