Adolescent Lesbianism And Big Brother
An interesting case for discussion:
A security camera captured two girls kissing, but it’s what happened next that sparked a surveillance debate. With Warren County schools having surveillance cameras not only in the high schools but in the middle school and elementary schools as well, you’ll want to read on because reporter Keith Eldridge’s brings you the story that asks the question: When does Big Brother surveillance cross the line?
The dean of students said he saw two girls kissing. He checked the surveillance tape then shared what he saw with the parents of one of the girls. They then pulled her out of school, which then pulled the peninsula school district into a big controversy.
“They weren’t harming other students, so I don’t think the administrators had a right to show it to her parents or anybody else,” student, Laura Varadi said.
“I think that they didn’t use the cameras like how they should. They should only be used for safety I think,” student, Jade Egelhoff said.
“We obviously made a mistake,” Superintendent Terry Bouck said. “We’re here to make sure our kids, our staff and parents are safe, but we’re not going to be monitoring public displays of affection, etc.”
But some parents ask “Why not?”
Why not indeed.
Many, including those excitable privacy absolutists, are quick to cry “invasion of privacy!” and “Big Brother!” when confronted with something like this, but is it really an invasion of privacy? These girls were kissing in public, and a camera monitoring a public area just happened to catch them.
Would there have been a controversy had the principal noticed them kissing as he walked through the area instead of noticing them on the surveillance camera? I don’t think we would. These girls, by being in an open public area, had no expectation of privacy. And there has never been a time in America’s history when people kissing openly out in public did have an expectation of privacy. That technology has made it possible to observe such activities without physically being on the scene to do so means naught.
But that’s the problem many people now have. Technology is making it easier and easier for other people to keep tabs on our lives. Security cameras make it possible to watch people’s activities while in public areas. Satellite mapping tools like those offered by Google make it easy to look at people’s homes. Internet databases have made it easier to track down criminal and civil records. Now all of these things have never been “private.” Never has anyone ever gotten in trouble simply for looking at someone else’s house or watching other people in public. Or checking their criminal records down at the local court house.
But now that it’s so easy anyone can do it from their computer desk? Everyone’s a little...creeped out.
Ultimately, though, we’re just going to have to deal with it. It’s unreasonable to start declaring things “private” that have never been that way before. Just as it’s unreasonable to say that a principal violated two of his students’ privacy when he caught them kissing on a security camera.
And by the way, kids have no expectation of privacy when it comes to their parents. And I would fully expect the principal at my daughter’s school to keep me informed of who she’s making out with at school, be it boy or girl.
p&l, -s&-b&l
