A high school junior’s world is often very self-contained. There is school, homework, friends, social outings and family time.
Time that was once spent on trips to the library to finish research papers now consists of cocooning oneself in one’s bedroom with Wi-Fi, snacks and Google. Phone calls have been replaced by FaceTime, and if it doesn’t show up on Instagram, it didn’t happen.
Yet, there are a few teenagers who venture outside of this bubble to get a leg up on the issues that will define their existence as adults. Plainfield High School junior Anu Nattam is one of those teens.
Co-editor of Plainfield High School’s magazine, Quaker Shaker, Nattam testified in front of committee members for the Indiana Board of Education on Wednesday regarding issues of free speech and her rights as a member of the student press.
“In October, we published an issue that was focusing on relationships and dating that came under a lot of fire from the (school) administration,” she said. “We’ve been struggling with censorship since then.”
Nattam was asked to speak to the board of education by the Indiana High School Press Association.
“I spoke to the board of education committee members in support of House Bill 1016, which grants students the same freedoms that professional journalists have,” she said. “I expressed why it’s important. I told them what’s happening at school and with my publication. I gave them a few examples of the censorship that’s happened.”
Nattam said she was nervous going into her testimony, but when she was reminded of why she was there and what she was doing it all for, her nerves were somewhat alleviated.
“Free speech is important because it’s one of the key principles of our county and what makes us a democratic republic,” she said. “Every person should be able to voice their opinion and say what we need to say.”
Nattam, who stood before the board wearing a shirt that said “write boldly and tell the truth fearlessly,” said that looking bad isn’t a good reason not to report the truth. She said she hopes HB1016 is passed by the board and moves on to be considered in the House. If passed in the House and the Senate, student journalists will be afforded the same rights and protections as professional journalists.
“We need to report facts, even if it makes people uncomfortable,” she said. “Our job is to report the truth.”