Private Schools Are Now Public Schools

by Andrew Harris
by Andrew Harris

I attended an all boys’ private school in Toronto that provided an elementary and high school education. It was founded on English traditions and oriented towards what, I believe, private schools ought to be about: private organizations founded in order to provide non-biased education, instill manners and provide a healthy environment for young boys to grow up in. Even my school, a school set up with such great intentions, quickly felt the affect of the PC/feminist movement. This movement is meant to bring equality among people and harmony to society. What it brought was the eradication of many important, strong principles that are necessary for an adolescent boy.

My school started out with a ninety percent male teacher population, from grade three until grade five. A bout of fisticuffs at recess did not result in expulsion or suspension. As punishment for behaviors such as these, kids received a detention, lines, or a stern talk. The speed and strength at which our teachers broke up a fight would deter scuffles from taking place on school property. Kids would fight in the morning, and by the afternoon recess they would be playing soccer together. Horse play and aggression were seen as normal natural things among young boys. Male teachers were seen as father figures and were respected as such.

In grade six my headmaster and principal retired only to be replaced by a politician who never quite made it to the top. Quickly, teachers who had been working at my school for decades and who were loved and respected by all, were replaced by women. Eventually the population of women teachers exceeded the population of male ones. Students, who were raised by the old crop of teachers, began to graduate; and new kids, ignorant about the old traditions, were raised by feminists bent on equality. Fisticuffs, ruff-housing, and misbehavior were seen by these women as brutish, savage and abnormal. The female teachers did not know or understand why we were so active, why we liked violence, or why we play-fought with each other. They basically did not know how to deal with us. If boys were a little bit energetic, they were diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder because girls didn’t act that way. Your damn right they don’t; that’s why we hunted and they gathered. Sex comparison became the norm. If little Suzie liked playing with her doll house, while little Jacob enjoyed pretending to fight ninjas, the latter action was seen as abnormal. "I think there is something wrong with Jacob," they would say, when in reality, Jacob was completely normal. He may have needed a few smacks if he really got out of hand, but on the whole, he was a normal boy. Our female teachers didn’t understand this. Punishments were handed out for the smallest of infractions: the old belief that ‘boys will be boys’ will no longer be tolerated, they said. Infractions such as fighting received suspensions or even expulsions. Everything we said was seen as sexist and everything we did was seen as being out of line. The dynamics of the school began to change for the worse.

One of my favorite teachers who taught grade three used to joke that he would, "boil you in oil", or "smack you with a wet noodle". He eventually had to stop this, because parents called in complaining it hurt the feelings of their poor babies and that it was mentally demoralizing. In grade eight, I got suspended after I told a female teacher who had given me a detention, that her class sucked dick. Our new headmaster suspended me, took away my position as House Captain, and sat me down for hours explaining to me that what I said was sexual harassment. Did I mean to sexually harass this lady? Maybe I am a chauvinist pig. Or maybe it was a passive-aggressive protest towards the negative changes that were rapidly hitting my school. I agree that what I did wasn’t right and that it should have been punished, but accusing me of sexual harassment? Eventually, most of my friends and I avoided positions of authority so we would not have a chance to get into trouble. Since everything we said was sexist, we stopped talking. The position of teacher went from advisor and mentor, to authority figure.

Men, in public and private schools, are made to feel guilty for the inequalities faced by women in history. They are meant to feel guilty for expressing sexual thoughts and committing rambunctious acts. Men are being trained to act like women, and suppress there natural instincts. It is no surprise that, in a system where men are discriminated against, there are more girls then guys in University.

May 5, 2004

Andrew Harris [send him mail] is a freshman at McMaster University.

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