Quote :

"7 busted after cheers erupt at S.C. graduations It's an effort to reduce disruptions, but for some, it's 'like a funeral in there' updated 6:59 p.m. ET, Tues., June. 10, 2008 COLUMBIA, S.C. - When Rock Hill school officials tell commencement crowds to hold their applause until the end, they mean it — police arrested seven people after they were accused of loud cheering during the ceremonies. Six people at Fort Mill High School's graduation were charged Saturday and a seventh at the graduation for York Comprehensive High School was charged Friday with disorderly conduct, authorities said. Police said the seven yelled after students' names were called. "I just thought they were going to escort me out," Jonathan Orr told The Herald of Rock Hill, about 70 miles north of Columbia. "I had no idea they were going to put handcuffs on me and take me to jail." Orr, 21, spent two hours in jail after he was arrested when he yelled for his cousin at York's commencement at the Winthrop University Coliseum. Rock Hill police began patrolling commencements several years ago at the request of school districts who complained of increasing disruption. Those attending commencements are told they can be prosecuted for bad behavior and letters are sent home with students, said Rock Hill police spokesman Lt. Jerry Waldrop. All the cases, except for one that includes a resisting arrest charge, will be handled in city court and are punishable by a maximum of 30 days in jail and a $1,000 fine. 'Gave a little whoop' Orr said he thinks people should be allowed to cheer. "For some people, it might be the only member of their family to graduate high school, and it was like a funeral in there," Orr said. William Massey, 19, was arrested but said he plans to fight the charge. He said he simply "clapped and gave a little whoop" when his fiancee's name was called. Massey said there were warnings before the ceremony but none that said he could be arrested. He said not everyone who cheered was arrested. "There's a lot more people that did it than six or seven," said Massey, who graduated from Fort Mill last year. Fort Mill Principal Dee Christopher says school officials don't ask that offenders be arrested but that he plans to keep a police presence at future graduation ceremonies. "We think it's important for every graduate's name to be heard and for every person in the arena to be able to see that student cross the stage. ... That's why we have disruptive guests removed," he said. Last year in Galesburg, Ill., five students were denied diplomas from the city's lone public high school after enthusiastic friends or family members cheered for them during commencement. Students could get their diplomas after completing eight hours of public service for the school district."

I remember idiots cheering at my high school graduation (some of them for like ten seconds after their graduate crossed the stage), but this is ridiculous.

story's a few days [old] but search didn't turn up anything

[Edited on June 13, 2008 at 9:08 AM. Reason : quote]

6/13/2008 9:00:46 AM

this annoyed me so much at any graduation

6/13/2008 9:02:31 AM

they escorted people out of the building at our HS graduation too.

arrested though? ridunkulous and overkill


and for my college graduation, the number of grads was small so they encouraged applause and cheering, but just asked that people kept it short.

[Edited on June 13, 2008 at 9:05 AM. Reason : ]

6/13/2008 9:03:28 AM

i just went to my little brother's graduation...the loudest and most obnoxious people in there were these large black families who would not shut the fuck up after their person got the diploma...based on where ours is, i assume that this is probably the only person in their family to graduate high school, but whipping out the air horn made me want to throw something sharp and coated in poison at their faces...i'm sure it seems like i'm racist, but the simple fact of the matter is that it was ONLY the large black families that were being out and out obnoxious

the arrest and handcuffs, though, is ridiculous...no way it'll hold up in court

[Edited on June 13, 2008 at 9:07 AM. Reason : .]

6/13/2008 9:05:39 AM

A friend of mine graduated from NC central night law program and went to the university graduation that included everybody. He said there were people with crazy outfits under their robes (gold boots and shit) break dancing across the stage, people dancing and going nuts in the crowd and just general insanity.

All this AFTER they told everyone to hold all applause and celebration dances until the end so that the ceremony didn't take a freaking year.

[Edited on June 13, 2008 at 9:10 AM. Reason : h]

6/13/2008 9:10:21 AM

Wow, what a bunch of bullshit.

There's no fucking reason for an arrest, or for a fine, or for any jailtime. The officers who arrested these people should be reprimanded and the school districts that condoned it should have their administrative staff replaced (only because I don't like them). Fucking taxpaying citizens getting arrested for cheering on their kid at a highschool graduation.

I'm not a big fan of when people get really crazy obnoxious and scream for like fifteen seconds at the top of their lungs, but I'm not going to ask that they get arrested. At most the person who's up on the podium (or wherever they are announcing the names) should simply tell the audience to shut up.

6/13/2008 9:13:54 AM

I was at the leesville graduation for my brother-in-law on wednesday, and the people there for the kid in front of him cheered so loud that we never heard my brother-in-law's name.




some people are fucking classless.

It's fucking high school, why the fuck are people cheering like they just cured aids?

6/13/2008 9:16:19 AM

how quickly we forget that high school is the culmination of 13 long years of mostly bullshit. are there any programs you've completed that took that long besides public school? probably not. it's a big deal especially as it coincides with "growing up" and leaving your household after approx 18 years

6/13/2008 9:25:04 AM

they know it's downhill after that

6/13/2008 9:25:58 AM

^^ you're right.

They should also give out awards for things like "Not Shitting Yourself for a Week" or "Tying Your Shoes without Drooling Down Your Leg."

However, that aside, the cheering, barking, and other disruptive behavior is fucking classless when subsequent students' families can't hear their child's name being called out. People need to shut their fucking mouths and act like they have even a cunt hair's worth of dignity.

6/13/2008 9:53:01 AM

^what he said!

6/13/2008 10:04:58 AM

On a related note, this is a bulletin someone from my hometown posted on myspace:

Quote :

"CONGRADULATIONS MY SON TYSHONNE REPPN DAT OMS WALKIN CROSS DAT STAGE TOMORROW TO RECEIVE HIZ DILPOMA. GETTN READY FOR HIGH SCHOOL GONE REP DAT OHS. I AM PROUD OF YOU AND I LOVE YOU. AND KEEP DOING YUR THANG. LUV YA MOM. YALL SHOW HIM SUM LOVE"

6/13/2008 10:14:12 AM

can't we have something like those Jim Crow laws for whether or not you're allowed to become educated?

6/13/2008 10:17:55 AM

Quote :

"REPPN DAT OMS"

6/13/2008 10:18:41 AM

there is hope for the future after all lol.

6/13/2008 10:19:13 AM

At my hs graduation, we had one dumb bitch start screaming "Dats my brother yo, dats my brother." This wouldn't have been so bad, except she ran down from the balcony, got onto the stage, and then proceeded to jump around like a fucking baboon screaming "Dats my brother yo." The entire auditorium cheered when the police took her away.

6/13/2008 10:29:48 AM

When I was a junior in HS, at graduation somebody in the audience had an airhorn. He honked it one time when whoever he was there for was on stage, and the principal stopped the ceremony, and told the cops to get that guy. Cop proceeds to climb the fence around the track to get into the stands (the fence opening was 30 feet away) and goes to get the guy. When the cop was six feet from the guy, he pointed the airhorn and gave the cop an earful of HOOOOOOOOONK. Everyone cheered. It was kind of funny.

6/13/2008 10:32:59 AM

we cheered for one guy

if he didn't pass in our year, the county had to kick him out of high school

due to age

6/13/2008 10:36:21 AM

i guess it's a big deal for dumb people, i don't know

6/13/2008 10:37:59 AM

my brother just graduated in a class of around 300, and almost every name got a cheer (and a few airhorns). It was to the point that I almost felt bad for the ones who didn't get a cheer. I didn't see the problem with it, as the cheers were between the time it took for the name announcement and the person to actually walk across stage. Didn't extend the ceremony much (if any), and everyone was having a good time.

I'm sure some people do get excessive, but stuff like this is asanine.

6/13/2008 10:38:30 AM

class

act like you have some

6/13/2008 10:39:03 AM

High school graduation isn't shit, most people are getting it today compared to a few decades ago. Yeah it was 13 years of your life, but what can you do with only a high school degree these days that doesn't pay well?

[Edited on June 13, 2008 at 11:30 AM. Reason : :]

6/13/2008 11:22:14 AM

they withheld diplomas if people cheered at my graduation in 03

6/13/2008 11:32:39 AM

Quote :

"CROSS DAT STAGE"

6/13/2008 11:33:49 AM

Quote :

"they withheld diplomas if people cheered at my graduation in 03 01 "

[Edited on June 13, 2008 at 11:35 AM. Reason : space, CANT SEE SHIT]

6/13/2008 11:34:46 AM

i see no problem with this

6/13/2008 2:49:57 PM

the graduation ceremony is just retarded all around

6/13/2008 3:00:06 PM

i tried to skip mine (mine was the last year they had graduation outside on the football field...at 11am...in june), but was told that if i wasn't physically there, i wouldn't receive my diploma

i never really was a team player

6/13/2008 3:05:57 PM

i had to work graduation last night at the high school I am transferring from.

Allow me to set the scene for you-
Man with a gold silk vest and matching gold boots on. We'll call him Mick.
Bitchy 15 year old with illegitimate child and short skirt on. Call her Sheena.
EXTREMELY OBESE woman in tight wife beater shirt with duck call. Let's call her Buella.
Man in overalls with no shirt and only one strap buckled. He's named Trigger.

These were the two most obnoxious families there. Mick and Sheena and their crew tromped in late, stole people's seats by shoving their bags out of the way and then left AS soon as their kids name was called in the middle of the ceremony (which was only an hour long) They were carrying illegitimate childrens and balloons.

Then Buella and Trigger stood up and screamed as loud as possible...slight whistles were heard from their gapping, random toothed mouths. Buella gets on the duck horn and starts calling to the wild and Trigger scratches himself before taking a seat.

I say thank god someone did something. Maybe arresting someone might seem harsh but having your moment of glory stolen by some obnoxious pricks deserves some drastic action. Yeah, they have a right to yell because they have spent 13 years working toward that day..but so has the kid who has to walk after them whose name was drowned out by duck calls, horns, and "whoops".

Our prinicpal and the spanish teacher who was reading off the names had to request they keep it quiet three times after the initial request. A few students had their diplomas yanked for doing flips off the stage and for screaming while on stage.

6/13/2008 3:15:12 PM

I agree with this

There isn't enough time for every person you brought with you to cheer for 10 mins after you cross the stage.
Just like BobbyDigital said, it causes others not to be able to enjoy their day. The schools should have taught the kids to share in first grade.

You may think it is ridiculous, but I AM SURE it has been a MAJOR problem in the past. The school didn't just up and decide to arrest people with their SROs

6/14/2008 12:32:04 PM

I actually don't see anything wrong with this.

don't follow the rules

YA GET BURNED!!!

6/14/2008 12:38:16 PM

Quote :

"...i'm sure it seems like i'm racist, but the simple fact of the matter is that it was ONLY the large black families that were being out and out obnoxious"

I believe it, attended one yesterday. To me, all this whooping and hollering makes it sound like your family was surprised you could graduate. If I had a large family that hollered like that I'd be embarrassed.

6/14/2008 1:48:07 PM

white trash do this too

its an IQ thang

6/14/2008 1:49:14 PM

Quote :

"RECEIVE HIZ DILPOMA"

6/14/2008 4:58:24 PM

Quote :

"COATED IN POISON"

6/14/2008 6:08:44 PM

i wish they would have fucking arrested those loons at NCSU's graduation last year who were fucking screaming "DEE BEST, DEE BEST, DEE BEST" the whole fucking ceremony. THey had signs and fucking foam fingers. Dumbasses must have thought it was a basketball game or something.

6/14/2008 6:24:34 PM

snowflake culture + police state


I remember on my college graduation, I went to this ceremony that was impersonal, long, boring, and a huge waste of time. They should have arrested the chancellor for ruining my day! wah wah wah

[Edited on June 14, 2008 at 6:30 PM. Reason : .]

6/14/2008 6:28:26 PM

I disagree with withholding diplomas from students, it's not their fault, even though that is common high school administration logic. But I do agree with arresting, there's no excuse for not acting respectful at something like this.

6/14/2008 6:33:35 PM