Annysa Johnson

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

When Shorewood High School chose "To Kill a Mockingbird" as this year's fall play, it seemed a relevant commentary on the times.

Based on the Harper Lee classic about a white southern lawyer defending an innocent black man in the 1930s, it is a story about segregation and racism, a broken criminal justice system and the sacrifices of those who would stand up for what is right.

But Lee's book, which has been banned by many schools across the country, remains as controversial today as it did when she wrote it. On Thursday, just hours before the curtain was to go up, Shorewood canceled the production in response to a planned protest over the use of the 'N' word in some scenes.

News of a protest had circulated on social media early in the day. And by mid-afternoon, Superintendent Bryan Davis pulled the plug, saying the district should have done a better job engaging the community "about the sensitivity of this performance."

"We’ve concluded that the safest option is to cancel the play," Davis said in a statement.

District officials met Friday hoping to resolve the issue.

"Though we had hoped to announce today how we plan to move forward, a decision of this magnitude requires a very thoughtful approach. The work continues as we try to find a viable solution and we will provide an update in the coming days," school board president Paru Shah said in a statement sent to Shorewood families Friday night.

The cancellation has angered and disappointed students and parents on both sides of the debate.

"That was never our request. We asked for the word to be omitted," said Patience Phillips, the mother of three African-American students involved in the protest.

"I understand that the children put a lot of work into this play," she said. "This doesn't create dialogue. It causes more of a division."

Stacy Synold had two children in the play, both of whose characters utter the slur. She called the production one of the "most poignant" she'd seen and said the school's decision to use the slur sparked important conversations with her children.

"This is a great loss to the community," she said of the cancellation. "This play is a warning of what happens if we don't change our ways. And it's a message of hope — that young people might be the reason things change.

"Art is a way for us to deal with these issues. And now we can't. We've lost that opportunity."

Shorewood Drama has never shied away from controversial productions. It has staged "Spring Awakening," "Urine Town," "Rent" and others that pushed boundaries. But this production comes amid a raging national debate over a word that is perhaps, as The Washington Post put it, "the most divisive in the English language."

Shorewood officials recognized this potential land mine and attempted to brace parents and students from the beginning. When the cast was first selected, they issued a statement saying it would use the word out of "fidelity to the production," but stressed that they do not condone the use of the word in any other context.

"The fact that our society still struggles to truly embrace racial equality symbolizes that our work is not yet done and that Harper Lee's Mockingbird is as relevant in 2018 as it was in 1960," they said.

To prepare the broader student body, English classes read the book and discussed the language and themes of the play.

And in early October, Drama Director Joe King sent an email to parents of children whose characters were to utter the word, encouraging them to talk to their children about their feelings of discomfort.

"It's going to be quite a challenge for your students and the student body to say and hear this word," said King. "But we are confident that ... we are going to get this powerful story told ... and told sensitively and beautifully."

The debate did not cut cleanly across racial lines. About 30 students, black and white alike, objected to the use of the 'N' word. Likewise, African-American parents with children in the play supported its use in that context.

Censoring the word "will not educate (people) about the atrocities from which it was born," one mother said on a Facebook post. "It's ugly and raw," she said. "It's my hope that the administration and faculty offered proper explanation and historical relevance."

Senior Grace Dresang, who was required to say the word as the gossipy Miss Stephanie, said there was considerable discussion among the cast and in classes, but perhaps not enough in the broader community.

"What's most disappointing to me is the fact that this is a show about racial acceptance and the fact that segregation and racism are not OK. And I don't think that theme was really well-understood by the community around us."

Phillips, who objected to the use of the word, said the play would have had the same impact without using the word.

"I don't think anyone would have gone home upset because they didn't get to hear the n-word," she said. "You can still get the point across."

Davis, the superintendent, said in his statement that the district would "continue to encourage staff and students to engage in meaningful performances surrounding contemporary issues with the appropriate amount of outreach and dialogue."

It is not the first time Shorewood, a predominantly white district, has struggled with issues around race. In 2016, Davis apologized to five students and their teacher after painting over a mural they created to "spark a conversation" about racial inequality at the school.

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