D86 Parent on Objection to Racy Movies: 'Maybe Mine Will Open the Door'
Victor Casini, who disapproves of students watching "American Beauty" and "Brokeback Mountain" in a high school class, filed the first District 86 curriculum objection in at least eight years on Sept. 12.
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After becoming the first District 86 community member to file a curriculum objection in at least eight years, Victor Casini said he wasn’t sure why it had been so long since someone went through the process.
He said it could be that the process is onerous, that busy parents just don’t have time. Or perhaps, he said, there hasn’t been anything to object to in recent years.
“Maybe mine will open the door,” Casini said.
Casini, a Hinsdale South parent and Burr Ridge resident of 18 years, filed his objection on Sept. 12 to the showing of “American Beauty” and “Brokeback Mountain,” two racy and R-rated films, in a Film as Literature course for juniors and seniors.
READ: 'Highly Controversial' Movies Being Shown in Class Have D86 Parent Concerned
District 86 Superintendent Nick Wahl said Casini’s curriculum objection was the first since Wahl came to the district.
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Casini is an attorney and former Gower School District 62 board member. He says he thinks there needs to be clear standards set on acceptable curriculum and that the district’s board members, as elected representatives of the community, should have be involved in deciding what conforms to those standards.
“The school board is elected for this very reason,” Casini said. “The curriculum is ultimately in the school board’s duties.”
And while the board plans to discuss at its Monday night meeting whether it should indeed have that general power to oversee non-textbook curriculum materials like movies, it is also possible that Casini’s specific objection could come before the board in the coming weeks if he does not accept Wahl's decision on his objection, and elects to appeal it.
READ: How Does a Curriculum Objection Work in District 86?
Wahl's decision, which will follow an investigation by the district's complaint manager, needs to be delivered by Oct. 3 according to Board Policy 2:260.
Casini said he did sign the Film as Literature syllabus several school days into the school year. He said it contained a number of movies without thorough descriptions.
He hadn’t seen either of the movies in question, though, until after signing the syllabus.
When he did watch the films, Casini took note of the sexual content and obscenities that he did not approve of, and delivered those notes to board members while making a public comment on the topic at the board’s Sept. 10 meeting.
“We still believe that parents have a duty to raise their kids to be responsible, productive, moral citizens for this country,” he said of his family. “Issues like this mean something to us.”
Casini said he’s a religious person, but this isn’t a religious issue.
“This argument, this particular issue, can be analyzed on secular grounds,” Casini said. “There’s a certain sense of right and wrong in a community. You do not have to defer to a religion to determine that.”
The parent says he plans to speak again during the public comment portion of Monday night’s board meeting and he hopes people on both sides of the issue show up to voice their opinions.
While some parents might disagree with him, Casini says he’s not alone in his opinion.
“I can tell you that there are a pretty fair number of parents who are shocked and passionate about the issue. They’re out there.”
Patch's past reporting on the District 86 movie-objection topic:
- D86's Wahl: PD's Movie-Related Email Investigation Ongoing, School Safety Not Threatened
- Complaints About Sex-Heavy Films in School Prompt Cops to Review District Emails
- D86 Superintendent: 'Brokeback' and 'American Beauty' Staying on Syllabus for Now
- 'Highly Controversial' Movies Being Shown in Class Have D86 Parent Concerned
In This article
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Hinsdale Township High School District 86
5500 S Grant St, Hinsdale, IL -
Hinsdale South High School
7401 Clarendon Hills Rd, Darien, IL -
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Cindy Novak
7:15 am on Monday, September 24, 2012
If there are indeed other parents who are shocked and passionate about this issue, why didn't they file with Mr. Casini? If they are as shocked and passionate, would these "busy" parents take the time?
Crystal Megaridis
9:09 am on Monday, September 24, 2012
Let's remember: this in an optional class and all parents for students in this class -- including Attorney Casini -- SIGNED AN AGREEMENT -- to allow their student to watch these films. Why would any ATTORNEY SIGN AN AGREEMENT without completely understanding it? The entire list of movies was presented on the syllabus - surely an attorney who is concerned about their child knows how to find out about the movies on the list, make an informed decision, and then choose to sign / not sign something. If he's so incensed, he should just force his (probably deeply humiliated) kid to drop the class. End of story. No other parents want Mr Casini to decide what the rest of the kids in the class can / cannot watch. The District has done an EXCELLENT job in setting up this enrichment class with parental signatures required, as well as, options for kids whose parents do not want them to watch certain films. Kudos to the Superintendent and the Board of District 86 for having a well thought out process for this class.
Floyd bellman
6:30 pm on Monday, September 24, 2012
Many parents were unaware of this issue since their students were not involved with the class. Mr. Wahl made one reasonable decision when he sent out his e-mail and now parents like myself are responding. This is unacceptable content for high school students to experience in a public educational system. To create a culture that pushes
the envelope to promote a particular social or political agenda is again unacceptable in a public school system that serves a community of different religious and political views. Pursuing this particular curriculum which serves minors is irresponsible and displays an arrogance which is unbecoming of any individual that has responsibly for the education of our children. Sadly this type of arrogance is becoming all too common .
Steve Woodward
9:14 pm on Monday, September 24, 2012
Our fellow taxpayer, Mr. Casini, deserves our gratitude. He has caused an awakening to a chilling truth -- parents cannot trust our educators to present classroom content consistent with the community's traditional American values. We must be always vigilant. But there is something else we've learned here. Rather than considering the merit of opposition to vile, offensive films scheduled for screening in the elective class, district administrators chose to characterize dissenting email communication as a "threat", and even enlisted law enforcement to assess it as such. Is it just me, or does this feel like a reaction one might expect to encounter in the old Soviet Union, or in today's China or Syria? Since when does the exercise of First Amendment free speech pose a "threat"?