The spread of high-school walkouts as vehicles of anti-Israel protest alerts us to a problem of national scope. K–12 students have every right to wear T-shirts or armbands in support of political causes. They do not, however, have the right to walk out of class. If students want to march in protest, they should do so on their own time, not during school. Unfortunately, a growing number of school districts allow and even encourage mass student walkouts for political causes. It’s all part of a shift toward “action civics,” the idea that stoking student protest on school time (or after school for credit) is an essential component of civic education.
Student political walkouts as “civics” are a bad idea. Excusing students from school for the sake of protest forces schools to favor some political causes over others. Walkouts also subject a captive audience of minors to political pressures from teachers, peers, and outside groups. And mass walkouts leave students who hold back from popular causes feeling left out or attacked. In the worst case, students become political pawns in adult battles. Under the guise of “civics,” students are manipulated into joining competing political armies.
