Teen’s Story on Drinking Still Unread

Beware of old folks railing about youthful indiscretions. How many of us can say we never ditched school on a Thursday morning and drank so much tequila that we wound up in the hospital?

Actually, 99.9% of us probably could say that, as could 99.9% of today’s students.

But when the other 0.1% goes on a morning bender, as a dozen or so students from Orange High School did last week that sent three of them to the hospital, do we brush it off as an aberration?

Thursday morning drinkers are an aberration, but what about the much more pervasive teen problem of the weekend drinkers? What happens when someone--a peer, for that matter--tackles that subject head-on and then takes it a step further by tabbing student government leaders as some of the party-goers?

A senior girl at another Orange County high school now knows the answer. In an “opinion” article submitted for the school paper, she chastised unnamed student leaders at her school for either attending parties where drinking occurs or for being seen drinking themselves.

Fair game? Why not point out, however uncomfortable it may be, that even the presumed best and brightest in a high school are drinking illegally? Why not lift the veil?

As she found out, things can indeed become uncomfortable.

For her.

So far, her article hasn’t run. School administrators question its fairness and its timeliness. A school district official says the alleged drinking incidents involved student leaders from last year.

The writer’s teacher concedes that minor editing might be in order but defends her work. He says the article was written this semester and reflects activity going on this school year.

I’m not identifying the school or the people, because I don’t consider this a problem about a particular school. What grabs me is what the controversy says about the pervasive problem of teenage drinking.

The girl’s article says, in part: “[Student government] is there to provide for our needs as students and to serve as an example for our school. If those certain students do not take on their responsibilities in the correct manner, then it will affect us all. Those few students are a reflection of our entire student body on campus.”

After the article was submitted for the school paper, the girl wound up in a tense meeting at which student newspaper staff wanted to run it and administrators and student government leaders strongly objected.

“She’s being pushed from both sides for an article she thought was necessary,” her teacher says. “She wasn’t prepared for the controversy, but I’ve asked her several times since the meeting, ‘Do you want to go ahead with it?’ and she says, ‘Yes, I do.’ ”

The article grew out of the newspaper’s desire for submissions from other students on issues “that make a difference.” The newspaper advisor says she has some journalistic concerns about the article, but no reason to dispute its essential point. It still may run in an edited form, she says.

Is it fair to single out student leaders as drinkers? By not identifying students by name, did the girl unfairly cast doubt on all in the organization?

Teen drinking is as old as the hills, and perhaps it isn’t fair to make specific students squirm.

Truth is, however, that targeting student leaders shines a powerful light on the subject. It tells us the problem isn’t limited to binge drinkers on Thursday mornings.

Even if the article never comes out, the hubbub over it has people talking. The girl may already have made an impact.

“It’s the role model issue,” the newspaper advisor says. “I think it ties in with President Clinton and lies and morality and setting a standard of behavior. And if you’re a student leader, maybe you should be held to a higher standard.”

Dana Parsons’ column appears Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Readers may reach Parsons by calling (714) 966-7821 or by writing to him at the Times Orange County Edition, 1375 Sunflower Ave., Costa Mesa, CA 92626, or by e-mail to dana.parsons@latimes.com