Westerner 13.3.2, Story 2


VOL. XIII, NO. 3			OCTOBER 29, 1971
	No Classifications Just Unique People
By TINA LABELLARTE In the last issue of the Westerner. an article concerning freaks, straights, greasers, and the percentage of them in Des Plaines and Maine West appeared. I'm not criticizing the Westerner for printing it. In fact, I'm very glad they did. It made me see more clearly how very strong this prejudice is here at Maine West. People cannot be classified into three or even 103 categories. Every person is different. Each is an individual. We are not like so many rocks, classified and stored away in a convenient little collection. Every one is alive, different, important, and changing.		If one day I wore a black leather jacket, ratted-up hair, and gobs of make-up, I would be the perfect greaser stereotype. If on another I wore faded jeans and an old shirt, I might be considered a freak. If it was a cheerleading uniform I wore, I would be considered a rah-rah or straight. Each time my clothes would change so would people's attitudes toward me. The really important part of me - what's inside - would be the same. Different days different people would like my clothes, my hair, but never me! That's what Fm trying to say. Look past the clothes, the make-up, the hair style. Find out what's inside each other. That's the only thing that's important. Then when the next poll comes, we can say we have no greasers, no freaks, no straights at Maine West. We can say we have people.