Monterey High
The decision by the judge to block the improvements at Monterey High is yet another example of how institutions are set up to preserve the privilege of the few over the benefits of the many. The neighbors surrounding Monterey High School live in multi-million dollar homes and according to the California Department of Education about 50% of Monterey High students live in poverty. The fact that the neighbors used the legal system to get what they want after a vote of an elected body didn't go their way is a strategy that is all too familiar in this country. I feel sorry for the students but in a way this is an important lesson about how the real world works that they likely won't get in their civics classes. Hopefully as the next generation of leaders they will use this hard lesson as fuel to keep fighting to change a system designed to preserve the power and privilege of an elite few.
— P. McDaniels, Monterey
Thank you for your continued coverage of the Monterey High lights controversy. As a parent, it is clear to me that the judge and neighbors are out of touch with what students are going through at Monterey High. I wish they would visit the stadium and see the dangerous nature of spectator seating and the unsafe conditions students experience while practicing and playing in the dark. I wish they would talk to the students and hear firsthand the impact the global pandemic has had on their mental health and well-being. If they did I think they would understand that any supposed “safety issues” they are worried about as a result of the project pale in comparison to the issues that students are already dealing with.
— Gianna Holmstead, Seaside
What a lump of coal given to Monterey High students by the judge in the lawsuit against the stadium project. After all the concessions the district gave to neighbors this lawsuit was completely unwarranted. I can't believe the judge agreed with these neighbors that five nights a year with lights on past 8 p.m. is more important than kids being able to practice and play safely under lights. Some Christmas present for Monterey High students that they will continue to be forced to practice in the dark. I guess they will have to continue to wait for next year to get the facilities that virtually every student in the United States already enjoys.
— Ethan Ritcher, Monterey