No one could have known how prophetic the opening line of Publisher Janis Besler Heaphy’s speech to the graduating class at California State University Sacramento would be.
“It’s challenging to give a commencement address,” she told the crowd at Arco Area.
Indeed it was.
By the time the 10 o’clock news was aired that Saturday night, Heaphy left challenging local audiences behind and entered the strange world of temporary celebrity. An audience that did not want to hear what she had to say forced her off a local stage, but onto a national stage. They made that possible by clapping, stomping and assorted vocal protests.
With the attention came insults, name-calling and threats, and some support. In a very odd way, the events in Sacramento did what every good newspaper wants to do. The events provoked discussions about free speech, values in a democracy, the entitled generation, common courtesy, the role of the press and family values.
The morning after her speech a story appeared in The Bee about the incident under the headline “Graduation speech cut short by hecklers.” The Associated Press distributed a similar story nationwide. Sunday night and Monday all the local and national television news programs geared up, and the Internet news sites and talk shows kicked in when the work week began.
On Tuesday a fellow in a Santa suit paraded in front of the Bee building. He carried two signs. One urged readers to cancel their subscriptions; the other suggested a boycott of several Bee advertisers.
The circus atmosphere lasted about two days.
How much public reaction the media generated was indicated by the way responses came in to the ombudsman’s office. Early Monday morning I had a total of five telephone calls and about 20 e-mails regarding Saturday’s events. By Wednesday morning, following Website reports and talk show attacks on Heaphy, hundreds of people around the country were writing their opinions to somebody.
Closer to home, there was considerably less interest. The local calls and letters to the ombudsman’s office had grown to 66 at midweek. A clear majority of those blamed the disruption on the content of Heaphy’s remarks, her speaking technique or the school administration’s planning. Fifteen people said they thought the speech was fine, or at least worth hearing, and the audience reaction rude.
The national reaction
People who read or heard about the flap across the nation sent 156 e-mails to me, and a larger number directly to Heaphy. Two-thirds of those national e-mails cheered the people who ran her off the stage, quite a few heaped insults on her personally, and about one-third supported Heaphy or her right to speak. No more than 100 or so of those who complained have ever seen the newspaper or knew much about what the publisher said.
The content of the speech she tried to deliver has already been published on the opinion pages, debated, written about elsewhere and the subject of letters to the editor and Internet debates. I won’t repeat that. The media has reported her reaction to the flap. She made it clear to me she doesn’t intend to apologize for trying to bring important national issues before graduates.
A few Bee readers who attended the ceremony did write, and they were unhappy with Heaphy. Here are a few examples: Graduate Jethro Tarn said, “Heaphy’s speech was totally inappropriate for the time and place.” When he read the entire speech later, he agreed the issues she raised were important and relevant, but felt the speech ruined his graduation. He was looking for words that were “upbeat and inspirational,” and did not find them.
Parent Joan Grimm was in the audience. “We were appalled at the lack of discretion on her part, her total insensitivity to the present times as well as the complete disregard to the group she was addressing.” She was surprised that Heaphy tried to continue speaking “after there was some rumbling in the audience.”
Graduate Al Gambetti said he felt sorry for Heaphy, and believed some of the fault lay with the school administration. He felt the speech was inappropriate, poorly delivered, and she should have been advised on that. He felt the speech’s organization and presentation aggravated the situation, a point raised by others.
Russ and Joan Lee said that students began the protest – not the audience, as the university administration was quoted as saying in local media. “They were all excited and upbeat on their special day and didn’t want to hear what she was saying.” Most local folks who contacted me raised the issue of “appropriateness” of the speech. Some felt it was a lecture, not a speech.
Clearly, any speech encouraging students to become informed citizens and dealing with challenges facing democracy was not what this audience wanted to hear.
Other Bee readers jumped into the discussion later, and the subject began to wander off into other realms. Readers wrote that the speech was “a mistake,” “wacko,” “ignorant,” “arrogant,” “blind,” “liberal,” “politically correct,” “biased,” “idealistic,” “slanted,” “disgraceful,” “shameful” and other similar comments.
Several people who attended the event said that a commencement speaker should, as one put it, “give the kids what they want.” Tell them they’ve done well, and send them on their way. One suggested eliminating graduation speakers altogether, since they rarely are heard and often ignored.
Two particularly interesting comments, for their creativity, were these: “The watering holes that the liberal camels are drinking from are shrinking fast.” And this, “She got exactly what she deserved with her Clintonista left-wing message.”
Some support
Heaphy had supporters, and the audience had some critics.
Of the total communications received by me, about one-third backed Heaphy.
Michael Miller saw a report on local television, read the text of the speech and then wrote to agree with the ideas expressed. “I applaud you for having the courage to express your thoughts on this issue in such a difficult setting. I encourage you to keep doing so.” A 1972 graduate of CSU Sacramento said he was stunned at the behavior of the audience, and wrote to apologize.
Bee reader Sybil Husted called to say she was appalled that Heaphy was “driven off the podium by people eager to give up their liberties.” Husted, who is 82, said she lived through the rise of Hitler in Europe when people were shouted down. She fears that young people do not realize they need to be open to ideas, and quoted the Bible about the need for knowing the truth. She was proud of The Bee’s publisher.
Another older reader called to encourage Heaphy and express dismay at the behavior of the crowd.
Since several of you asked my reaction to these events, here are my thoughts, based on my experience with newspapers (eight), graduations (several) and speeches (too many).
The publisher, my boss, probably needs to polish and tighten her speeches in the future. This audience wanted sound bites.
Local media, including The Bee, rarely cover what is said at graduation ceremonies. Better start checking the program.
Students facing graduation need to tell their administration what they want in their commencement ceremonies. If it is beach balls and beer, or challenging speeches, speak up.
Parents need to model civil behavior before young people. Some did.
People who want to complain about a speech should read or listen to the speech. A few did.
People who disrupt a speech at a public event should be asked to quiet down or leave.
Local broadcasters should learn how to pronounce Heaphy’s name, letter writers should learn to spell it, and e-mails from back east should stop comparing all Californians to zany ’60s leftists.
And a Merry Christmas to you.
