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Page 6 The GreenWave News February 2015 Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography

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Page 1: Photo by Crown Photographyimages.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/AL/LeedsCity... · Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography

Page 6 The GreenWave News February 2015

Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography

Photo by Crown Photography

Photo by Crown Photography

Page 2: Photo by Crown Photographyimages.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/AL/LeedsCity... · Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography

February 2015 The GreenWave News Page 7

Photo by Crown Photography

Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography

Photo by Crown Photography

Page 3: Photo by Crown Photographyimages.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/AL/LeedsCity... · Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography

Page 8 The GreenWave News February 2015

There is a silence in this world. From the beginning of our time on this planet, there has been silence. Not in nature where the chime of birdsong and the chatter of insects can be heard at all times, but in the people who are so often fearful of the words that boil on their tongues and in their hearts, worlds that are muffled by the govern-ment and by the people and by the cruel. You would think, in a world of progression and evolution, advancement and discovery, in a time when medicine is cresting peaks unseen before and technology has been developed that will outlast us all, that we would be a species no longer scared of the words that find us in the darkness when little else leaks through our terror and fear and anger. But tongues are held still because we live in fear. We live in fear of the injustice and the pain we face every day; we live in terror of the next headline, wondering who was killed this time and for what reason; we watch riots on the news and bite our lips, holding back tears as we see the havoc silence causes. The youth of the nation is looked upon as the future, but what are we taught? We are taught that a man loves a woman and that is the only love that exists. We are taught that being feminine is wrong and a horrible thing; we are taught that women are always weaker than men and that men cannot show weakness; we raise the standard of beauty daily with commercials and television, always telling girls and women that whatever they have done to be good enough isn’t enough; we label toys and books and clothes, material items that mean nothing, as feminine and masculine, teaching children there is an un-crossable line between being a man and being a woman. We are taught that the gender you are born as is the only thing you can be and there is a stigma for not following that rule. We are taught that your skin color is the primary test of your character and that the only way to pass the test is to be white. We are taught that who you love is wrong if it isn’t heterosexual and we are taught to ostracize anyone who defies that set standard. We are taught that rape is common, everyday, and the product of ourselves; something we brought upon ourselves by being desirable; something we should have enjoyed because we were beautiful; something excusable because boys will be boys; something to be ashamed of because we asked for it, be-cause it is a victimless crime and we’re being dramatic. And we are taught to be silent if our opinions differ. It’s a theme, a chain really, that has wrapped itself through history and the consequences are easily seen: burnings, executions, abuse, beatings, life-long insecurities based on constantly being told you are wrong, and countless acquitted trails because evidence is nothing in the face of privilege and racial profiling. People are silenced everyday because we have been taught what is ‘wrong’ and we have been taught what happens when we don’t com-ply. Silence has been impressed upon generations of people but those who fight for a cause worth fighting for know that is doesn’t take much to break a silence, no matter how long it has been held. Martin Luther King, Jr. knew that and he used it to the advantage of the nation: he used his words and his speeches to break the barrier. No one ever wants to be the first to speak, no matter how hard the words thrash in their throats. But once the silence has been broken, there is a flood of answering calls, an army of people willing to stand behind a cause. Dr. King called the oppressed of a nation to arms and instead of picking up weapons, they cast about their silence for the words unspoken, the words abandoned as they were crushed, and they let them go. Silence is taught and institutionalized and rampant. But it breaks. All silence is broken, one way or an-other, by revolution or revelation or by a man with a dream. Ms. Layfield won the annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Unity Breakfast essay contest at Leeds High School. Her essay was entered in the City of Birmingham Dr. King Celebration “I Have a Dream” Essay competition and Layfield won a $50 cash prize.

There is Silence in This World By Vanessa Layfield

-tering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppres-sion, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today.”

— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a Bap-tist minister, was a driving force in the push for racial equality in the 1950's and the 1960's. In 1963, King and his staff focused on Birming-ham, Alabama where they marched and protested non-violently. Thrust into the national spotlight in Birmingham, where he was ar-rested and jailed, King helped or-ganize a massive march on Wash-ington, DC, on August 28, 1963 .

...“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal’." I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of for-mer slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state swel-

“ I Have a Dream…” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Page 4: Photo by Crown Photographyimages.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/AL/LeedsCity... · Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography

February 2015 The GreenWave News Page 9

Photo courtesy of Sherea Harris-Turner

January Students of the Month Outstanding students for January selected by the faculty are (left to right): 12th grade Elise Turner and Jeremy Clark; 11th grade Kalei Whitson and Payton Richey; 10th grade Yazmin Flores and Ryan Dozier; 9th grade Ra-leighMcLaughlin and (not pictured) Elvis Caldwell. (Photo Credit Mrs. Gibson)

Outstanding students for December selected by the faculty are (left to right): 12th grade Payne Bouchillon and Ingrid Mayo; 11th grade Clark Smith and Anna Warner; 10th grade Caleb Crocker and Catherine Moore; 9th grade Miles Evans and Giovanna Hernandez. (Photo Credit Mrs. Gibson)

December Students of the Month

Fox 6 Sidelines Coach

of the Year

Basketball Champs

Wrestling STATE Champs

Page 5: Photo by Crown Photographyimages.pcmac.org/SiSFiles/Schools/AL/LeedsCity... · Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography Photo by Crown Photography

Page 10 The Back Page February 2015

GRADUATION

May 28th

2015

7:00 pm

Mrs. Lisa Hudson, LHS

Call 699-4510 for an appointment

The Counselor’s Counselor’s Corner

BUSINESS NAME The GreenWave News

SENIORS

This is an exciting and BUSY year for sen-iors. There are many things to think about before graduation on May 28, 2015.

POINTS OF INTEREST:

Most college applications are online now. You may start filling these out immediately. An application fee may be required. Be sure to check dead-lines for all schools that are of interest to you.

If you are a college-bound senior and have not taken the ACT, you need to get registered ASAP. Online registra-tion is at www.actstudent.org. Check the website for test dates and registra-

tion deadlines.

Remember to check out school activities on the

school website:

www.leedsk12.org or

www.leeds.al.lch. schoolinsites.com

LHS Calendar 2015

February 23 — 24 SACS Committee Site Visit

February 27 Students dismiss at 1:00 Professional Development for teachers March 12 Parent/Teacher Conferences March 30 — April 3 SPRING BREAK

May 1 Weather Day

May 25 Memorial Day

May 28 Graduation and Last day for students

May 29 Teacher In-Service

May 30 SUMMER VACATION BEGINS