62 students get detention for anti-gun violence walkout. It’s not political, school says

Angry phone calls from around the country poured into the Orting High office on Friday morning.

Orting High announced Thursday that 62 students would get detention after walking out of class on Wednesday during a nationwide student call for stronger gun-control legislation. The punishment didn’t sit well with some people.

But by the time most of the conversations were over, said principal Cliff Fries, they parted on positive terms.

“I think people just wanted to make sure that because we are a conservative small town that this didn’t have anything to do with political views,” Fries said. “And it doesn’t. ... My job as a principal is that you can’t tell my political views by the punishment I hand out.”

Fries said he spoke to civics classes and student leaders in advance of the walkout and stressed the importance of civil disobedience. But he also pointed out that these actions come with consequences.

The 45-minute detention is the standard punishment for truancy “whether you’re walking out or going to your car to get a candy bar,” Fries said. Fries plans to speak to students about the importance of civil disobedience during the March 26 detention.

Most, but not all, of the students facing detention took part in the walkout, Fries said. He said no students took part in pro-gun protests but said they would have faced the same punishment.

Some parents expressed concern that the detention was not made clear until the day after the protest, KIRO-TV reported.

A Feb. 22 post on the school district’s Facebook page stated that the district was aware of the planned walkouts but did not state that participants would be punished. “As a result of the tragedy in Florida, some students across the country are planning to participate in a peaceful protest (walkout),” the post read. “While this is not a school-sponsored activity, as educators we seek to find ways to educate our students around these activities. Our school rules are designed to support learning and keep students safe, so our school leaders will clearly identify and communicate parameters to ensure this. We encourage families to discuss these events at home. If you have questions, please contact your child's school administration.”

She added, “Then today, I received an email from the school saying that my son was getting detention for walking out of class. Very surprised.”

Daugherty said the school never told told her the event wasn’t sanctioned and that participants would be punished. “That’s where I have the problem,” Daugherty said.

Orting High junior Dylan Lalone told the TV station, “Teachers and the principal said just be aware of your consequences and know what’s coming if you do walk out.” He did not participate.

Sophomore Zaira Bardos organized the walkout and told KIRO-TV she wanted smaller schools to have their voices heard, too. “I really believe that our world needs someone who speaks up,” Bardos said.

Fries said he spoke with officials from many other schools. He said larger schools may have wanted to take similar action, but that it may have been unrealistic to coordinate detention for such a large number of students. About 8 percent of Orting High’s 800 students participated in the walkout.

This story was originally published March 16, 2018 at 2:19 PM with the headline "62 students get detention for anti-gun violence walkout. It’s not political, school says."