Latest news with #ElizabethYao
Ottawa Citizen
a day ago
- Politics
- Ottawa Citizen
Bell High School valedictorian defended by advocates after pro-Palestinian remarks
A part of Bell High School valedictorian Elizabeth Yao's speech mentioning the war in Gaza initiated a call from her principal, asking Yao to stay home the following Monday. Article content Now, some advocates are showing support for Yao and demanding that the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) issue her a public apology. Article content Article content 'I think people are using the platforms they have to make important statements. That, I think, is totally legitimate,' said Sam Hersh, a member of Independent Jewish Voices Ottawa. 'Touching on politics and the commencement speech and talking about what students and younger generations are going to face is probably appropriate and contextual for the times that we're currently living in.' Article content Article content Yao's Valedictorian speech largely focused on the memories she made after four years at Bell High School. Article content Article content In videos and a written copy of her speech circulating online, Yao reminisces about preparing 200 waffles with her peers for a fundraiser. She thanks the custodial staff for their reliance and speed, and the front office workers for supplying students with forks to eat their lunch. Yao also mentions her fellow students, saying their participation in school events made them 'the heart of our high school experiences.' Article content 'As a commitment to truth and reconciliation I must acknowledge colonial and genocidal atrocities today, including the massacre of more than 17,000 Palestinian children in Gaza,' the speech reads. In videos of Yao's speech, her comments are met with cheers and applause from the audience. Article content Article content 'I refuse to stand on the side of history that allows the repetition of crimes against humanity,' she continues. 'It is my hope that every single one of you present today consider my speech and my desperation for a free Palestine.' Article content Article content In an email addressed to parents and guardians, Bell High School principal Jane Conrod apologized for the speech's 'unexpected and unapproved' comments. Article content 'The content of the remarks, which touched on deeply sensitive global events, was not part of the pre-approved speech,' the email reads. 'We deeply regret that this occurred and are truly sorry for the harm that has been caused.' Article content In a statement, OCDSB spokesperson Diane Pernari said Conrod would not be available for an interview. But Pernari said the goal of their commencement ceremonies is to 'create a joyous celebration of student achievement.' Article content 'Our schools provide appropriate forums within the school year to engage thoughtfully with a wide range of issues that impact our community. These settings are designed to facilitate respectful, safe and supportive discussions,' the statement said.
4 days ago
- Politics
Valedictorian told to stay home after making pro-Palestinian remarks in grad speech
The valedictorian at a west Ottawa high school says she's been told not to come to school Monday after she made pro-Palestinian remarks during a speech at her commencement ceremony. Elizabeth Yao largely focused on highlights from the past four years at Bell High School during her speech on Thursday, including a memorable waffle fundraiser and the days spent dozing off while reading Shakespeare. Her comments on the war in Gaza came at the end, after a land acknowledgement. As a commitment to truth and reconciliation, I must acknowledge colonial and genocidal atrocities today, including the massacre of more than 17,000 Palestinian children in Gaza, Yao said, breaking off as the crowd cheered. The next day, Yao said she received a call from her principal, who said her statements had caused harm and told her she shouldn't come to school on Monday. That decision is being criticized by some as going against Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) policy, and Yao said she stands by her speech. I believe that it was the right thing to do because it's an issue that deeply affects my community, she said. 'OCDSB likes to talk about the fact that students should be engaged in the community and also have basic understanding of empathy, be resilient and brave,' Yao remarked, saying that's what she was trying to do. Photo: (Courtesy of Elizabeth Yao) 'Took focus away' from graduation, says board Since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023, more than 50,000 children have been reportedly killed or injured in Gaza (new window) , according to UNICEF. In an email sent to parents after the commencement ceremony, which Yao provided to CBC, her principal wrote that her speech intentionally took focus away from the purpose of the event, celebrating the achievement of our graduating class. But the escalating war in Gaza was an ever-present concern for her class through their high school years, Yao said, noting that her school has a large Arab and Muslim population. I have seen it affect the students around me, as they have gone on walkouts and protests in the past in order to make the Canadian government aware of what is going on, she said. School board trustee Lyra Evans told CBC she's been fielding a lot of emails, texts and calls, but none of them were unhappy with Yao's comments. [They] have been asking how on earth or why on earth are we suspending valedictorians and potentially putting their future in jeopardy with three weeks left to go in school, Evans said. Hanna Abdalla, Yao's friend and fellow graduate, said she didn't hear from anyone who was upset with Yao's speech. I don't think it was fair to [be] putting our valedictorian on blast, said Abdalla. What about the harm, the daily harm, that Palestinian students back in Palestine go through every day? CBC asked for an interview with the school's principal, but the OCDSB said they would not be commenting. Lyra Evans said she's concerned this decision could have broader consequences on the school board's relationship with the Palestinian community in Ottawa. (Kate Porter/CBC) Photo: (Kate Porter/CBC) 'Anti-Palestinian erasure' After her situation drew so much attention, Yao was put in touch with the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), a non-profit advocacy and lobby group. Nusaiab Al-Azem, director of legal affairs for the NCCM, told CBC she believes the school violated OCDSB policies by both telling Yao not to come to school without officially suspending her and for punishing her for pro-Palestinian statements. To imply that what [Yao] said was harmful is itself a form of anti-Palestinian erasure and anti-Palestinian racism, which the school board has a specific policy against, she said. Evans agreed that Yao did not break any rules. She cited the OCDSB's own guidelines, which say slogans or symbols that signal solidarity, such as 'Free Palestine' etc. are permitted so long as they don't violate the code of conduct. The school board should revoke the suspension, ensure no mark is made on Yao's Ontario student record, and issue an apology to the broader Palestinian community, Evans said. In the meantime, Yao still plans to go back to school on Monday. I'm a little angry, maybe, at the unfortunate situation, especially since I had connected the situation to the values of the school board and what I had learned throughout my four years of being at the school, she said. I was applying that to being an advocate and making sure that those who are oppressed have a voice in our society. Gabrielle Huston (new window) · CBC News
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Valedictorian told to stay home after making pro-Palestinian remarks in grad speech
The valedictorian at a west Ottawa high school says she's been told not to come to school Monday after she made pro-Palestinian remarks during a speech at her commencement ceremony. Elizabeth Yao largely focused on highlights from the past four years at Bell High School during her speech on Thursday, including a memorable waffle fundraiser and the days spent dozing off while reading Shakespeare. Her comments on the war in Gaza came at the end, after a land acknowledgement. "As a commitment to truth and reconciliation, I must acknowledge colonial and genocidal atrocities today, including the massacre of more than 17,000 Palestinian children in Gaza," Yao said, breaking off as the crowd cheered. The next day, Yao said she received a call from her principal, who said her statements had "caused harm" and told her she shouldn't come to school on Monday. That decision is being criticized by some as going against Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) policy, and Yao said she stands by her speech. "I believe that it was the right thing to do because it's an issue that deeply affects my community," she said. 'Took focus away' from graduation, says board Since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023, more than 50,000 children have been reportedly killed or injured in Gaza, according to UNICEF. In an email sent to parents after the commencement ceremony, which Yao provided to CBC, her principal wrote that her speech "intentionally took focus away from the purpose of the event, celebrating the achievement of our graduating class." But the escalating war in Gaza was an ever-present concern for her class through their high school years, Yao said, noting that her school has a large Arab and Muslim population. "I have seen it affect the students around me, as they have gone on walkouts and protests in the past in order to make the Canadian government aware of what is going on," she said. School board trustee Lyra Evans told CBC she's been fielding a lot of emails, texts and calls, but none of them were unhappy with Yao's comments. "[They] have been asking how on earth or why on earth are we suspending valedictorians and potentially putting their future in jeopardy with three weeks left to go in school," Evans said. Hanna Abdalla, Yao's friend and fellow graduate, said she didn't hear from anyone who was upset with Yao's speech. "I don't think it was fair to [be] putting our valedictorian on blast," said Abdalla. "What about the harm, the daily harm, that Palestinian students back in Palestine go through every day?" CBC asked for an interview with the school's principal, but the OCDSB said they would not be commenting. 'Anti-Palestinian erasure' After her situation drew so much attention, Yao was put in touch with the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), a non-profit advocacy and lobby group. Nusaiab Al-Azem, director of legal affairs for the NCCM, told CBC she believes the school violated OCDSB policies by both telling Yao not to come to school without officially suspending her and for punishing her for pro-Palestinian statements. "To imply that what [Yao] said was harmful is itself a form of anti-Palestinian erasure and anti-Palestinian racism, which the school board has a specific policy against," she said. Evans agreed that Yao did not break any rules. She cited the OCDSB's own guidelines, which say "slogans or symbols that signal solidarity, such as 'Free Palestine' etc. are permitted so long as they don't violate the code of conduct." The school board should revoke the suspension, ensure no mark is made on Yao's Ontario student record, and issue an apology to the broader Palestinian community, Evans said. In the meantime, Yao still plans to go back to school on Monday. "I'm a little angry, maybe, at the unfortunate situation, especially since I had connected the situation to the values of the school board and what I had learned throughout my four years of being at the school," she said. "I was applying that to being an advocate and making sure that those who are oppressed have a voice in our society."
CBC
4 days ago
- Politics
- CBC
Valedictorian told to stay home after making pro-Palestinian remarks in grad speech
Social Sharing The valedictorian at a west Ottawa high school says she's been told not to come to school Monday after she made pro-Palestinian remarks during a speech at her commencement ceremony. Elizabeth Yao largely focused on highlights from the past four years at Bell High School during her speech on Thursday, including a memorable waffle fundraiser and the days spent dozing off while reading Shakespeare. Her comments on the war in Gaza came at the end, after a land acknowledgement. "As a commitment to truth and reconciliation, I must acknowledge colonial and genocidal atrocities today, including the massacre of more than 17,000 Palestinian children in Gaza," Yao said, breaking off as the crowd cheered. The next day, Yao said she received a call from her principal, who said her statements had "caused harm" and told her she shouldn't come to school on Monday. That decision is being criticized by some as going against Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) policy, and Yao said she stands by her speech. "I believe that it was the right thing to do because it's an issue that deeply affects my community," she said. 'Took focus away' from graduation, says board Since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023, more than 50,000 children have been reportedly killed or injured in Gaza, according to UNICEF. In an email sent to parents after the commencement ceremony, which Yao provided to CBC, her principal wrote that her speech "intentionally took focus away from the purpose of the event, celebrating the achievement of our graduating class." But the escalating war in Gaza was an ever-present concern for her class through their high school years, Yao said, noting that her school has a large Arab and Muslim population. "I have seen it affect the students around me, as they have gone on walkouts and protests in the past in order to make the Canadian government aware of what is going on," she said. School board trustee Lyra Evans told CBC she's been fielding a lot of emails, texts and calls, but none of them were unhappy with Yao's comments. "[They] have been asking how on earth or why on earth are we suspending valedictorians and potentially putting their future in jeopardy with three weeks left to go in school," Evans said. Hanna Abdalla, Yao's friend and fellow graduate, said she didn't hear from anyone who was upset with Yao's speech. "I don't think it was fair to [be] putting our valedictorian on blast," said Abdalla. "What about the harm, the daily harm, that Palestinian students back in Palestine go through every day?" CBC asked for an interview with the school's principal, but the OCDSB said they would not be commenting. 'Anti-Palestinian erasure' After her situation drew so much attention, Yao was put in touch with the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), a non-profit advocacy and lobby group. Nusaiab Al-Azem, director of legal affairs for the NCCM, told CBC she believes the school violated OCDSB policies by both telling Yao not to come to school without officially suspending her and for punishing her for pro-Palestinian statements. "To imply that what [Yao] said was harmful is itself a form of anti-Palestinian erasure and anti-Palestinian racism, which the school board has a specific policy against," she said. Evans agreed that Yao did not break any rules. She cited the OCDSB's own guidelines, which say "slogans or symbols that signal solidarity, such as 'Free Palestine' etc. are permitted so long as they don't violate the code of conduct." The school board should revoke the suspension, ensure no mark is made on Yao's Ontario student record, and issue an apology to the broader Palestinian community, Evans said. In the meantime, Yao still plans to go back to school on Monday. "I'm a little angry, maybe, at the unfortunate situation, especially since I had connected the situation to the values of the school board and what I had learned throughout my four years of being at the school," she said. "I was applying that to being an advocate and making sure that those who are oppressed have a voice in our society."
