Computer Writing and Research Lab | University of Texas at Austin

Writing as Disorderly Conduct

Michael at A Collage of Citations writes of a Chicago High School student arrested because of a "disturbing" piece of writing. Michael raises some interesting questions:

The police chief said disorderly conduct can be when writing disturbs someone, but this seems to be a fairly subjective definition with very little clarity on implementation: Whose writing is it that disturbs someone? Who is being disturbed?

Maybe this is, in part, a knee-jerk reaction to the Virginia Tech shootings?

i agree

I agree that it's probably a knee-jerk reaction to the Virginia Tech shootings — or, at least the arrest is. But this sort of reaction (without the arrest) isn't really something new, I don't think. Now, the repercussions for violence in writing are worse than merely a talk with the school counselor...