EDITORIAL

Not everyone shares the same thoughts. That’s true worldwide. But it

isn’t everywhere that you can freely espouse those thoughts, even if

those around you despise them.

That’s what makes our democracy great.

Freedom of speech and the free marketplace of ideas doesn’t exist in

totalitarian and repressive regimes. Opposing viewpoints are suppressed

and shut down.

That’s exactly what our military forces are fighting so hard to

protect on the other side of the globe.

Some of the members of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District board

might want to take note of that.

For the past four years, the board has opted against naming

conservative trustee Wendy Leece president or vice president, positions

traditionally passed around among board members.

In fact, the betting is that that Judy Franco is about to get her

final shot at being president, something she’s done five times before.

That would make the seven-year trustee Leece the only member not to

serve in those positions. In 1997, she served a half-term as clerk after

taking over for a resigning trustee.

Leece often holds different views than her colleagues and, in the past

year, has called for the banning of two books and installing the Ten

Commandments in classrooms. While we certainly didn’t, and don’t, agree

with her views on those issues, we support her right to have those

opinions. And, in the future, we expect to disagree with her on a few

other issues as well.

But it’s not as if Leece fails to perform her duty as a board member,

and it’s obvious she’s doing what she thinks is best for her Westside

constituents. She has won two elections, the last during which she ran

unopposed.

Not appointing her to what amounts to a ceremonial position year after

year because her views are not those of the others is a lemming-like,

not-so-subtle form of censorship on the part of the board that doesn’t

belong in a democratic government.

If the board doesn’t want to appoint her president, give her the clerk

or vice president position. But at the very least, board members need to

tell the public why Leece doesn’t deserve such posts.

Is she unqualified or does the board just frown on those who think for

themselves or have strong opinions? Are the board members afraid that she

won’t just parrot their same viewpoints? Then, they ought to say so.

Just snubbing her publicly without so much as an explanation, as they

have done in the past, is unfair to her and her constituency.

At the same time, if the board does admit that free speech and free

expression mean opposing viewpoints are what keep our democracy strong

and they appoint Leece to a position at tonight’s board meeting, the

outspoken trustee should know that by accepting such a role, she must

represent the entire board’s positions in the community, not just her

own.

If she feels like expressing her own views, she will have to clarify

them as such.

So does Leece deserve to be president of the school board? That’s a

decision the school board needs to decide. We just hope they give us,

Leece and her constituents a good reason why.