There is a fine line between a debate and an argument.
“Everyone understands what they think,” social studies teacher Matthew Herbert said. “It takes true intelligence, however, to articulate why you think it.”
The concept of knowing and owning an opinion is highlighted at Herbert’s political dinner theater. At these events, Herbert’s students view modern Hollywood films that are highly controversial and have deep-rooted political themes.
Senior Emily Ortiz was one of 16 students who attended the first meeting of the political dinner theater.
“I’m interested in political sciences and studying that in college, so I figured it’d be nice to discuss current issues through cinema,” Ortiz said.
Attendees are served dinner while they watch films. Once the movies are over, they get the opportunity to openly discuss their feelings and opinions on the film and political issues.
“I do my best to let the students lead the discussion,” Herbert said. “If they wanted to hear me rant about politics, they could take my government class. This is their chance to rant.”
Ortiz said the discussion aspect of the event was very interesting.
“There were certainly very diverse points of views that were expressed during the debate following the movie,” Ortiz said. “It’s nice to see how other people feel, even if you don’t agree with them.”
The first political dinner theater took place the evening of Oct. 1. The film shown was “Rendition.” It covers the issue of whether torture is a justifiable form of interrogation.
“I can’t say enough about the students who showed up to our first meeting,” Herbert said. “To introduce kids to this activity with a film discussing the use of torture on suspected terrorists is quite a starting point.”
For Ortiz, the movie was thought-provoking and eye-opening.
“[The film] made me really uneasy, I didn’t really know what to think because it is a really hard issue,” Ortiz said. “It was nice to have an awareness and discuss issues that are usually hushed up.”
Overall, Herbert was impressed by the outcome of the first night.
“I look back on my high school experience and seriously question if I would have been mature enough to have the sort of conversation at the intellectual level that these kids were having,” Herbert said.
While this was the first political dinner theater held at LHS, it is not a new event for Herbert. He began doing political dinner theater in 2006 when he taught at Highland Park High School in Topeka.
Herbert was able to resume the program here after receiving a $500 grant from the Bill of Rights Institute in Virginia. The $500 helps to provide dinner and drinks to the students who attend.
The Bill of Rights Institute also offers a series of scholarships to students. Since the institute has provided the funding for political dinner theater, all students who participate will be eligible to enter the scholarship competitions.
“While there is no guarantee of scholarship money, there is a guarantee of increased opportunity versus your peers,” Herbert said. “Besides, with a guarantee of free pizza, how could you go wrong?”
The next meeting of the political dinner theater will be Oct. 25. Students will watch “The Ides of March” and discuss campaign ethics.
“I’m a little bit of a politics nerd; most of these movies come from my own personal DVD collection. Periodically, however, to bring some fresh ideas to the forum, I have to consult with other trained TV watching experts,” Herbert said. “When such an instance occurs, I turn to my colleague and mentor, Jack Hood. No one knows more about [which] films are worth watching than [him].”
Looking ahead, Herbert hopes to have a slightly higher turnout rate. Ideally, he wants 20-25 students who regularly attend.
“I think that people should come, it’s really fun, and I feel that if more people came there would be more discussion,” Ortiz said.
For Herbert, this event helps solidify his pride in teaching at LHS.
“When you have the opportunity to have real discussions with kids, all of whom want to be there… Nothing beats that,” Herbert said.
