Michigan high school censors review in student newspaper of film on sexual assault

A Michigan high school student wrote a review of the movie Audrie & Daisy for her school’s newspaper in November 2020, highlighting the movie’s message against sexual assault and the psychological damage that victim-blaming can have on  survivors of assault. For months, the school would not publish the piece because of its sensitive content. Administrators maintained they never intended to censor the article and planned to publish it after subjecting it to review.

Key Player

At the time she wrote the review, Madilyn Merritt was a junior at Mason High School. Merritt plans to pursue a career in journalism or law enforcement. Since writing her article, she was name a Game Changer by End Violence Against Women International (EVAWI).

Further Details

Merritt wrote her article about the Netflix documentary Audrie & Daisy for the school newspaper in November 2020. The film spotlights two high school girls who are sexually assaulted at parties. One of the girls, Audrie Pott, is humiliated online in the days following her assault and commits suicide shortly after; the film’s second protagonist, Daisy Coleman, took her own life in August 2020. 

According to WILX, Merritt wrote the article to shed light on sexual assault among her peers, an issue Merritt describes as rampant in her small town just outside Lansing, Michigan, the state’s capital.

“I wanted to see a change in my community, and specifically the school and my peers’ response to sexual violence. … It’s definitely more of a problem in smaller communities, where things can be covered up and not talked about,” Merritt said.  

EVAWI’s online profile of Merritt reported that school administrators at Mason are reluctant to discuss sexual assault, despite its frequency among adolescents. Merritt also said that her peers frequently discuss sexual assault, but “without understanding the real dynamics.” She often hears her peers victim-blaming, asking, “Why was she out? Why was she drinking?”

Merritt submitted the article to the paper’s faculty advisors for review, but, for months, she received no feedback. Between November 2020 and March 2021, Merritt and her parents reached out to the school multiple times inquiring about why it had not yet been published. According to Merritt, “I just got silence.” 

The school denied Merritt’s claim that she was ignored. In the school’s official response to the incident, one teacher pointed to an email she wrote to Merritt’s father on Jan. 26, 2021, which read, “I LOVED Madi’s story. It was AMAZING.” 

The teacher claims that after Merritt submitted the story, she consulted with two other school newspaper colleagues on the appropriateness of the article, given that the newspaper’s audience includes students aged 13 to 18. The teacher emphaized needing time to “review the graphic nature of the descriptions of sexual assault” and then wrote back to the father suggesting a time to meet, according to WILX. The teacher claims he did not respond. 

Merritt also claims she requested a meeting with Mason High School’s principal, which was denied on the grounds that he was too busy. According to the Mason High School’s statement, the student reached out on March 5, 2021, to set up a meeting but did not state any reason for the discussion. The principal claims he responded and asked to meet with her the next week.

On March 8, 2021, Merritt’s story was covered by local news outlet WILX. In an interview, Merritt said that while the school never told her exactly why her article wasn’t published, she suspects it was because, “Mason High School has an unspoken rule that things don’t get published that they view as controversial.”

Mason High School denied the claim that Merritt’s article was censored. According to the school’s official statement, which was published the same day, the school newspaper had intended to publish the article from the beginning and said it was “very well done.” The school quoted a teacher who stated, “I would never suppress student voice. … It truly saddens me that a student feels she wasn’t heard.” The school announced it planned to publish the article; but as of August 1, 2021, there was no indication that it had or would. 

Madilyn and her family maintain that the school intended to publish her work. She said in an interview, “Basic censorship needs to stop and viewing sexual assault and other topics as controversial as only perpetuating the issue and protecting those who are choosing to inflict harm, instead of victims and survivors who are speaking up.”

Outcome 

EVAWI shares Merritt’s work with 60,000 subscribers

End Violence Against Women International, an organization that aims to educate the public on sexual and gender-based violence, published Merritt’s article, sharing it with its own audience of more than 60,000 subscribers.