Branded - Eric Walters [19]
I waved and then headed for the door. It was—of course—locked, but at least I was out of the rain. Mr. Roberts came into the foyer. He walked over and pushed open the door.
“You startled me,” he said.
“Sorry. I was just out walking and saw the light on and came over to see.”
“I was startled, but I wasn’t surprised,” he said.
“You expected me to come here?”
“I expected you to be troubled by what we talked about today.”
I nodded.
“You don’t understand why I’m not doing anything about the uniforms.”
Again I nodded.
“It might be different if the uniforms had been my idea to begin with,” he said.
“They weren’t your idea?”
“No. They were the idea of some committee up at the board office. They see uniforms as a way of creating discipline and bringing order to a school.”
“You don’t think they do that?” I asked.
“Do you think a marine is a marine only because of the uniform they wear?” he asked.
“Of course not.”
“Because if all they needed was a uniform, you’d just send recruits to a tailor instead of putting them through advanced training and giving them continual drills. That’s what makes a marine.”
“And you think the same thing about a good student,” I said.
“Good students and good schools are brought about by planning and caring, and by having good teachers and good administration and good policies. Uniforms are just window dressing, an excuse to not do the things that really matter.”
“So you’re against uniforms?”
“Never liked them and never wanted them.”
“But we’re getting them,” I said.
“That was the order I was given, that we would have uniforms,” he said.
“But couldn’t you have just said no?” I asked.
“A good marine follows orders.”
“You’re not a marine anymore.”
“But I am employed by this board of education. It’s my role to implement their policies.”
“Including the ones you don’t agree with?” I asked.
He didn’t answer right away. “Those are the policies that challenge us.” He paused. “Especially this one. After I discovered who manufactured the uniforms, I brought it to the attention of my superiors. I told them the history of the company. I said a lot of the same things you said to me.”
“And it didn’t do any good,” I said.
He shook his head.
“They are not prepared to make any changes.” He paused. “I shouldn’t have told you that. That was inappropriate. You better get home. I’ll see you Monday morning.”
“Sure, good night…wait…I have one more question.”
“Go ahead.”
“If anybody refuses to wear the uniforms, they will be suspended, right?”
“Any student or staff not in uniform will be denied entry to the school and will receive a one-day suspension.”
“And if they show up without a uniform the next day?” I asked.
“Three-day suspension.”
“And if they show up after that without a uniform?”
“A two-week suspension,” he said. “And the next offence would be an expulsion.”
I shook my head. “It just doesn’t seem right. If we decide to boycott the uniforms, to do the things we’ve been taught—the things you taught us—we’ll be punished.”
“In some ways it is completely fair,” he said. “If you choose to break a rule or law and you know the consequence, then receiving that consequence is fair.”
“Even if the rule is wrong?” I asked.
“Gandhi and Dr. King didn’t act because they thought there would be no consequence. They knew what could happen, what would happen, but they went ahead anyway. That’s what made them great leaders,” Mr. Roberts said. “It’s late and it’s raining even harder. Do you want me to drive you home?”
“Thanks for the offer,” I said, “but I think I need to walk.” I had even more things to think about now.
I headed back out into the rain. I was already soaked, so I wasn’t going to get any wetter. Besides, I wasn’t going home. I had one more stop to make.
chapter thirteen
I stood on the steps with Oswald and Julia. There were dozens and dozens of other people out there with us. Everybody, including us , was wearing the new uniforms. Most of the people around us were just killing time before they had to go inside. That was pretty common. Others were starting to go inside.