Good day, we are the Uribe/Gomez 7th grade advisory.  A couple weeks ago a few students in the 7th grade picked up The Ultra Violet and happened to fall upon the article “R-E-S-P-E-C-T Find out what it means to me.” By the next day the whole grade knew about this article and quite frankly felt offended by the arguments presented. We are writing to express our own opinion about the “social hierarchy” at Marlborough, and we hope that we can show you what respect means to us. Marlborough is supposed to be a supportive, community-orientated place for all of us. So hear us out and try to understand our side of the story.

First, not all seventh graders are loud and annoying like the article implies. We are all different and most of us are mature and do our best to be calm around everyone on campus. Yes, we get excited when it’s our friend’s birthday and crowd around her in the hall. This essentialism is unwarranted and invalid. Also, we are new to the school and thus not quite used to the environment here. Just like every other class of seventh graders, we are trying to fit in. Everyone can look back to a time when they were not sure how they fit into their community. A little empathy goes a long way, especially in this instance. It is not fair to characterize us and blame us for things that many of us do not do. This crude depiction of seventh grade is offensive.

Second, we noticed that in the article, high schoolers are prioritized because of their height and age. Looking down on someone simply because they are younger or shorter is never okay. Everyone needs food no matter how late they’ve been up, and everyone has a right to ask questions and use the campus that we share. Next, we have only been at Marlborough for one quarter. There is no reason to base us on a stereotype of past seventh graders. Respect and awareness is always good, but there is no reason to prioritize older or taller students. This bring us to our last arguments. Hierarchies are not good. No matter the type, hierarchies based on gender, race, age or any other identification are dehumanizing.

In conclusion we believe that if the Marlborough community had better communication we would all be able to get along better. So we propose another plan for Marlborough. Let’s rebuild our community where everyone is equal. Let’s tear down any remnant of the social hierarchy left over at Marlborough. One of our banners here at Marlborough is community and part of being a community means improving our community to accept and value all members. π